A town council’s declaration of a climate emergency means actions not words, says its leader.

Cllr Dave Rickard, the newly elected leader of Bridport Town Council says he is proud the council’s announcement includes specific actions to back up the statement.

The first meeting of the town council since the May local elections took place on May 16 and included councillors unanimously approving a motion declaring a climate emergency.

The motion, originally agreed by the council’s environment committee in March, included a range of supporting actions, including a pledge to make Bridport Town Council carbon neutral by 2030, production of a plan setting out specific actions the council will take to address the climate emergency, lobbying Dorset Council and the government to provide resources and powers needed to enable more action at a local level, and working with partners and other local councils to reduce local contributions to global warming.

Cllr Rickard, elected as the leader of Bridport Town Council earlier at the same meeting, stressed the importance of actions over words.

He said: “Of course we want people to understand how serious the situation is, and the declaration sends a strong message. That’s not enough though - we need to take action to show we mean what we say and I am proud that we have done that.

“I was of course pleased to hear that Dorset Council also declared a climate emergency, but I urge them to follow our lead by matching the words with practical steps to address the catastrophic effects of climate change.”

In December, the town council established a One planet Living group involving a range of local organisations, with the aim of improving local sustainability. Cllr Rickard said this could now be developed to take on the wider challenges of climate change.

He added: “We adopted the 10 principles of the One Planet Living framework last year and we are already developing ideas for making our community more sustainable - environmentally, economically and socially.

“Declaring a climate emergency was a logical extension of this and other environmental initiatives we have championed in recent years.”

The actions will be developed by the One Planet Living group and by the town council’s environment and social wellbeing committee, which meets on June 5 at Mountfield in Rax Lane from 7pm.