Environmental campaigners yesterday launched a manifesto which aims to make the Midlands a more attractive area in which to live and work.

The Enriching Our Region document contains a list of challenges to local decision makers aimed at revitalising urban areas and keeping the countryside beautiful.

The manifesto was written by senior officials from local environmental bodies, such as the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), the Wildlife Trust, Friends of the Earth and the Amenity Societies.

They have come together under the banner of the West Midlands Regional Sustainability Forum.

It highlights four areas where action is particularly needed, including solving transport issues, halting the unsustainable shift of people from urban areas to the shires, enhancing natural assets such as woodland and waterways, and placing more emphasis on global issues.

The document assesses where the region is today and then explains what it has to do to ensure it is environmentally sustainable in 20 years time.

Peter Langley, chairman of the CPRE in the region, said: "The West Midlands was a world leader in the Industrial Revolution 200 years ago, but the environment came a poor second.

"We are still blighted by that legacy today. The manifesto helps us to avoid repeating past mistakes."

The manifesto will be sent out to 3,000 decision makers across the region in an attempt to influence planning policy.

It is also hoped that the document will influence the business community and the public in putting pressure on the Government and local authorities.

Peter Shirley, regional director of the West Midlands Wildlife Trusts, said: "We welcome the manifesto because it points a way forward for the wildlife of the region."