The Environment, Climate Emergency and Transport Committee met to discuss the adoption of the new Mersey Forest Plan, receive an update on the Tree, Hedgerow and Woodland Strategy, and review the Wirral Air Quality Strategy and Annual Status Report. The committee endorsed the Mersey Forest Plan and the Cool Wirral 3 Climate Action Strategy, and noted the progress of the Tree, Hedgerow and Woodland Strategy 2020 to 2030.

Wirral Air Quality Strategy and Annual Status Report

The committee reviewed the Wirral Air Quality Strategy and Annual Status Report Review 2025, which provided an update on the Air Quality Implementation Plan (AQIP) for the Wirral Air Quality Strategy 2024-28, and the Air Quality Status report (ASR) for 2025. The ASR incorporates actions taken during 2024 to improve air quality, and an update on monitoring results for air pollution during 2024.

The report confirmed that there were no identified exceedances of the National Objective levels for pollutants during 2024. The committee acknowledged the progress with actions contained within the Air Quality implementation plan.

The Air Quality Strategy commits the council to act on five identified priority areas to improve air quality:

• Reduce emissions from transport.
• Improve indoor air quality.
• Reduce impact from housing development and regeneration.
• Reduce domestic, commercial, industrial, and agricultural emissions.
• Raise public awareness and encourage behaviour change.

The AQIP is the delivery vehicle for the Air Quality Strategy and identifies actions for implementation to improve air quality within the identified priority areas. 35 actions identified for completion in 2024-2025 were completed and a further 25 were commenced and are now at implementation status. Two actions were not completed, due to the delay in the approval of the new Local Plan and were moved to 2025-2026 implementation plan.

The report noted that the annual mean concentration result from the Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN) was 7.0µg/m3, which is below the new target of 12μg/m3 (to be met by January 2028) and below the new target of 10µg/m3 (to be met by 2040), but above the current World Health Organization (WHO) Air Quality Guideline level of 5µg/m3.

Adoption of the New Mersey Forest Plan

The committee approved the Adoption of The New Mersey Forest Plan and the council's continued membership of the Mersey Forest partnership for the period April 2025 to March 2030.

The Mersey Forest is one of 15 Community Forests in England, covering a designated area across Merseyside and Cheshire. The Mersey Forest Partnership includes eight local authorities, Cheshire East, Cheshire West and Chester, Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, St Helens, Sefton, and Wirral, and is supported by national agencies including the Forestry Commission¹, Environment Agency², and Natural England³. The report noted that over the past 30 years, the Partnership has:

• Created 3,600 hectares of new woodland
• Planted nearly 10 million trees
• Improved woodland management across the Mersey Forest area
• Engaged local communities in environmental improvements

The annual partnership contribution paid by the Council is £20,000, payable to Cheshire West and Chester Council as the host authority.

Tree, Hedgerow and Woodland Strategy Progress Report 2025

The committee noted the progress of the Tree Hedgerow and Woodland Strategy Progress Report 2025 and endorsed the priority actions for 2025/2026.

The four overarching aims of the Strategy are:

• To protect, regenerate and care for Wirral's existing trees, hedgerows and woodlands.
• To plant more trees on the principle of the 'right tree for the right place' and encourage appropriate natural regeneration.
• To plant, restore and maintain hedgerows in rural and urban landscapes.
• To provide a framework for decision making and establishing a prioritised action plan for 2020-203 and a model for many years beyond that.

Between November 2024 and March 2025, Wirral's tree planting programme achieved significant milestones, contributing an estimated 52,000 m² of future canopy cover. This expansion includes individual trees, newly established woodlands, and hedgerows. Conservation efforts were a key focus, with disease-resistant elms planted at Dawpool Nature Reserve to support habitat restoration for the White-letter Hairstreak butterfly, and 220 Alder Buckthorn trees distributed to 33 schools as part of the Brimstone butterfly initiative. Five micro woodlands were created through the Local Authority Treescapes Fund, while 34 street tree pits were reinstated across nine wards.

Work Programme

The committee reviewed and commented on the proposed Environment Climate Emergency and Transport Committee Work Programme for the remainder of the 2025/26 municipal year.