Council aims to cut carbon — and costs

North Norfolk District Council is aiming to save tens of thousands of pounds through a tough carbon reduction drive, after being accepted onto the Carbon Trust’s Local Authority Carbon Management Programme (LACM).

North Norfolk District Council is aiming to save tens of thousands of pounds through a tough carbon reduction drive, after being accepted onto the Carbon Trust’s Local Authority Carbon Management Programme (LACM).

Last year, other District Councils on the LACM saved an average of £180,000 through initiatives like energy-saving measures, better staff travel management, sustainable procurement, and capital investment in energy-saving technologies by the Councils and their contractors.

NNDC is part of a consortium of five East Anglian districts (the others being Great Yarmouth Borough Council and South Norfolk, Babergh and Forest Heath District Councils) accepted into the seventh annual phase of the LACM. This year the Carbon Trust is working with 64 councils, giving them advice and a toolkit for planning carbon-cutting actions.

NNDC generated 3799 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions last year, according to an audit carried out through 2008/09. Three quarters of that comes from the council’s biggest contracts: waste collection (because of the miles travelled by refuse trucks) and running sports centres (where swimming pools are heated). The remainder is accounted for by NNDC’s work-related travel and energy use in buildings directly managed by NNDC, like its head office at Cromer, its tourist information centres, and toilet blocks across the district.

The Council aims to cut its carbon footprint by 33 per cent in the next five years, and by 20 per cent by 2012.

NNDC has set up a project board, comprising a cross-party group of senior councillors along with managers from the services with the biggest carbon footprints, to agree, manage and monitor a programme of carbon-cutting measures.

Councillor Simon Partridge chairs the board. He said: “Like everyone, we’re facing huge financial pressure. And like everyone, we need to do our bit to combat climate change, which threatens lives and livelihoods not just in North Norfolk, but across the globe. So anything that tackles both problems is especially welcome.

“Councils are champions of our environment and we can be at the forefront of innovation, but we can’t expect anyone to follow our advice if we don’t lead by example. Our biggest overheads are incurred through our biggest contracts, and we can work with our contractors to find new ways to save us, them, and our taxpayers a lot of money. That, in turn, helps pave the way to a low-carbon economy.”

Councillor Partridge continued: “NNDC already has carbon-cutting projects under way, like developing of a Green Travel Plan, revising car mileage allowances, adopting a Sustainable Procurement Policy, and carrying out a staff energy awareness campaign. But simple good housekeeping only goes so far, and fuel prices will only keep creeping higher. So the challenge is for us, and our contractors, to start looking at investment in processes, technology and machinery that are more efficient, and that will save us money in the longer term.”

The Carbon Trust is an independent company set up by the Government in 2001 to advise businesses and the public sector on cutting carbon, to develop new technologies and to help the UK become a global leader in low-carbon innovation.

• For more information about NNDC’s LACM programme, please call Helen Dixon, North Norfolk District Council’s Sustainability Co-ordinator, on 01263 516271.
• For information about the work of the Carbon Trust and previous LACM phases, visit www.carbontrust.co.uk

ENDS