N is for Net Zero

Worcestershire County Council has made a significant reduction in its own greenhouse gas emissions.

The County Council is committed to net zero by 2025 and, to date, has now achieved a 45% reduction in net emissions and reduced 91% of emissions from its buildings, fleet vehicles and street lighting, since 2009/10.

These figures have been highlighted in the latest Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report, which is published annually, detailing emissions from its estate and services and promoting actions taken on the journey towards net zero.

The Council is fully committed to halving emissions by 2030 and being on track to be carbon neutral by 2050.

The Council has a long history of sustainability and greenhouse gas reduction work, having launched our first Carbon Management Plan back in 2002.

The Council now has the Net Zero Carbon Plan in place, which identifies our approach to reaching net zero. This involves a wide range of practical measures, including cutting carbon emissions from property, transport and street lighting, as well as our biggest emission sources in highways maintenance and waste management.

Moving forwards, more trees are planned, with 150,000 set to be planted across the county, the Council’s fleet vehicles will be moved away from diesel and petrol, work is ongoing with contractors to lower emissions further and increased energy efficiency measures are planned for buildings.
In addition to the commitment to reduce its own emissions, the County Council also supports county wide actions to achieving net zero with energy efficiency grants and advice for Small to Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and habitat creation funding under the Natural Networks programme.
To find out more about sustainability and carbon reduction in the county, as well as view the full Greenhouse Gas Emissions Report, visit the County Council website's Sustainability page.

In addition, Worcestershire County Council was shortlisted at this year’s EDIE Net Zero Award.

The EDIE Net Zero Awards recognise and reward individuals and organisations that are leading the transition towards a net zero carbon economy.

The County Council was shortlisted in the ‘Energy Efficiency Project of the Year’ category.

The award submission was based on the business net zero support programmes, with a focus on energy efficiency.

Using European and UK Government funding, the County Council has been running business support programmes, providing free advice and grants for energy efficiency, renewable energy and developing and commercialising new low carbon products and services.

To date, advice has been given to over 1200 Small to Medium Enterprises (SMEs), who have seen major reductions in carbon emissions and an increase in renewable energy capacity, with an average energy saving of 28%. Business net zero events have been organised and a free decarbonisation portal has been established, with nearly 80 organisations using the portal to track their carbon emissions and plan reductions.

This support is continuing with the Government and County Council funded Net Zero Worcestershire programme for local SMEs. More information, can be found on the County Council website's Net Zero page.

We are celebrating Worcestershire through the whole alphabet this month.