Lucy Popham
For the second year running, Nottingham has been ranked in the top 12% of A-list scoring cities for climate action. The Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP), an environmental impact non-profit organisation, ranked over 1,000 cities in 2022 and Nottingham was recognised for the success of CN28. By 2028 Nottingham aims to be carbon neutral through a series of efforts to reduce human-produced ‘greenhouse’ gasses. Impact’s Lucy Popham speaks to Nottingham Councillor Sally Longford and reports.
The CN28 Action plan is broken down into nine key themes, focusing on: carbon removal, the built environment, consumption, water, adaptation, nature, transport, resilience, and waste. The 251-point plan focuses on the actions the city and council need to take to become carbon neutral by 2028. Nottingham has shown astronomical success in the first annual report, managing to reduce carbon emissions per capita by 52.3% since 2005, the highest of any UK core city.
Nottingham’s domestic housing poses the greatest threat to the carbon-neutral agenda, as space heating contributes the largest proportion of CO2 emissions in Nottingham. Many houses were built before the 1980s and run off fossil fuels, and struggle with poor insulation. Whole house retrofit projects with Nottingham’s City Homes will turn 77 houses in Radford into energy-efficient homes. Not only will housing restructuring have vast environmental benefits, but it will also improve the health and well-being of many of its citizens. The introduction of solar panels, insulation, and energy-efficient homes will aid residents with the rising cost of bills whilst reducing carbon emissions. In an effort to ensure the city becomes carbon neutral, it offers the opportunity to resolve inequality issues. A focus on reducing the cost of bills for less well-off residents will help to ensure every resident in Nottingham can benefit from warmer homes and cleaner energy.
Alongside the housing dilemma, the Council is working on other avenues to ensure carbon neutrality. The transport sector has witnessed the introduction of 130 public electric vehicle charging points, the largest of any UK city. 30% of the buses in Nottingham run on biogas or clean electricity, alongside evidence of a growing number of low-emission vehicles. Public transport within Nottingham is highly successful and efficient, and Nottingham Council is working hard to ensure more residents are making use of the facilities.
Waste management has drastically improved
Waste management has drastically improved through increased recycling and the introduction of food waste collection. Education on proper recycling methods is also in place to further reduce wastage. To advance the reduction of carbon emissions, the council have planted 14,500 trees over the city and promotes a bee-friendly Nottingham, with signs distributed all around woodland areas. Within schools, more vegan and vegetarian meals are introduced so that meat consumption is cut amongst children, inspiring future generations to monitor their consumption habits.
Sally Longford, Deputy Leader for the council and Portfolio Holder for energy environment and waste services, acknowledges the task is tremendously ambitious as the rising cost of living is hindering the process. Nonetheless, she is optimistic CN28 will have astounding effects on Nottingham’s climate action. The council has achieved £24.5m in Government funding to make energy efficiency improvements, yet Sally contends that more grants are required if Nottingham is to reach its expected goal by 2028.
Sally recognises the success of working alongside the universities, businesses, and citizens of Nottingham, and she will be continuing these fruitful relations throughout the scheme. Sally hopes that all residents of Nottingham embark on a sustainable mindset and in turn, will witness the benefits of a carbon-neutral city. However, the work is not complete, more action and awareness must be done to ensure the CN28 climate goals are maintained.
“Students need to play their part”
Sally urges students to monitor how they live, travel, and use their energy, saying that “students need to play their part”. Working with landlords and pressuring universities to ensure homes are insulated is paramount to the success of CN28. Other measures include ensuring travel is environmentally friendly, and that waste and water are managed efficiently. It is a city-wide target, so we must ensure that everyone is taking an active role in sustainable living and climate management. Whilst highlighting the many successes of Nottingham’s Green Partnership, Sally has urged businesses and local residents to increase their involvement in climate action within the city. The Partnerships are currently very strong, yet they must be enhanced and expanded to ensure city-wide success. Small steps, such as downloading the Nottingham Green Rewards App, will reap huge benefits to climate action. The small energy changes residents conduct will drastically improve living benefits whilst protecting everyone from the impacts of global warming.
Lucy Popham
Featured image courtesy of Korng Sok via Unsplash Image license found here. No changes were made to this image.
For more content including Uni News, Reviews, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Features and so much more, follow us on Twitter and Instagram, and like our Facebook page for more articles and information on how to get involved.
To keep up to date with all the latest Impact News, you can also follow us on the Impact News’ Facebook, Instagram and Twitter page.
