Green spaces & blue streams
The natural environment is key to public health
WHAT WE'VE DONE
- Challenged the Council to use its powers to block plans to build a 10-storey tennis stadium and over 9km of roads on parts of Wimbledon Park - a scheme which also involves destroying 300 mature trees, the habitat of birds & bats on Metropolitan Open Land and endangered European Eels in the lake.
- Called for the Council’s Climate Action Plan to include both tree and biodiversity strategies – voted down by Labour.
- Ensured the pot of money councillors are allocated for small projects in their area can be spent on tree planting.
- Lib Dems in Parliament tried to ban the dumping of sewage into local rivers by water companies.
WHAT WE'LL DO
- Enforce the legal guarantees given by the AELTC to preserve Wimbledon Park.
- Work with the AELTC, Friends of Wimbledon Park, the Capability Brown Society & residents’ groups to reach a compromise on the All England Club’s plans.
- Put robust tree & biodiversity strategies in the Council’s Climate Action Plan.
- Look at putting public open space into trust, to give the community a real say over the use of land and provide more protection.
- Encourage the Council’s parks contractor, idverde to work more closely with Friends’ groups for parks.
- Consider all options in any review of the parks’ contract, including bringing the service back in-house.