Cambridgeshire County Council strategy to speed up plans to tackle climate change
An action plan setting out ambitions for Cambridgeshire to reach net zero by 2045 has been approved.
Cambridgeshire County Council rubber-stamped the plan, which also sets a target for the authority to be net zero by 2030.
The impacts of climate change are being experienced across the world and greenhouse emissions must be cut quickly – the next 10 years are critical.
A new climate change and environment strategy was approved by the council on Tuesday, February 8 following a review of its existing plan. It sets out how the council will prioritise cutting carbon emissions and building community resilience.
The strategy also outlines how the council will deliver on its commitments to reach net zero, and work with the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority’s climate commission and district council partners.
Councillor Lorna Dupré, chair of the authority’s environment and green investment committee, said: “This new strategy and action plan for Cambridgeshire is more ambitious than ever before and is focused on cutting carbon emissions before it’s too late, to prevent severe climate impacts.
“It commits us to acting faster to tackle the climate emergency by bringing forward targets for reaching net zero. It puts climate change at the heart of the council so it becomes ingrained in every department and service that we provide, and it sets out how we will support communities and our natural environment to adapt and thrive as the climate changes.
“We are committed to working for and with people, communities, businesses and across political divides to deliver on our ambition and we know we have made great strides forward already. We still have a vast amount of work to do, but the faster we can deliver net zero the better for everyone.”
The strategy commits the council to focusing its efforts in three key areas: reducing carbon emissions, supporting the development of resilient communities so that they can adapt to the impacts of climate change, and supporting nature and biodiversity to thrive.
It also explains how the council will meet its 2030 deadline by implementing low carbon transport solutions for fleet vehicles, deliver net zero carbon buildings and generate renewable energy from its assets. The strategy also commits to halving indirect emissions through the council’s supply chains by 2030.
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