The Campaign
The need to look after our local areas has never been more urgent. Over the last number of years there has been a growing focus on looking after our local environment so that both ourselves and future generations can benefit from and appreciate our local areas. Everyone, no matter where they live, should be entitled to high-quality, local green spaces. These spaces are vital for our health, safety and the wellbeing of everyone in our communities.
In addition to this, it is also important to support our local businesses and communities. A big part of loving where you live is having high quality local retailers and producers, however, these businesses rely on the support of local communities. Independent retailers form the backbone of our communities here in North Wales and here in Delyn, we have some fantastic independent retailers. It is not only important to look after our green spaces, but also the businesses on our high streets and in our town centres, so as part of this campaign I will be supporting our local businesses.
Many of us do already recognise the intrinsic value of our local area, however we can all take on more personal responsibility and take more positive action to ensure that they are fully looked after and kept in the best possible condition, both for ourselves, tourists, future generations and also the local wildlife.
Everyone wants to live somewhere that they love but we are often busy or unsure on where to start, meaning it can be difficult to know what to do for the best. Love Where You Live is all about putting our local area first and ensuring that everyone is encouraged to take small steps so that they can love where they live just that little bit more.
My Commitments
In order to ensure that our local areas are fully protected it is important to work with many different stakeholders. As part of this campaign I will be working with:
- Flintshire County Council and Streetscene to ensure that our local areas are protected and any incidents of fly-tipping are immediately reported and dealt with.
- North Wales Police to ensure the correct enforcement powers are in place for fly-tippers and litterers.
- The Welsh Government and the UK Government to understand what more can be done to combat these issues.
- Local community and environmental groups to help look after our local areas.
I will also be:
- Organising community litter picks and beach cleans.
- Visiting local businesses to show my support for local and independent retailers.
Fly-tipping and Littering Survey
One of the biggest issues that is facing the people of Delyn, is the one of fly-tipping and littering. Since being elected countless constituents have contacted me in regards to reports of continuous fly-tipping and littering in some of the constituencies most beautiful areas. In partnership with this campaign I have consequently launched a "Fly-tipping and Littering Survey", the link to which can be found here https://www.rjroberts.co.uk/form/litter-fly-tipping-survey.
Littering is a real and immediate issue in Delyn. It is not just a eye-sore and an inconvenience for passers by and dog walkers, but instead has far far-reaching repercussions for the surrounding wildlife. Just one piece of litter could easily result in an entire eco-system being destroyed.
In the last year, 424 incidents of littering were reported to Flintshire County Council, an increase of 137 on the previous year. In addition to this, in 2020/21 there were 1,519 reports of fly-tipping, which is an increase on the previous year's 949. So far in 2021/22, there have been 85 littering incidents reported, 30 dog fouling incidents and 156 fly-tipping incidents. This level of littering is unacceptable and needs to drastically change and the Love Where You Live campaign aims to reduce levels of littering and fly-tipping as well as clear them up when they do happen.
