Nottingham on track to reach carbon neutrality by 2028

Nottingham City Council has said that it is on track to become the first carbon neutral city in the UK by 2028, following the first review of its action plan.

The 251-point action plan, published in June 2020, covers a range of initiatives to cut carbon emissions across transport, the built environment, waste, water, energy generation and consumption. While initial progress on the action plan has been positive, local residents and businesses are being urged to get involved to see how they can help contribute to the ambitious goal which will improve the health and vitality of the city.

Nottingham has reduced its overall CO2 emissions per person by 52.3 per cent since 2005, which is the highest reduction of any UK core city. The first annual review for the Carbon Neutral Action Plan shows that successes have been achieved to continue the downward trend of CO2 emissions in the city across all the key themes of the action plan.

The council has secured £24.5 million of government funding to make energy efficiency improvements to numerous domestic properties, such as installing solar panels on 650 homes for free and carrying out innovative whole-house retrofits of energy-saving measures.

In the transport sector, in the year up to July 2021, over 130 public electric vehicle charging points were installed across the city, including 81 at the Broad Marsh car park – the most for a single site in the UK. Data also shows that 30 per cent of the council-owned fleet and 46 per cent of hackney carriage taxis are ULEV, and 30 per cent of the city’s public buses run on either low carbon bio-gas or clean electricity.

Sally Longford, deputy leader for the council and Portfolio Holder for Energy, Environment and Waste Services, said: “We have achieved a lot in the first year of delivering the Carbon Neutral 2028 Action Plan, and I’m delighted to share the first annual review summary. We’re leading the charge towards carbon neutrality and have gathered real momentum across the key areas of the plan.”

“This is a city-wide target, so it’s really important that we instil a sustainable mindset across everyone who lives in, works in, and visits the city. We’ve had brilliant engagement with businesses, the universities, and citizens of Nottingham so far, and we will be building on our successes and overcoming our challenges as we move into the second year of delivery.

“The transition to being a carbon neutral city is an opportunity to permanently reduce inequalities in Nottingham. We are committed to helping less well-off residents in the city reduce their energy bills and feel the benefits of better health associated with warmer homes and cleaner air, all while reducing their carbon footprints.”