Wiltshire Council's Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions report 2022/23

GHG report details

When defining the boundaries of the organisation for the purpose of GHG reporting the aim has been to minimise the administrative burden and provide as much continuity as possible with previous reporting, while maximising the opportunities to reduce emissions.

1. Local Authority: Wiltshire Council

Wiltshire Council is a large unitary authority located in the South West of England. It covers a geographical area that includes 12 population centres of over 10,000 people, including Chippenham, Trowbridge, Devizes and Salisbury. Wiltshire's population is 53% urban, 47% rural, using the government's definition of rurality (opens new window) and government designated Output Areas from the 2011 Census.

The council provides a broad range of statutory and discretionary services to the community of Wiltshire. Some of the areas the council has responsibility for include: planning and building control; leisure and recreation; waste and recycling; parking; transport and street maintenance; council tax; housing and benefits; schools and learning; arts; heritage and libraries; health and social care; business advice; community and the environment.

Our priorities are reflected in our Business Plan. Further information on the council can be found within our website www.wiltshire.gov.uk.

2. Reporting Period: 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023

The council annually reports the GHG emissions associated with its estate and operations for a 12-month period corresponding to the financial year

3. Approach

The council uses the greenhouse gas accounting tool recommended by the Local Government Association which uses conversion factors that are published annually by government. The set of conversion factors (opens new window) selected for use in this report is available from the council on request

In order to measure and report on these emissions, the council records activity data such as the amount of electricity used or the distance travelled by vehicles, and then multiplies it by an emission (conversion) factor that gives an estimate of the GHG emissions. The activity data relates to the financial period 1 April - 31 March for any given year.

4. Organisational Boundary

We have defined our organisational boundary following the financial control approach. Further detail on which operations or activities have been included within our organisational boundary for the purposes of compiling this greenhouse gas report is provided under 'Operational Scope' Table 1 below. Reporting of Scopes 1 and 2 is mandatory while reporting of Scope 3 is discretionary. The breakdown of Scopes 1, 2 and 3 are detailed below in Table 1.

Table1: Emissions included in each of the three GHG reporting scopes
Scope	Estate and operations included within the scope and exclusions
Scope 1 (Direct emissions): Emissions from activities owned and controlled by the council that release emissions into the atmosphere. They are direct emissions. Typically, these relate to emissions arising from the combustion of natural gas, oil, wood pellets, LPG and automotive fuels.	Inclusions Buildings heating (gas, biomass) Fleet owned and operated directly by the council Exclusions Social housing operated by the council Fleet operated by contractors
Scope 2 (Indirect emissions): Emissions released into the atmosphere associated with the council's consumption of purchased electricity. These are indirect emissions that are a consequence of the council's activities but that occur at sources the council does not own or control.	Inclusions Buildings electricity Streetlights Electric Vehicles Exclusions Social housing operated by the council.
Scope 3 (Other indirect): Emissions that are a consequence of the council's operations that occur at sources the council does not own or control and that are not classed as Scope 2 emissions. Typically, these relate to the emissions associated with the transmission and distribution of the council's purchased electricity, outsourced or contracted operations and business travel by means not owned or controlled by the council.	Inclusions Business travel (travel by non-teaching staff and councillors by means not owned or controlled by the council). Transmission and Distribution emissions. Waste generated by the council through its operations.4 Outsourced waste collection vehicle emissions.5. Leased vehicles (e.g. gritters)6. Schools and academies that have opted into Wiltshire Councils energy contract. Exclusions Outsourced operations such as household waste management. Academies and non-Academy Schools, including travel by teaching staff.

5. Base Year

Our base year is 2014/15

6. Targets

Wiltshire Council recognises the importance of reducing its emissions of greenhouse gases and reports on its performance in this area via this process on a yearly basis through GHG reporting.