Barton House evacuation: information for residents.

About Bristol's ecological emergency, the One City Ecological Emergency Strategy, and our Ecological Emergency Action Plan.

In February 2020, Marvin Rees, the Mayor of Bristol, and One City partners declared an ecological emergency in response to the decline in wildlife in Bristol.

Since 1970, around the world we've lost:

  • 60% of wild invertebrates
  • up to 76% of insects

In Bristol, songbird populations, like swifts and starlings, have dropped by more than 96%.

Find out how we're going to use pdf nature recovery to reverse the decline in wildlife by creating new spaces where nature can recover and thrive in our city (780 KB) .

Read more about what we're doing to manage our parks and green spaces to benefit nature.

Find out about the pdf eDNA fish survey of the Floating Harbour and River Avon (771 KB) .

One City Ecological Emergency Strategy

In September 2020, a task group of Bristol's One City Environmental Board developed an ecological emergency strategy for the city (PDF).

The strategy is the city's first coordinated effort to confront the decline in nature.

It sets out clear direction in line with our One City Plan and the Sustainable Development Goals to support nature recovery by 2030.

The strategy's 4 goals are:

  • for 30 per cent of land in Bristol to be managed for the benefit of wildlife
  • to reduce the use of pesticides in Bristol by at least 50 per cent
  • for all waterways to have excellent water quality which supports healthy wildlife 
  • to reduce consumption of products that undermine the health of wildlife and ecosystems around the world

Find out about the One City Ecological Emergency Strategy current projects and how to get involved.

Bristol City Council's Ecological Emergency Action Plan

In response to the One City Ecological Emergency strategy, we've produced our own pdf Ecological Emergency Action Plan  (1.18 MB) .

This action plan is a council-wide programme of activities to deliver on the ambitions of the One City Ecological Emergency Strategy and relevant aspects of the One City Climate Strategy.

It sets out what we are aiming to do and how we intend to do it.

Its purpose is to:

  • integrate best ecological practice into each area of the council's activity, allowing us to lead the city by example 
  • demonstrate our commitment to the One City Ecological Emergency Strategy alongside the One City Climate Strategy and its objectives 
  • support and influence action by partners and through partnerships 
  • support and enable action by citizens 
  • develop evidence and knowledge to support decision making and innovation in addressing nature-related issues