Staffordshire County Council have agreed plans to reduce carbon footprint, improve air quality and enhance natural environments.
The plans form part of the authority’s Climate Change Action Plan, which aims to tackle climate change and promote sustainability in the county.
Earlier this year, it pledged £1.2 million to go towards tackling climate change and promoting sustainability in the county. The authority has already put in measures to reduce its carbon footprint, by reducing the amount of buildings in use and switching to a renewable electricity tariff. Now, the county council’s challenge will be to achieve a net zero rate of carbon emissions by 2050.
The action plan includes changes that ensure tacking climate change is at the centre of the council’s day-to-day activities, in contracts and decision making, as well as practical projects such as increasing the use of LED lighting, the use of biomass or solar energy and tree planting.
County Councillor Julia Jessel, Cabinet Member for Environment, Infrastructure and Climate Change said: “Climate Change is a huge and complex issue which impacts our lives now and for generations to come, but we can all do our bit to make a difference.
“We have to put climate change at the centre of our day-to-day thinking, so it permeates everything we do as a county council. We have made some excellent progress so far; reducing our carbon footprint by half, and putting in measures and pledging £1.2 million earlier in the year to tackling climate change, but we need to do more. We are all in this together: organisations, businesses, communities and individuals. Together we will make a difference.”
A longer-term Climate Change Strategy will also be developed, with input from local communities and other Staffordshire organisations.
