Haringey Climate Forum Meeting 15^th September 2020 (incorporating content from the Chat)

Attendees.

Quentin Given (convenor), Chris Barker (minutes), Joe Baker (Haringey head of carbon management), Brian Simpson, Helen Meyer, Tim Root, Sydney Charles, Anita Chandler, Alan Morton, Norman Beddington, Joyce Rosser, Fred Fitzke, Trixi B, Karen Lansdown, Ian and Tessa Henghes, Dermot Barnes, Glenys Law, Olivia Vincenti, Patrick M.

Apologies: Cllr Kirsten Hearn, Pamela Harling, Tilly Williams.

1. Update on the Carbon Change Action Plan. Joe Baker.

Net zero carbon target by 2041 adopted by the Council in March 2020. The Covid emergency delayed progress after that. Joe stressed the following points from the Action Plan:

• The Council rented a fleet of all-electric vehicles for emergency food delivery. But this proved popular with drivers and the Council is now looking at increasing its own fleet with EV’s
• School street measures are being introduced to restrict traffic around schools. These have proved popular with the schools.  This programme is under constant review and the Councils aims to move towards permanent measures as soon as we can.
• An online eco advice web page has been produced for home owners to measure their domestic consumption of energy and how to reduce it, to be launched imminently.
• A clean air app has been produced to enable drivers to map their travel and make decisions about whether to drive, walk, cycle or get an electric vehicle and whether they could save money as a result. To see the App: https://cleancar.io/

Please visit the Google Play (Android) store or the Apple App store to download the App, and when registering, enter code: 1f5e3cf5.

• Google Play store: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.thevirtualforge.cleancar
• Apple App store: https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/cleancar-mobile/id1199499106
• A Council plan on single use plastics is to be agreed at Cabinet meeting tonight, this will cover the council’s activities but also set out how to help businesses and the wider community reduce SUP. (this was agreed, it’s at https://www.minutes.haringey.gov.uk/documents/s117838/Single%20Use%20Plastics%2020-08-19-SUP_14.03.pdf)
• Haringey signs up to the Mayor’s Energiesprong plan to retrofit homes to reduce energy consumption. The business case is being developed for agreement by New Year. This will aim to raise the council’s worst homes from F to A rating.
• The Council had hoped the CCAP would be consulted on in normal ways as lockdown eased but, as this now seems unlikely, the consultation on the CCAP will be started on line hoping to finalise the Plan by March 2021. Efforts will be made to involve people and particularly people not on line.

Discussion:

• Will the School Streets programme Phase 2 resuming in December follow the pattern of Phase 1 which largely avoids street closures and therefore won’t be very effective?
• Glenys is concerned about the absence of a policy on trees. It was suggested this could be included in a response to the plan. Alan said he went to Queens Wood this afternoon and heard that Catherine West had engineered a meeting between AXA, the insurance co and Haringey Council to discuss the 4 trees. The conclusion is expected at the end of the week.
• Dermot asked about funding streams for retrofitting and also for repair or upgrade to solar arrays. This will be funded from the £101m allocated to Homes for Haringey investment programme and, it is hoped, match funding.
• There was a discussion about ways of reaching beyond the ‘usual suspects’ (Joe was anxious that people would not regard this term negatively!).
• It was agreed the Forum should be promoting this consultation as a way to engage more people, through residents’ associations, Covid support groups, schools, churches, student climate network, and asking ward councillors to engage groups in their area.
• Door knocking needn’t involve handing leaflet which could be subsequently put through the door. Or left at food bank collection point or delivered with food etc or taken home from school? (esp clean air ones..)
• There is an app called InYourArea’ would it be possible to contact the app developers of this app to advertise it on there?
• Making it relevant to people – linking to warm homes and job creation for example – will be important.
• Can we get a Spurs player to mention it on social media, or someone like that?
• Could council help schools do relevant projects, eg socially distanced planting for excluded groups?

We will schedule the next meeting to focus on engagement.

2. New Climate Forum website. Sydney Charles.

Sydney showed us the 40:20 website and then the new one for the Climate Forum which is under development. She hopes to expand it with additional information and hopes that members and others will forward comments and suggestion for additions to her.

Thanks to Sydney and Ian for their work on this. The meeting thought the new site looked very good.

We asked for volunteers at the meeting or beyond to help expand the site and promote it via social media etc.

There was a discussion about ways of publicising the website. Glenys suggested organising local events and it was also suggested that schools be contacted for support.

Ian pointed out that to make the site more readily visible on Google we need to generate more traffic to it. For example, putting the link in community group Facebook and Tweets and emails.

Parting comments on Chat….

Many thanks to everyone for their work and positivity..;)

Congratulations to Sydney and Ian. A great piece of work!