We need smart policy to improve our environment. We support bringing in a bottle return scheme (paying for a deposit on bottles and cans which is given back when they are returned). This would reduce litter and the burden on recycling facilities, as well as changing attitudes towards our precious resources.
The environmental challenges, from climate change to dealing with 'grotspots', are monumental. They require changes in all parts of our economy and in our behaviour, but if we work together we can deal with both. Litter is more than a blight on our landscape; it is an indication of wasted resources. We can work together to improve the areas where we live and at the same time deal with a threat to our world. Using new technologies for power generation and to fuel our cars will help a great deal too; we want to see investment in British engineering to bring about the changes and technology that we need.
Open spaces must be protected, land ownership must be transparent, our common heritage maintained and developers made to act responsibly. It is time for a fair environment policy. There should be a new focus on littered and polluted "problem" areas, and a more proactive Environment Agency.
Cycling should be seen as part of our transport system. To get more people in to the saddle, we should separate cyclists from other traffic where possible and ensure that cycling directions are part of transport information. Adult and child cycling classes should be available. Walking should also be seen as part of a truly comprehensive transport strategy.
Part of looking after our environment and having a dynamic economy is having a well-functioning public transport system. There must be no more private profit at public expense on our railways. If taxpayers invest, investment must be matched by rail operators, and we need to see a return. When assessing rail performance, overcrowding and affordability should be taken into proper consideration. Ticket pricing needs to be transparent, easy to understand, and work between different forms of transport. We can get Britain moving.
A bottle return scheme is a charge added to the price on a bottled drink that you get back if you return said bottle to a certified outlet (essentially a deposit). We will trial the implementation of bottle return scheme schemes in the UK with a view to making them mandatory across the UK if they are found to be as effective in the UK as they have been in Germany and other countries. Bottle return schemes change the social landscape in other ways, too: bottles aren't left in the street, and if they are someone comes and picks them up, if only for the deposit. This ensures that there is less waste, more reuse and fewer glass hazards in public areas.
We believe that if you damage the environment, it is your responsibility to pay for that damage to be reversed. The air around us, our waterways, and our landscapes are all common property. If they are damaged though an accident or through activity that pollutes, then that damage should be fixed. The government has a duty to ensure that those who cause such damage pay to do so. In the event that damage is global, as with climate change, it is doubly important to ensure that damaging activities are kept to a minimum and that funds are raised to deal with the consequences. It is also vitally important that we invest in research and technology to reduce the amount of damage that we do to our environment in the first place.
Power generation will be a major issue facing the UK in the coming decade. The next government will have to put to get an effective and environmentally sound policy to deal with increasing generation capacity. We believe that the focus should be on renewable energy (such as offshore wind and tidal power generation) as well as investigating and developing new technologies, including nuclear, and continuing to improve the effectiveness of existing ones.
We should require that carbon footprint ratings are extended and applied on more products, especially those that have large carbon footprints when created. These items should then be labelled when sold.
The Passive House standard requires a house to be be so well constructed and insulated that it is warm enough without requiring much heating; typically it will require no heating at all.
30,000 passive houses have been built around the world and the UK should work to catch up. We will aim to ensure that all new houses built in the UK adhere to a reasonable standard that is as close to the Passive House standard in terms of aims as possible.