A CLIMATE emergency has been declared in Horsforth with a pledge to aim to make the town carbon neutral by 2030.

The unanimous decision was taken at a meeting of Horsforth Town Council on July 31. The Council has created a climate emergency working group which will call on the UK government to provide the powers and resources to make the 2030 target possible.

The group will be calling a town meeting to engage with the community in Horsforth and with Leeds City Council on how to achieve its goal.

Horsforth Town Council Vice-Chairman Simon Dowling, said: “Everyone on the Council is committed to tackling the climate emergency and will be working hard for the Council to do what it can to reduce the impact in Horsforth.”

Residents are being asked to keep an eye on the council’s website, Facebook page and noticeboard for details of when the town meeting will be held.

In March this year Otley become the first town in Yorkshire to declare a Climate Emergency. The Town Council passed a resolution calling for urgent action and setting a 2030 target for becoming carbon neutral.

Councillor Ray Georgeson, who proposed the resolution, said: “In considering and I hope approving this resolution, Otley Town Council will become the first town or parish council in Yorkshire - and only the 11th in the UK so far - to declare a Climate Emergency and set a target for becoming carbon neutral.

“This is an emerging and important political process, now gathering momentum as a result of a growing realisation of the need for urgency and the growth in strength of the voice of young people, rightly condemning past generations for inaction.

Leeds City Council has also declared a climate emergency and is working to make Leeds carbon neutral by 2030. It also plans to sign up to a carbon reduction target consistent with achieving the Paris Agreement of no more than 1.5 degrees centigrade global temperature increase.

A motion by council leader Cllr Judith Blake said: “This Council notes that many Leeds residents are demanding action on climate change as demonstrated through actions such as the recent ‘Youth Strike’. Council accepts that in order to limit the effects of global warming it is necessary for the world population to reduce its annual carbon emissions from the current 6.5 tonnes per person to less than two tonnes as soon as possible.”