Council pledges support for sea and river environments

Gosport councillors have made a pledge to support the recovery of the sea and rivers from damage done by humanity.

The pledge, made at a full meeting of Gosport Borough Council, includes:

• making ocean recovery part of the council's decisions, plans, budgets and procurement
• calling for improved water quality in seas and rivers
• supporting water conservation
• supporting the government's steps towards a "polluter pays" principle on river pollution
• working with partners to make marine industries more sustainable
• helping to make sure residents, including children, have access to the sea
• urging the government to put the ocean into net recovery by 2030, by acting on areas including:
  
        - reducing sewage spills and water leaks by water companies
        - providing the resources needed for protected marine areas
        - appointing a minister for coastal communities
        - supporting farmers to reduce runoff into waterways
        - boosting regulations on single-use plastics
        - setting standards for microfibre-catching filters on washing machines
        - producing a national ocean recovery strategy

The commitments were contained in a motion, passed after a majority vote, which also condemned the government for a lack of regulation of water companies and for "effectively turning a blind eye" to raw sewage dumping. The motion also criticised the government for putting back legislation on climate change, which affects the oceans, and failing to introduce its intended ban on wet wipes that cause plastic pollution in the sea.

Cllr Julie Westerby, who chairs the council's Community and Environment Board, said: "This was an important motion for councillors to pass. As a community living on a peninsula, the decline in the ocean environment is of paramount importance to Gosport. The pledge involves the council looking at its own policies and actions, to see how they can benefit the marine environment, and adding its voice to efforts to improve the situation nationally. It also recognises that we need ocean recovery to meet net-zero carbon targets, and we need net-zero carbon to recover our ocean."