Cabinet endorses Climate Delivery Plan for 2025
Wiltshire Council's Cabinet has endorsed the new Climate Delivery Plan for 2025.
Wiltshire Council's Cabinet has endorsed the new Climate Delivery Plan for 2025.
The plan sets out the climate actions the council will take in 2025 and prioritises actions so that resource is focused on the most impactful activities to reduce carbon emissions, save costs for taxpayers, and increase resilience to the impacts of climate change.
In 2019, Wiltshire Council pledged to become carbon neutral as an organisation by 2030 and to help support Wiltshire residents and businesses within the county to become carbon neutral as well. The council is on track to meet its own direct emissions target and there is a wide range of work being undertaken to support the wider county to become carbon neutral.
The plan will build on the significant progress made to date including in areas such as the county-wide retrofit of properties to improve energy efficiency and the decarbonisation of the council's buildings and vehicle fleet.
The new plan also builds on the council's extra highways investment into gulley clearing and flood prevention by focusing on climate adaptation and resilience projects to combat severe weather events.
Cllr Dominic Muns, Cabinet Member for Environment, said: "We've made substantial progress towards our carbon neutral pledge and we're on track to meet it, however we cannot be complacent. This new Delivery Plan will guide our work and keep us on task throughout 2025, prioritising our actions so we can deliver the biggest climate related benefits whilst also saving money for Wiltshire taxpayers. We know this isn't something we can do alone, and this plan sets out how we will work collaboratively with residents and businesses across Wiltshire to meet our ambition for a carbon neutral and climate resilient Wiltshire.
"Our achievements to date include reducing the council's greenhouse gas emissions by 88%, replacing 87 fossil fuel council fleet vehicles with ultra-low emission vehicles, installing solar panels on council premises with capacity of 3,313 kWp representing a saving of nearly £650k in 2023/24, working with farmers on regenerative land management, energy efficiency retrofit installations on over 200 council homes and over 30 carbon neutral or low-carbon affordable homes delivered so far, with 350 in the pipeline.
"Our commitment to reducing carbon emissions is considered in everything we do as an evidence-led organisation and we hope the work we're doing will encourage and inspire others to do what they can too."
View the Climate Delivery Plan for 2025.