Statement: Restoring nature is a literal life and death issue – and everyone has a role in it. Derek Walker, Future Generations Commissioner for Wales, responds to the State of Natural Resources Report.

“Nature is one of our most powerful allies in creating better lives for all of us – preventing flooding, reducing pollution and protecting our health. 

Without urgent, coordinated action across the public sector to halt and reverse the dangerous decline as laid out in Wales 2025 State of Natural Resources Report, we are quite literally putting lives at risk unnecessarily. 

Nature solutions are all around us – as seen across Wales from Swansea’s green roofs to seagrass restoration across the country, and everyone in every public service needs to play a role to unlock the power of nature – in budget planning to land management and how we look after our  buildings. 

The consequences of a Wales without adequate nature to sustain us, will fall hardest on the most disadvantaged people, and be an unimaginable burden to hand onto future generations. 

The Well-being of Future Generations Act has given us a way to deal with the problems made plain in this report.  

We are not managing natural resources sustainably but are using them faster than they can recover.  

The consequences are already hitting hard: floods in our towns, heat-related illnesses, polluted rivers, declining birdsong, and rising food prices. 

We can’t continue to ignore the proven links between nature and health. Restoring nature is a literal life and death issue – and everyone has a role in it.” 

Read the report