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Metro Mayor and local leaders call for “discharge-free” Mersey by 2030
Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, has announced plans to ensure a discharge-free River Mersey by the end of the decade.
Speaking following the COP26 conference in Glasgow, Mayor Rotheram said:
The Metro Mayor will also advise businesses of his intention to ensure the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority does not invest in projects that do not act to prevent untreated sewage discharging into the rivers.
The Liverpool City Region’s original devolution deal, signed with central government in 2015, recognises that: “The River Mersey has undergone the greatest clean-up of any river in Europe over the last thirty years. Through the commitment of local stakeholders, the transformation in environmental performance has been internationally recognised and this means the river is once again a great asset for tourism and trade.”
The devolution agreement commits the Liverpool City Region to “commit to the cleanest river standard by 2030 and commit to a discharge free Mersey by 2040.” The Metro Mayor’s announcement will bring that commitment forward by a decade.
The plan is backed by Lord Heseltine who, as Environment Minister in the 1980s, was a driving force behind establishing the Mersey Basin Campaign Partnership, which was instrumental in bringing together public and private sector organisations to carry out the original clean up.
Lord Heseltine said:
Councillor Louise Gittins, Leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, said:
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