A LEADING Worcestershire wildlife charity is calling for the nature and climate crises need to be tackled together and at speed.

Worcestershire Wildlife Trust say that the two crises are inseparable and if they are not tackled, Worcestershire could see more extreme rainfall events and floods as well as droughts that cause wildfires.

Ahead of next month's global climate conference COP26, Wildlife Trusts around the country are calling on the UK Presidency conference of the COP26 to tackle the nature crisis alongside the climate crisis.

They also want local authorities, businesses and residents across the county to do their bit.

Colin Raven, Director of Worcestershire Wildlife Trust, said: “Nature plays a vital role in storing carbon safely as well as providing us with clean water, clean air and much more. But our natural places are in decline and now face an even greater risk of degradation from the results of climate change that are already inevitable in the near future.

“This vicious spiral of damage has to stop for all our sakes.

“As well as cutting emissions we need to see at least 30% of land and sea protected for nature by 2030. This is the minimum needed to allow nature to recover and help us to avert climate disaster.

“Worcestershire Wildlife Trust has been managing wild spaces and working with others to make their land more sustainable for many years but we’re also stepping up our efforts across our entire organisation – from changing energy suppliers to investing in a member of staff to help us reduce the carbon footprint from our day-to-day operations to zero by 2030.”

The Trust own or manage 3000 acres of nature reserves that are managed for wildlife but also sequester an estimated 5900 tonnes of carbon each year.

It has worked closely with Bromsgrove District Council, the Environment Agency and Severn Trent Water to create and improve wetland habitat in Sanders Park which helps water voles, flood alleviation and sequestering and storing carbon.

The pond at The Trust’s Piper’s Hill and Dodderhill Common nature reserve has also been restored following the explosion of the non-native floating pennywort plant, which out competes native wildlife and forms a mat across the water, reducing light for aquatic invertebrates.

The Trust is one of 46 Wildlife Trusts across the UK calling on the Government to commit to take urgent steps to stop carbon-emitting activities and to take action in the areas of peat, farming, woodland, planning and our marine environment that will allow natural processes to be restored to help both nature and the climate.