Sheffield City Council reduces emissions by three per cent in four years since declaring climate emergency

The council declared a climate emergency in February 2019 and, along with many other local authorities, has set a target for the local authority and the city to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2030. However, the council has only been able to reduce emissions by three per cent in the last four and a half years, the first annual climate report found.

Also, the report shows that the city has achieved a total 12 per cent reduction in emissions since the 2017 baseline, and while emissions increased by 4 per cent in 2021 from 2020, they are still nine per cent lower than in 2019.

At the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee meeting last week, members were told “there was still lots to do”.

The report stated an overall reduction of three per cent, however, the Local Democracy Reporting Service was told as the council’s housing contributes a large proportion of the council’s emissions and “there is no annual data available for our housing stock, therefore this figure doesn’t reflect the energy efficiency works carried out in many of their homes to date”.

Areas where most progress has been made include 32 per cent reductions in street lighting emissions and 27 per cent reduction in emissions from the council’s operational estate.

Also, since 2019, emissions from the council’s fleet (including a small mechanical plant) and the fleet of the council’s main contractors Amey and Veolia have reduced overall by one per cent, while emissions from the council’s own fleet have been reduced by three per cent.

Coun Ben Miskell, the chair of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Committee at Sheffield City Council, said: “The recent Annual Climate Report showed the fantastic work that has already taken place between 2019 and 2022 across the council’s estate and operations to help us achieve net zero emissions from the organisation by 2030.

“However, we can’t ignore that much, much more is needed to be done if we are to reach our goals. We can’t achieve this without substantial financial help from the central government, something which has been lacking so far and I would urge ministers to ensure the funding is made available as soon as possible.

“Urgent action is required, and we also need to work at a pace not seen before. If the government is prepared to match our ambition and put the financial support in place to support councils across the country, we will be able to achieve so much more. We’re showing leadership in bringing the city together to achieve net zero, but we’re being held back by the government”.