Norfolk man completing 180 mile walk to raise awareness about climate change, today

Dr Charlie Gardner started his journey in Cambridge on September the 24th and will be finishing in central Norwich, at around 3pm today

Dr Charlie Gardner (right)
Author: Tom ClabonPublished 8th Oct 2023

A Conservation scientist from Norfolk is today completing his 180 mile walk to raise awareness about how flooding and coastal erosion is likely to affect our region

Dr Charlie Gardner started his journey in Cambridge on September the 24th and will be finishing in central Norwich, at around 3pm today.

He's been walking across areas of our coastline, such as Happisburgh, Great Yarmouth and Kings Lynn, which are increasingly at risk to climate change.

"People will be displaced from the coast, because of this"

He told us we need to be prepared to face more extreme weather:

"There will be a huge flood event one day and after that we'll think 'that was just a one in a thousand year event' and we'll invest in rebuilding. But the next flood won't be in a thousand years, it will be in 30 years or 10 years".

"People will be displaced from the coast, because of this and they'll have to move in-land.

"People talk about the disruption of climate activists but that's nothing compared to the disruption of everyone in Great Yarmouth having to move in-land and the town disappearing entirely".

"Just last week Rishi Sunak gave a green-light to a new oil-field in the North Sea. That's the last thing we should be doing, we should be moving in the other direction.

"I see that as a kick in the teeth to people who are living on the Norfolk coastline."

"We have also had lots of fantastic conversations"

Dr Gardner went on to tell us that it's been quite the trip

"We've seen some fascinating things. We had a super high-tide the other day so we've seen the effects of flooding and coastal erosion, in some place.

"We have also had lots of fantastic conversations with people, as we've gone along"

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