A climate emergency has been declared by Caerphilly County Borough Council, making it the second authority in Gwent to join a growing campaign.
Councillors from all political parties supported a motion on the issue at a full council meeting on Tuesday, June 4.
However one councillor claimed the motion does not go far enough, while another suggested it was “more applicable to declare an education emergency.”
The cross party motion commits the council to making Caerphilly a net zero carbon local authority by 2030, while calling on Welsh and UK governments for support towards their goal.
It means the council will develop an energy plan within the next year for a route towards carbon neutrality.
Labour councillor Jamie Pritchard said the authority was “sending out a signal” that climate change issues are the main priority for the council.
“The overwhelming majority of people do recognise these days that climate change is probably the biggest impact on our life,” he said.
Cllr Pritchard also welcomed news the M4 relief road will not go ahead, saying the scheme would have “driven a coach and horses” through the motion.
Plaid councillor Lyndon Binding warned doing nothing was “not an option.”
“It’s going to cost some money but if we don’t do anything it’s going to cost us a heck of a lot more,” he added.
Independent Graham Simmonds defended previously calling the motion “virtue signalling.”
“Why declare a climate emergency when we cannot deliver meaningful change,” he said.
“It must be a better use of council resources and infinitely more applicable to the residents of Caerphilly County Borough Council to declare an education emergency and finally deal with our bottom quartile performance.”
However Cllr Sean Morgan, who put forward the motion, said the council was committed to looking to find ways of doing things differently, which could help both the economy and protect the environment fur future generations.
Around 90 councils have declared climate emergencies in the wake of a UN report warning that any further temperature rise than 1.5C in the next 12 years would significantly increase the risks of floods, drought and extreme temperatures.
Monmouthshire became the first Gwent authority to declare a climate emergency in May, while the Welsh Government declared a climate emergency a month earlier.
Meanwhile, Plaid group leader Cllr Mann, who backed the motion, called for the council to take further action, such as increasing its fleet of electric vehicles.
He has also urged the council to consider installing wind turbines at its headquarters in Tredomen.
Cllr Mann, believes the move could cut energy bills and carbon dioxide emissions and said funding for the project could come from the council’s reserves, which he says are more than £100 million.
Cllr Mann has written to council leader Dave Poole and interim-chief executive Christina Harrhy, asking them to order a feasibility study into the proposal.
He said: “This is a genuine Invest to Save project which also contributes to the climate change agenda.
“There is also a huge potential to save money on energy. The extra resources could then be invested into community services rather than the cutting we have been seeing.”