CLIMATE change and plastics, recycling and river protection were all hot topics at the North Wiltshire Sustainability Day in Chippenham on Saturday.

The family-friendly event marked the end of Green GB, a week of action promoting sustainable growth and action to combat climate change. Last year the event was held in Malmesbury, and this year moved to Chippenham's Town Hall and Neeld Community and Arts Centre.

Organiser, Nick Murry who chairs Chippenham and Villages Environmentalists (CAVE) said:

“I’d like to thank everyone who helped make the Sustainability Day such a success. We heard from some amazing speakers on all sorts of topics from plastic pollution to hydrogen vehicles. There was a fantastic array of local groups exhibiting and fun activities for the kids at the Wiltshire Scrapstore.

"Underlying the entertainment was a serious message - our climate and our oceans are in trouble and we all need to do our bit to secure a future for the next generation. The good news is that we still have time to turn things around if we act now.”

The event attracted a line-up of expert speakers, including MEP Molly Scott-Cato, Mark Lynas, the author of Six Degrees - Our Future on a Hotter Planet, Natalie Fee, the founder of City to Sea, Kevin Fothergill of Hydrogen Hub, and Bronwen Jameson from Recycling Technologies.

A range of organisations exhibited, including the Bristol Avon River Trust, the Ramblers Association, Friends of the Earth, Malmesbury Against Plastic, Off the Ground, Refill Chippenham, Transition Marlborough, Wiltshire Scrapstore, and Chippenham and Villages Environmentalists.

The previous day, the North Wiltshire Sustainable Business Conference in Chippenham Town Hall, was opened by local MP Claire Perry, minister for energy and clean growth. The event proved popular, giving local businesses a chance to learn more being environmentally friendly and socially responsible.