Cyngor Gwynedd makes progress on net zero journey

Cyngor Gwynedd will invest £1.6 million in eco-friendly schemes which will help the authority achieve its goal of becoming net zero carbon by the year 2030.

 

At its meeting today (12 March), the Council's Cabinet voted in favour of the recommendation to prioritise more than £1,640,000 from its climate fund for three exciting projects that will enable the Council to invest in the authority’s infrastructure and fleet.

 

This will reduce the amount of fossil fuels used in providing key services for households within the county, reduce the carbon emissions released into the environment and as importantly save money for the public purse.

 

Electric Vehicles – Over the next two years, the Council will spend an extra £1 million to purchase 67 electric vehicles.

 

When the existing petrol or diesel vehicles currently used by the Council need replacing, electric cars and small vans will be used instead, saving the authority 64 tonnes of CO2 emissions. 

 

Upgrading lights – CyngorGwynedd will invest more than £400,000 in a pilot scheme to try out new LED lights to replace traditional fluorescent tubes in different types of buildings and under different circumstances.

 

Six buildings have been identified for the scheme, namely one residential home, two leisure centres and three schools.

 

Council officers will monitor the efficiency of the new lights for the duration of the pilot scheme to determine if it is worthwhile for the Council to invest in similar lighting for the other buildings the Council maintains.

 

Heat pumps – Cyngor Gwynedd will invest £175,000 and receive £1.75 million from the Welsh Government to run another pilot scheme with eco-friendly heating technology.

 

Again, the trial will be carried out in different types of buildings and under varying circumstances – two schools and one leisure centre – to measure the scheme’s efficiency.

 

Councillor Dyfrig Siencyn, Cyngor Gwynedd Leader, said:

 

“Cyngor Gwynedd has set a target to be net zero carbon and ecologically positive by 2030. To achieve this goal, for the benefit of future generations and to try to mitigate the effects of the climate crisis, we are putting a number of different plans into action.

 

“By burning fossil fuels such as oil or petrol, we produce carbon which adversely affects the quality of the air that we breathe and contributes to climate change. As a local authority we have a responsibility to do everything we can to turn things around and change our ways. 

 

“Since adopting our Climate Emergency Plan, we have been carefully planning how we can invest to save and what actions we can take that will have the greatest impact on our carbon emissions without adversely affecting the services we provide to local people and businesses within the county.

 

“I am very pleased with Cabinet's decision and that we are in a position to press ahead with these exciting projects, which will go hand-in-hand with our ongoing work to be more economical with our energy consumption and to cut down on costs.

 

“In a geographical large and rural county like Gwynedd, our officers need access to vehicles to carry out their work and the authority has a large number of buildings. So, it's good news that we're able to invest in these three projects, with room to grow and adapt according to the results we see.”