Sustainable Development
What is Sustainable Development?
It
means working to protect our environment and resources for future
generations to use and ensuring that people’s basic needs are met, such as adequate housing and a safe
environment to live in.
This investment in the short term will pay off
in the long term as it will benefit the local economy and ensure that Kennet remains a safe, attractive
place to live.
For this to happen we need to consider the impact of our
actions on the three components of Sustainable Development :
-
the environment
-
the local society
-
the local economy
Doing this will lead to development
which lasts, so in other words, ‘sustainable’.
As part of this we also need to be aware
of the potential impact of our decisions on the outside world for example :
-
looking at how the goods we buy are produced (Fairtrade tea, coffee and chocolate are good examples of this)
-
thinking about ways to limit pollution and therefore climate change
Sustainable Development needs
us to recognise that we live in an inter-connected world, with limited resources and we need to think
about the impact we have on those resources and the lives of others in the world.
It
is about giving people around the world a fair chance in life, sharing and protecting resources and
protecting the environment for future generations.
How is Kennet District Council contributing to Sustainable Development ?
There
is a Sustainable Development Working Group with a representative from each service in place.
Its
purpose is to look at new ideas to improve our approach to being more ‘sustainable’ in the way we carry
out our business. This includes areas such as switching to Fairtrade products, recycling our waste,
home composting, energy efficiency, use of more ‘sustainable’ building materials etc.
If
you would like to become involved or want to know more, please contact our Environmental Protection
Officer on 01380 724911 or email env.health@kennet.gov.uk
Kennet District Council 'Greening Kennet' Policy
Useful links
Fairtrade www.fairtrade.org.uk (External link)
Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) www.defra.gov.uk/environment/sustainable (External link)
Sustainable Development International www.sustdev.org (External link)
World Wildlife Fund (UK) www.wwf.org.uk (External link)
Wiltshire Wildlife Trust www.wiltshirewildlife.org (External link)