Liverpool City Region sets out one-year climate plan

Dozens of immediate actions to tackle the climate emergency are highlighted in a one-year plan set to be approved by Liverpool City Region Combined Authority.

The Year One Climate Action Plan was drawn up to ensure ‘opportunities for early action are not missed’ as the city region strives to become zero-carbon by 2040. This follows the Combined Authority having declared a climate emergency in June 2019 and setting an ambitious goal to become carbon neutral ten years ahead of the UK target.

The Year One Climate Action Plan reveals emissions of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide reduced by 40 per cent in the Liverpool City Region between 2005 and 2018. Additionally, industrial and domestic discharges fell significantly but transport emissions, while lower than in 2005, have risen since 2013. The number of miles travelled by motor vehicles also increased in the three years up to 2019 – with cars accounting for the largest share.

As a result, transport and clean air schemes feature prominently in the comprehensive 82-point plan. Waste, infrastructure and sustainable energy projects are also included along with policy, planning and collaboration.

The Year One Climate Action Plan features projects that will either start, continue or finish during 2021/22 and includes: progressing the Mersey Tidal project; purchasing 20 hydrogen fuelled double decker buses; a campaign to encourage Active Travel; identifying ways to help residents move to electric vehicles affordably; continued delivery of 52.8km of cycle lanes and habitat improvements; investing £11.38 million to make around 1,120 homes more energy efficient; and developing a Zero Waste 2040 strategy including plans to reach 55 per cent re-use and recycling by 2025.

Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said: “The pandemic might have dominated our attention over the past year, but the climate emergency remains the biggest long-term challenge our region – and our planet – faces. Since I was elected, I’ve made tackling climate change a priority.

“We were the first combined authority in the country to declare a climate emergency, have invested millions in green projects and have developed ambitious plans to be zero carbon by 2040 – a whole decade ahead of national targets. But I want to go further. This plan sets out the things we’re doing to tackle climate change and improve the environment in our area over the next twelve months. We still have a long way to go but this will be a big first step.”