Why this ambition is important for Bath and North East Somerset

Under the Local Government Act 2000, councils have a duty to promote sustainable development (that is, development that can be maintained without damaging the environment or using up natural resources) in their areas.

We are committed to building the principles of sustainability into our actions.  The sustainability principles identified in Bath and North East Somerset are:

• using land wisely;

• building communities that care;

• access and mobility for all;

• using the earth’s resources sensibly;

• education for life;

• local work in a strong local economy; and

• measuring ‘quality of life’.

The Local Plan plays an important part in putting these sustainability principles into practice, and targets set in the Local Plan are referred to in the relevant sections of this strategy. For example, new developments will have to be accessible by different forms of transport, and should be in locations which reduce the need to travel. They should also conserve natural resources, especially those which cannot be renewed.

Bath and North East Somerset has well-developed partnership working in the field of sustainability and protecting the range of plants and wildlife. For example, the Wild Things partnership has identified species that need protecting.  Wessex Water has produced its own Biodiversity Action Plan. Bath and North East Somerset was also at the forefront of development of local food, with its Farmers’ Market (where farmers sell their produce) established as long ago as 1997. The London Road Food Co-operative and the Southside Food Co-operative are good examples of the social economy supporting sustainability in our area.  (Food co-operatives sell local produce at wholesale prices.)

We have identified the changing climate as a particular long-term problem for  Bath and North East Somerset and for the South West, given the risk of flooding in the region. So it is important for both current and future generations that local energy use reflects international agreements concerning climate change.  

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