Those in Greater Manchester are invited to have their say on ambitious proposals to protect green spaces and support the natural environment for generations to come.
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is asking people to give their views on the city-region’s first Local Nature Recovery Strategy, which has been developed to address the loss of nature and biodiversity across Greater Manchester in recent decades.
Nature in Greater Manchester comes in all shapes and sizes – from urban parks and gardens to rivers and canals, nature reserves and wilder upland areas.
A healthy natural environment is fundamental to Greater Manchester’s sustained economic growth, as well as the health and wellbeing of everyone living and working in the city-region.
Everyone benefits from nature – and when all this is added together, Greater Manchester gets £1 billion of benefits from the natural environment each year.
But nature is being lost around the globe and locally in every area of Greater Manchester. The severity of the situation was recognised by the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, and the GMCA declared a biodiversity emergency in 2022.
Despite these challenges, nature can recover – particularly when it’s given a helping hand. Working with local partners from across the city-region, the GMCA has developed the first Greater Manchester Plan for Nature.
The plan will be the foundation for nature’s recovery in Greater Manchester, outlining how to make space for nature where it’s needed most. It sets out a vision to deliver a resilient network for nature across the city-region, connecting and enhancing wild spaces so that people and nature can thrive.
Councillor Tom Ross, Greater Manchester Lead for Green City-region, said: “Nature is fundamental to the success of Greater Manchester, but it is abundantly clear that it needs our help. We can all do more to improve the state of nature across the city-region and protect green spaces for everyone to enjoy.
“A range of projects are already beginning to put nature at their heart, from the restoration of wilder areas in our uplands and lowlands to nature-conscious design in new housing and commercial developments, in our civic squares and parks, and along our streets. All of these demonstrate the positive impact we can have when different organisations, community groups and individuals come together to help nature recover.
“But we need to do more, which is why we declared a biodiversity emergency. Our new plan for nature will sit at the heart of our drive for nature recovery, providing a roadmap for how we can all work together to help nature recover and where we need to focus our efforts to have the biggest impact. I would urge all residents to have their say here so we can help our nature recover together.”
Drop-in sessions will be held at the following venues:
- Town Hall Atrium, Wigan: Nov 18, 1pm-4pm
- Number One Riverside, Rochdale: Nov 19, 12pm-4pm
- Central Library, Manchester: Nov 20, 11am-3pm
- Stockport Town Hall: Nov 22, 9.30am-1.30pm
- Spindles Shopping Centre, Oldham: Nov 26, 1pm-4pm
- Salford Suite, Civic Centre, Swinton: Nov 29, 1pm-5pm
- Library Community Room, Tameside One: Dec 4, 11am-3pm
- Sale Library, Trafford: Jan 6, 11am-2pm
- Moss Bank Café, Bolton: Jan 7, 10am-1pm
- Mill Gate Shopping Centre, Bury: Jan 8, 1pm-4pm
