Council reports higher carbon emissions than when it declared a climate emergency

Peterborough City Council (PCC) emitted almost 14,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases last year, with a significant proportion coming from its own buildings.

A report on the council’s commitment to reaching net zero states that fifty per cent of its emissions come from its buildings and utilities.

Most of this (40%) is the result of gas and electricity being used in council buildings, while the next largest proportion (10%) comes from street lighting.

The other fifty per cent is made up of goods and services used to build and maintain road infrastructure (35%) and transport provided for or by the council (14%) with council waste adding a tiny percentage extra (less than 1%).

The exact figure – 13,647 tonnes – is lower than last year by around one and a half thousand tonnes, but higher than 2019/20 (9,613) and 2018/19 (11,607) when there wasn’t the additional factor of Covid meaning more people worked remotely.

In these earlier figures, Peterborough Highways Service emissions weren't included in the total, which the council says means it has cut emissions by around a quarter compared to its baseline (8,839 tonnes this year without that added).

But the current figures also don’t include emissions from goods and services the council has purchased which have “not been calculated” and could be much higher.

Now that more council services are being brought in-house - which includes the procurement of goods and services - PCC has the opportunity to monitor their emissions more closely in future and ensure they are reduced, the report says.

It has also reduced emissions as Peterborough Highways Service has begun using HVO fuel (hydrotreated vegetable oil – also known as renewable diesel) this year and by buying energy through a green electricity tariff, the report says.

Plans for the future include installing more solar panels and LED lights where possible in council buildings.

PCC will also develop a “roadmap to net zero emissions”, which it has committed to reaching by 2030.

This year, it says purchasing green electricity means that its net emissions were 9,927 tonnes of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

When PCC declared its climate emergency in 2019, councillors committed both to this and to helping Peterborough itself achieve net zero status.