Redbridge Council will formally launch its Climate Change Action Plan this July. It’s all part of the effort to tackle the climate emergency, says Councillor Jo Blackman, Cabinet Member for Environment and Civic Pride
With the UK hosting a key global climate summit later this year and the recent G7 meeting in Cornwall, there is renewed attention on what we can do to tackle the climate emergency. Much of the responsibility falls on fossil fuel companies and governments who have failed to act, but we should all be doing our bit, and that includes Redbridge Council.
In June, Redbridge Council’s cabinet adopted a three-year action plan, setting out more than 100 actions the council will undertake towards becoming carbon neutral by 2030 and zero carbon by 2050. Emissions directly associated with the council only account for 2.4% of borough-wide emissions, so it is crucial to work with communities, businesses and residents to help reduce all of our emissions. We need everyone in the community to help tackle climate change – it must be a collective shared responsibility.
We are planning regular sessions with environmental groups to explore how we can work together on each of the priorities identified in the three-year action plan. The analysis showed that buildings account for the biggest share of emissions generated by the council, followed by transport, then waste. So, what are we doing at Redbridge?
- We will be launching our Climate Change Action Plan on 14 July.
- We are working to switch to green sources of energy across the council estate, as well as supporting landlords to improve energy efficiency with the Redbridge Go Green grants scheme.
- We are supporting the transition away from diesel and petrol cars with the installation of 18 new electric vehicle charging points across Wanstead and South Woodford.
- We are supporting a School Streets programme in five localities (which has been supported by parents and teachers) to encourage active travel at drop-off and pick-up times.
- We are providing additional cycle storage and electric charging points at our mobility hubs on Wanstead High Street and George Lane, South Woodford, as well as four new bike hangars across Wanstead and South Woodford.
- We are negotiating with the waste authority to expand the range of recyclables we can accept to include plastic pots and trays.
We are making progress but need to go further. For this, we need help from the government to set the right legal framework and provide resources. We’ll be watching how they commit to the climate emergency when discussed at the global summit in November.
A virtual launch of the Redbridge Climate Change Action Plan will take place on 14 July from 6pm. Visit wnstd.com/ccplan
