Agenda item

To receive the Annual Report of the Portfolio Holder for Environmental and Health.

(Questions attached).

Further to consideration of the Portfolio Holder for Environment and Health’s written report at the meeting of the Overview and Scrutiny Committee on 9th October 2012 Councillor Taylor provided a response to Members’ questions as detailed in Appendix 1.  Additional information was provided in relation to the following subjects:

a)           Allotments

The Committee was advised that there was 98 per cent occupancy of the Council’s allotments.  The exact number of allotments available within the town, the number of vacant allotments and the distribution of allotments across the Borough could not be confirmed at the date of the meeting.  However, Members discussed the potential value of introducing more allotments within the Borough.  Some Members suggested that more allotments could be provided to meet increasing demand.  On Other Members expressed concerns that the high occupancy rates reflected the need for residents to grow their own food in difficult economic circumstances and there was a risk that these levels would not necessarily be sustained once the economy recovered.

b)           Footpaths

There were a number of footpaths in the town.  Whilst some of the footpaths were the responsibility of Redditch Borough Council other footpaths were the responsibility of Worcestershire County Council.  The Council’s GIS system was used to maintain an accurate record of the footpaths that were the property of Redditch Borough Council.

c)            Renewable Energy

Members were advised that there had been an under spend of approximately £90,000 on the budget that had been allocated to the installation of solar panels.  The remaining budget would need to be allocated to renewable energy projects involving the Council’s Housing stock as the funds had been derived from the Council’s Housing Revenue Account (HRA).  There were a number of options that could be explored for the use of this budget including the installation of biomass boilers in some properties, though a variety of options were currently in the process of being reviewed.

d)           Landscaping

There was the potential for transformation to contribute to improvements to the landscaping services provided by the Council.  As part of this process the timescales that the Council had traditionally followed when maintaining hedgerows and cutting grass on Council land would be reviewed to ensure that the works were completed in a timely fashion that minimised disruption to residents and businesses.

e)           Trees

Each year a number of trees were felled for a variety of reasons. The Council’s policy was to replace the trees that were felled.  Increasingly, Officers were ensuring that the trees planted in a particular location were suitable for the environment in which they would grow. 

The potential for Ash Dieback Tree Fungal Disease to impact on trees situated in the Borough was discussed in detail.  By the date of the meeting no confirmed cases of the disease had been identified in trees located in the Borough.  However, the Council was aware of the potential risks, particularly due to the large number of trees and woodland areas in the Borough.  

There was the potential that lessons could be learned from the way that local authorities had responded to outbreaks of Dutch Elm Disease.  There was also the possibility that a number of trees would develop resistance to the disease.  To ensure that the Council responded appropriately to any outbreaks Officers were continuing to monitor the situation.

RESOLVED that

the report be noted.