Protecting habitats and our city’s wildlife
Nature has a big role to play in tackling climate change. Green spaces can help cut greenhouse gases by absorbing carbon and can help deal with the existing consequences of climate change. As a result, it’s essential that we protect and enhance our city’s habitats to enable them to be healthy and diverse. By protecting these habitats, we’ll be tackling climate change and ensuring our city is a cleaner, greener and more pleasant place to live, work and study.
What we are doing:
- Identifying the habitats and wildlife that need to be protected.
- Protecting and managing ecosystems so they can thrive.
- Enhancing our green spaces to attract more wildlife into the city.
- Ensuring that our Local Plan protects wildlife.
- Creating new habitats in the city for wildlife to inhabit.
- Supporting local community groups with a focus on community gardening and wildlife conservation.
- Planting more trees and flowering plants on roadside verges, in parks and areas of green space.
- Communicating the importance of natural habitats and wildlife conservation to our residents and businesses.
In the UK
21 out of 47 species of British mammals are at threat of extinction. Regular garden visitors, like hedgehogs are also in decline due to the impact of human activity. 16 out of 20 garden bird species are declining in numbers. The starling population, one of our most common bird species, has declined by 83% since 1979. There are estimated to be 500,000 large ponds, in addition to three million garden ponds. Ponds are a great way to encourage wildlife such as frogs, toads, newts, dragonflies, birds, and many more into your garden. They also act as watering holes and breeding grounds for wildlife.
