Cornwalls Carbon Neutral Action Plan Progress to date

Cornwall’s Carbon Neutral Action Plan – Progress to date Update 31 st May - Neighbourhoods Overview and Scrutiny Committee

Meeting structure • • • Introduction – Drivers for change Known risks to Cornwall from Climate Change What we have already done & where are we now? Evidence base on progress Scale and visions of change Building the ‘Action Plan’ – – Approach & Themes Areas of influence Grand challenges Early action & implementation • Next Steps

Cornwall’s Carbon Neutral Challenge – drivers for change

Young, old and iconic are realising the gravity of the ‘Climate Emergency’ to our civilisation The future looks very alarming indeed, but it is not to late to act. We still have time if we act now with determination and urgency Sir David Attenborough, Climate Change – The Facts (April, 2019) We all have a choice. We can create transformational action that will safeguard the living conditions for future generations. Or we can continue with our business as usual and fail Greta Thunberg, Davos Address (Jan 2019)

Science is building consensus on need for action To avoid exceeding the 1. 5°C target, global net anthropogenic CO 2 emissions must decline by 45% from 2010 levels by 2030, reaching net zero around 2050 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Special Report 15 (Oct, 2018) https: //www. ipcc. ch/sr 15/ ‘Towards Net Zero by 2050’ § § § / low-carbon electricity (must quadruple its supply by 2050) Efficient buildings and low-carbon heating carbon capture and storage diversion of biodegradable waste from landfill phase-out of fluorinated gases Fifth of the UK’s agricultural land must shift to alternative use to support emissions reduction § Accelerate afforestation, biomass production and peatland restoration .

Opinion is divided on urgency of action required – it is a political issue - Government at all levels is facing direct action from climate activists Extinction Rebellion (XR) are demanding that the UK and local Governments: • Tell the truth – declaring a climate and ecological emergency • Act now – reducing emissions to net zero by 2025 • Go beyond politics - Creating and ceding leadership of UK climate decisions to a Citizens’ Assembly on climate and ecological justice - replacing representative democracy with a people led participatory climate governance system. There are still deniers however! . /

Is carbon neutral possible by … …? 2030/35 2025 • Called for by XR • Theoretically possible -Zero Carbon Britain • Would require unprecedented Govt leadership and action. • Impossible without Govt policy support • Shows genuine ambition • Significant change at a local level could be made • Necessary according to some scientists. 2045/50 • ‘Agreed’ IPCC and Govt positions • Less politically disruptive • Unlikely to catalyse necessary radical change • Could prove to be complacent given science

The Motion RESOLVED that the Council: 1. Declare a ‘climate emergency’. 2. Call on Westminster to provide the powers and resources necessary to achieve the target for Cornwall to become carbon neutral by 2030 and commit to work with other Councils with similar ambitions. 3. Provide adequate staff time and leadership to prepare a report within six months to establish how Cornwall can sufficiently reduce carbon emissions through energy efficiency, low-carbon fuels and investment in renewable energy and other Council strategies, plans and contracts within a timescale which is consistent with an ambition to restrain Global Warming to 1. 5⁰C. This will draw together the actions Cornwall Council is already and will continue to take; and where possible, outline partners’ commitments to move towards a carbon neutral Cornwall by 2030.

Councils and Parish Councils • Circa 113 Councils & Parish Councils have declared a climate emergency to date • Circa 63% have set a target of Carbon Neutrality by 2030 • UK Parliament have declared climate change emergency and net zero carbon by 2030. • London & Manchester both declared climate emergencies prior to close of 2018 • London committed to net zero carbon by 2050 , using existing 2018 plan • Manchester, produced an intern plan by Feb 19. Final plan expected before 2020 Manchester City Councils Outline Action Plan , Feb 2019

What does climate change mean for Cornwall? Known risks, impacts and vulnerabilities

Visible impacts of climate change Increased wind, rain and storm intensity

Vulnerability is a function of pressures and releases – our planning and decisions matter Root Causes • Limited Access to: Finance Development Space Support for Communities • Landscape, Topography & Geology • Asset Ownership • Poverty • Trust in System for Protection Dynamic Pressures • Lack of Emergency Plans • Sense of Responsibility or Importance • Holiday Home Ownership • Small or Aging Populations • Large Tourist Population • Land Use Unsafe Conditions Risk Hazards • Fragile Physical Environment e. g. • Rapid Response Catchments • Fragile Local Economy e. g. • Pluvial Flooding Intense Sustained flood defence condition reliant on limited transport infrastructure • Vulnerable Society e. g. 20% deprivation • Fragile Environment e. g. agricultural runoff • Property impacts The Progression of Vulnerability Flood • Storm Surge & Tide Locking • Coastal Erosion • Drainage System Failure • Flood Defence Failure • Watercourse Erosion/Siltation

Less visible / Invisible impacts • Seasonal timing changes impacting food chains for all species • Seasonal disruption to energy demand tourism economies • Increased risk of drought & fire risks • Biosecurity – increase risk of diseases and invasive species on native ecosystems • Vulnerable UK and international supply chains.

What have we already done and where are we now?

Previous and Existing Programmes an fund o l y g r e rnwall o ty en i C n t s u a f m Com Super e & Rid rth Park Langa Solar w o n r Ke Park nwall 2008 2012 2011 W Central arm & Well Heating Fund Cornwa or Glow C Tregura ll Counc il Estate Park & EV Char ging Po ints Ride 2015 2016 tigation i M d o rock Flo Long l therma o e G p EL Dee G 2017 2018 2019 uncil o C l l a ation g w i t n i r o M C d Free el Floo Plastic St Aust

Cornwall’s Carbon Dioxide emissions – by source • Cornwall has seen a c 32% (1, 303 kt. CO 2) reduction in CO 2 emissions in the 11 • years from 2005 (4124 kt. CO 2) to 2016 (2, 821 kt. CO 2) At least two thirds of the emission reductions having been achieved by Thousand Tonnes Carbon Dioxide • decarbonising electricity. The CO 2 data shows Cornwall is making reasonable progress towards meeting the Green Cornwall 2020 target of 2. 99 Mt. CO 2 e (nb. CO 2 e target) 4, 500 2. 8 million tonnes CO 2 saved 4, 000 3, 500 3, 000 2, 500 2, 000 Electricity Natural Gas Oil/Coal Petrol/Diesel 1, 500 1, 000 500 - 500 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Cornwall’s Carbon Dioxide emissions – by sector Beyond decarbonisation of electricity the remaining reductions came the reduced energy used for heating homes and businesses • Transport is now Cornwall’s largest emitting sector making up 36% (1, 037 kt. CO 2) with a minimal reduction having occurred since 2005. Thousand Tonnes Carbon Dioxide • 4, 500 4, 000 Residential 3, 500 Commercial 3, 000 Agriculture - Energy 2, 500 Large Industrial 2, 000 Road Transport 1, 500 Rail Transport 1, 000 CO 2 Removal 500 - 500 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Going beyond CO 2: Understanding importance of non-CO 2 gases Cornwall GHG inventory last produced 2008 data year (c 14% were non-CO 2 GHGs) 4. 7 million tonnes CO 2 CDC (2011) Cornwall Greenhouse Gas Inventory

Cornwall GHG Inventory updates & Scenarios University of Exeter commissioned to produce: • • GHG Inventory for 2009 -2017 data years using WRI Global Protocol for Community-Scale Greenhouse Gas Inventories (GPC) Modelling different scenarios for achieving carbon neutral Findings expected June WRI (2014). GPC

Scenarios to achieve carbon neutrality - What will the analysis tell us? Stage One: Using a standard model to provide: • Cornwall baseline: Business as Usual (BAU) • Scenario 1: Change required to achieve carbon neutral by 2030 (CC motion) • Scenario 2: Change required to achieve carbon neutral by 2050 (Govt – CCC report) Stage two: Models for achieving the Scenarios • Different options (mixes of interventions) of how the selected scenario can be achieved

The scale and visions of change

Carbon Neutral Means… Getting to carbon neutral will require significant changes to the way we do things, from the energy we use, to the products and food that we buy. If guided well this can bring many additional benefits.

Unprecedented Changes – To EVERYTHING! Leadership Paradox WAR FOOTING URGENCY + COMPLEXITY + COLABORATION = HARD CHOICES CLIMATE CHANGE

Carbon Neutral Means… …. that all the electricity we will use must come from clean production technologies, with the benefits from that energy, ideally staying in Cornwall. …our cars, homes and businesses must run on zero carbon energy sources, providing a cleaner local and global environment

The Difficult Realities Delivering a carbon-neutral Cornwall will vary across sectors: • Electricity will need to become zero carbon • Road vehicles will need to be running on near zero carbon (electric, bio-methane or hydrogen) • Next-to-no buildings will be using oil, gas or coal to warm them. • Building heating will mostly come from ‘heat pumps’. Each renewably generated megawatt will have to replace one from fossil fuels – increased energy demands will have to be met through efficiency investments

The Difficult Realities • Planes are likely to still run on oil - other sectors will thus need to reduce further. • Agriculture will need to reduce fertiliser use, reduce emissions, capture methane and carbon. • We will need to consume less and repair more of our products. • The land (and coast) will then need to be managed to absorb the remaining CO 2.

Ensuring decisions support local, long term resilience – ‘avoid acting in haste and repenting at leisure’ • Consider how we minimise spending now that locks in spending again later i. e. building homes in flood plains; or that will need retrofitting; road designed for traffic and water • Buildings need to be more efficient and effective to deal with unstable climate effects • Increasing role for Climate Risk Assessments in our planning processes

Multiple benefits of the carbon neutral quest. . • Significant health benefits from better air quality, healthier diets, less noise, more active travel • More efficient homes and reduced fuel poverty • Greater resilience against temperature extremes with less stress on emergency services • More resilient economy through better energy security • Working practice changes can improve work-life balance and facilitate a transition to a carbon neutral future. • Further stimulate the local economy with new green industries and practices • Avoidance of further climate damage

Cornwall Council’s role in moving towards carbon neutral Cornwall?

Cornwall Council’s role in the system Areas we directly control and guide Areas we can enable through funding Areas we can enable through policy Areas we can influence locally Areas we can influence or ask for nationally

UN Sustainable Development Goals No poverty Zero hunger Good health & wellbeing Reduced inequalities Sustainable cities & communities Responsible production & consumption Quality education Climate action Gender equality Life below water Clean water & sanitation Affordable & clean energy Decent work & economic growth Life on land Peace, justice & strong institutions Partnerships for the goals Industry, Innovation & infrastructure

New perspectives on economic models

How are we approaching the development of July Cabinet report the Action Plan

Considering different sectoral areas Environmental infrastructure/ ecosystem (Terrestrial & Marine) Water Environment Energy Philippa Hoskin Paul Minshull Caroline Carroll David Rodda Vicky Fraser Public Sector Care sector bodies Built environment/ Housing Public health Education Jo Roberts Caroline Court Charlotte Hill Agriculture & Fishing Local & national Transport Kerry Baily Resources & Waste Business sector/ economic development Marine Community engagement Verity Palk & Paul Martin Emily Kent Andy Brigden Mark James Legal Public Behaviour change/ Consumption Planning Matt Stokes Rachel Barker Louise Wood

Areas we directly control and guide

Cornwall Council’s direct role Cornwall Council will need to show leadership delivering a net carbon-neutral estate and ensure visual influence. • Cornwall Council estate representing 0. 4% (10, 247 k. TCO 2/pa) of Cornwall’s carbon emissions (measured by CO 2 only – less if other gases are considered)

Cornwall Council direct role • Our governance o Strengthen our environmental assessments in all decision making and reporting o Development of carbon accounting and a carbon budget o Carbon and wider environmental reporting embedded in our operating data/ performance management • Our infrastructure o Minimum carbon standards on our properties, starting with office estate and enabling green energy on site (solar etc. ) o New build & retrofit of Cornwall housing o Increase biodiversity and tree cover on our owned land o Move to ultra low emission fleet o LED lighting o Recycling containment in council owned buildings

Cornwall Council direct role • Strategies & policies o Strategy, policy and vision alignment to ensure coherence with climate change challenge • Our skills, culture & language o Carbon literacy programmes within the organisation o Environmental commitments embedded in values/ cultural language • How we work o Office space strategy and green travel plan o Digitising processes (reducing paper usage) and any processes requiring internal/ paper mail

Cornwall Council direct role • What we buy o drive wider emissions reduction through green procurement approaches to support delivery of low carbon services (e. g. waste and bus contracts) o Embed carbon statements in our information we provide to suppliers – quick win o Procurement strategies to reduce multi-deliveries • Financial models/ incentives/ disincentives o Appropriate taxation/ levies/incentives/subsidies/penalties o Charges where necessary (emissions, congestion, parking) o Designing as a package, rather than individual interventions

Cornwall Council’s guiding role - CORSERV • Cornwall Housing manages 10, 285 homes - 3. 76% of the homes in Cornwall (est. approx. 1% of Cornwall’s emissions) • CORMAC fleet manages over 1, 000 vehicles however this only equates to c. 0. 25% of Cornwall total resident vehicles (est. approx. 1% of Cornwall’s emissions) • Cornwall Airport Limited: flights from Cornwall Airport Newquay are being recalculated, it was 0. 3% of Cornwall’s emissions based on 2008 figures

Areas we can enable through funding

Funding under direct Council control Capital ‘Investment’ Programme Capital Programme Highways Funding Councillors’ Community Chest Funds Services revenue budgets/ small scale contracts • Reserves • • •

Areas we directly control and guide Areas we can enable through funding Areas we can enable through policy Areas we can influence locally Areas we can influence or ask for nationally

Council’s role to enable wider changes through policy Working within national strategies & frameworks we can influence: • Definition of local priorities: • Energy, Industrial, Climate, Transport, Planning, Waste, Environment, Maritime • Planning Policies • Facilitate move towards zero-carbon homes • Facilitate new zero carbon generation • Public Transport – modal shifts • Education and Skills Pipeline • Closing Waste Loops – promote a Circular Economy

Areas we can influence locally

Councils role to influence change locally • Working with our partners – City, Town & Parish Councils – Voluntary & Community sector groups across communities – Universities & Colleges – Businesses – ‘Tevi’ (environmental growth and circular economy) – Other major organisations - Govt Agencies, NHS, Police etc – Safety Partnerships, One Public Estate, Pathfinder projects – External funding bodies – Intermediate Body Status, Culture & Heritage MOU

Areas we can influence or ask for nationally

Emerging asks of Government • Parity for rural & coastal areas • Increase access to climate finance • Social, technical, ecological programmes • Legislation & regulation of utilities • Transport and energy infrastructure • Local support of supply chains • School Curriculum • Major skills programme

Emerging asks of Government • Planning Policy & Building Regulations • Energy/Resilient Innovation Zones • Coalitions to address owned fleet and estate o Mass Retrofit o Scrappage scheme • Electrification of rail network • Climate levy

Big Challenges and Grand Challenges! Implementation time horizon Short term Solutions well known & with limited barriers to delivery Medium Term Long term E. g. • Mass awareness to already developed measures e. g. electric car charging network, 10 pledges • Scaling up of woodland planting across unproductive county farms estate • Cornwall council estate & fleet Big challenges Solutions well known, but significant barriers to delivery • Re-expansion of rail network • Relocating communities • Agricultural system change • Home retrofitting • Enabling up-scaling of renewable energy generation • Increasing use of public transport Grand Challenges Wicked issues requiring system change

Big challenges – Transformational changes • Mass retrofit of homes and business o Circa 273. 5 k homes require retrofit. o Cost per home currently estimated at £ 75 k to achieve 90% CO 2 reduction. Expected to drop to £ 30 k over the next decade o 4, 500 private sector rented homes currently failing to meet Minimum Energy Efficiency Standard. • Mass modal shift for transportation o o Considerable increase in public transport use; Active travel - walking and cycling; Moving more freight away from road. Encouraging and enabling the uptake of ultra-low emission vehicles (e. g. hybrid, electric, hydrogen, bio-methane) to replace fossil fueled personal, freight and public transport vehicles. • Energy generation on unprecedented scale o Significant upgrades to grid infrastructure including smart grid solutions o Gigawatts of additional zero carbon energy generation • Low carbon agriculture & food o Small scale on-farm anaerobic digestion across Cornwall

Grand challenges – Going Further…. • Re-examining perceptions of Cornwall – Expectations of landscape & heritage– what will we protect, grow or change? – Role of tourism – outside views, driving local incomes – New industries – fostering sustainable prosperity • Coastal community resilience and change – Maintaining highways on coastlines – Frequency of flooding – homes and economic disruption – Connectivity with the Isles of Scilly and rest of UK • Circular economy – Changing models and patterns of consumption – Zero waste

Our Early Implementers • Strategies - Alignment of strategies to ensure to facilitate coordinated climate change action • Governance - Strengthen our environmental assessments in all decision making and reporting • Our Fleet - Accelerating transfer to ultra low emission vehicles. • Our estate – Delivery of £ 16 m investment programme • Our staff – roll out of climate culture & skills programme and green travel plan • Transport - Work with EDRF funded partner to increase the number of electric car charging points by a minimum of 66 over the next 3 years

Our Early Implementers • Council Farms Estate - Installation of small scale on-farm anaerobic digestion, upscaling of on-farm solar and woodland planting, scoping further potential for natural climate solutions • Development – carbon and biodiversity - Biodiversity Net Gain from CC development/ Building with Nature & Voluntary carbon offset scheme for Cornwall • Airport - Deployment of LED airfield lighting, Conversion of airport grass to biomethane & Energy storage link to airport and Kernow Solar Park • Natural climate solutions – Mass woodland & tree planting, scoping changes to role of PROW network to drive use, potential for natural flood management interventions, environment asset management changes.

Next Steps

Actions to complete discovery phase • Completion of GHG Inventory & Scenario modelling • Public engagement activities – Royal Cornwall Show – Citizen conversations across towns in Cornwall – Online survey – Promotion of 10 pledges and individual action • Preparation of Cabinet report • Scoping role Scrutiny

Discovery phase Define Phase Mass retrofit of homes & businesses Low carbon agriculture & food Coastal community resilience & change Options for mitigation & adaptation (medium and long term) Mass modal shift for transportation Evaluate options, benefits, impacts and risks Agree preferred options and implementation programme Reframing expectations of landscape Circular economy Stakeholder engagement Develop implementation programme Consumption Energy generation Ecosystem health Deliver phase Strategy alignment Council governance & decision making Ultra low emission Council Fleet Identify early implementers £ 16 m Investment programme Council farms Estate Development offset – Carbon & biodiversity Scaling up electric charging Airport actions Mobilise delivery programme Accelerated planning & implementation of immediate early implementers Monitoring and evaluation

Resourcing Capital investment Resourcing programme team • Work is being undertaken and will continue into the next phase of the programme to determine the capital and other financial requirements necessary to deliver on the motion • £ 16 m already allocated from the low Carbon Investment Fund with a further pipeline of £ 28 m. • Achieving motion will require significant action from nearly every service from within Cornwall Council and from every person, community and business across Cornwall • Responding to climate change will require additional capacity within services to design and implement changes into the Council’s day to day operations. • Dedicated core programme team will be required to provide leadership, co-ordinate our planning & oversee delivery. • Programme team structure still in development but will consist of: • Senior Accountable Officer & Programme lead • Project & Change Management • Communication & Engagement • Intelligence & modelling • Sector leadership & subject matter expertise

National support Influence & local system leadership HM Treasury Ministry Housing, Communities & Local Government Town & Parish Council’s CIOS Leadership Board Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy Public Sector bodies Local Enterprise Partnership Cabinet Transport Corporate Directors Team Programme Board Housing Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs Department for Transport Local Nature Partnership Environment Network Leads Councils direct control Neighbourhoods Overview Scrutiny Committee Department for Education Community Sector Department for Health & Social Care Energy Waste …. Core Programme Team Citizens engagement & participation Business Sector Cabinet Office

Public & Community engagement Climate Conversations in Cornwall – strengthening localism and democracy – Residents Panel (1000 members) – 213 Local Councils – Community Network Panels – Green Champions – Youth Parliament & Young People’s Conversations – Supporting individual action through communications – Expertise sharing workshops – Scrutiny processes

Being a good partner to communities and individuals • Shared Spaces – create facilitated spaces for safe conversations • Shared Values – to navigate challenging conversations • Shared Principles – to approach creating solutions with, e. g. Participative, Localised, Equitable • Shared Goals – to generate mutual understanding of responsibilities and actions • Shared Outcomes – to share impacts fairly

Summary & close July Cabinet report will conclude our discovery phase and set out: • how far we have progressed and how far we still need to go to reach net carbon neutrality • The short term actions that the Council can take directly, along with longer term aspirations • The systemic changes needed and the actions that are required from Government to support the transition to carbon neutrality • How we will can work collaboratively to co-design our future solutions Q. What level of ambition would NOSC members wish to recommend to Cabinet?