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Agenda

Venue: Council Chamber, The Guildhall, Market Square, Cambridge, CB2 3QJ [access the building via Peashill entrance]. View directions

Contact: Democratic Services  Committee Manager

Media

Items
No. Item

1.

Apologies for Absence

2.

Declarations of Interest

3.

Minutes pdf icon PDF 280 KB

4.

Petition - On Behalf of the River Cam to Ask the Council to Recognise the Rights of the Cam

 

A petition has been received containing over 50 valid signatures stating the following:

 

Statement:

 

We the undersigned petition the council help to protect the river by declaring that the river has rights in accordance with the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Rivers as adapted for the declaration of the rights of the Cam. These include:

        the right to flow and be free from over-abstraction;

        the right to perform essential functions of flooding, moving sediment, recharging groundwater and sustaining biodiversity;

        the right to be free from pollution;

        the right to feed and be fed by sustainable aquifers;

        the right to native biodiversity;

        the right to restoration;

        the right to maintain connections with other streams and rivers.

 

Justification:

 

Our river is dying from pollution, over-abstraction and mass building which exacerbates both. The Cam was the first river in the UK to have a public declaration of its rights, in a midsummer ceremony in 2021 at Jesus Green, which is repeated each year. Hundreds of Cambridge citizens have pledged to become guardians of the river.

Cambridge is in the driest part of the UK, which has already suffered an average temperature rise of 3 degrees centigrade above pre-industrial levels, way above the global average of about 1.2 degrees. Climate change puts a large additional pressure on the river system causing increased drought in the summer months and more intense rainfall in the winter with consequent dangers of flooding.

No aspect of nature is more important than the water in our river systems. Water is essential to life. Most human settlements form around sources of fresh water. The Cam is central to the history, life and survival of our City.

Recognising the rights of nature, has never been more urgent as we attempt to limit its destruction through environmental degradation and climate and biodiversity catastrophes. The nature rights movement can assist people in moving beyond the exploitation of nature to living in harmony with it.

Recognising the rights of the Cam would place an obligation on the Council to consider the effect on our river and its tributaries of all relevant planning decisions.

 

 

The petition organiser will be given 5 minutes to present the petition at the meeting and the petition will then be discussed by Councillors for a maximum of 15 minutes.

5.

Public Questions

Decisions for the Executive Councillor for Open Spaces and City Services

6.

Designated Bathing Area on the River Cam pdf icon PDF 712 KB

Additional documents:

7.

Local Government Ombudsman Decision – Highfields Tree Belt pdf icon PDF 772 KB

Decisions for the Executive Councillor for Climate Action and Environment

8.

Air Quality Strategy pdf icon PDF 393 KB

Additional documents:

9.

Cambridge City Smoke Control Areas, (SCA’s), Enforcement & Fee Policy pdf icon PDF 407 KB

Additional documents:

10.

Climate Change Strategy and Carbon Management Plan Annual Report 2022/23 pdf icon PDF 755 KB

11.

Fixed Penalty Notices Review 2023 pdf icon PDF 484 KB

Additional documents:

12a

To Note Record of Urgent Decision Taken by the Executive Councillor for Climate Action and Environment

12b

RECAP Partnership Joint Materials Recycling Tender and Contract pdf icon PDF 103 KB

Additional documents:

Decisions for the Executive Councillor for Communities

13.

S106 Funding Round for Community Facilities and Indoor/Outdoor Sports Facilities pdf icon PDF 287 KB

Decisions for the Executive Councillor for Community Wealth Building and Community Safety

14.

Micro-Mobility Management pdf icon PDF 326 KB

15.

5 Oct Env_Comm Decisions for the Web pdf icon PDF 162 KB