Plans to make the county net zero by 2040 are set for approval by Northumberland County Council.  
 

The Council’s Cabinet is being recommended to agree an ambitious proposal to reduce the county’s greenhouse gases, as close to zero as possible, by 2040 and make the Council a carbon neutral organisation by 2030. 
 

The proposal comes after all greenhouse gas emissions, not just carbon dioxide, have been included in the national data sets for local authorities. 

Cabinet Members are being asked to take this into account and look to reduce all emissions at a local level as part of the Council’s ongoing commitment to tackling climate change. 
 

The Council is currently producing its next Climate Change Action Plan for 2024-26 which will be at the forefront of the Council’s Environmental Policy and focus on projects to reduce Northumberland-produced emissions. 
 

The plan will also explore solutions to adapt to the effects of climate change at a local level, such as storm response and flood prevention.  

Councillor Glen Sanderson, leader of Northumberland County Council and Cabinet Member for climate change said: “As a Council, we are fully committed to protecting our environment and are continuing to explore ways to reduce harmful emissions and hope Councillors will welcome this decision to work towards net zero. 
 

“We have already made great strides in improving our operations to become more sustainable.  
 

“Our teams are working hard behind the scenes to explore cleaner solutions for the council and the county, such as finding low-carbon energy solutions for our public buildings the feasibility of District Heat Networks within our major towns and using Government funding to retrofit the most energy inefficient, eligible homes in Northumberland through our Warmer Homes scheme. 
 

“Just recently we opened our ground-breaking solar carport which will produce up to 40% of County Hall’s energy needs and provide EV chargepoints for our staff and fleet vehicles.  
 

“I hope that this decision goes ahead so that many more innovative, sustainable solutions can be achieved going forward.” 
 

The Council announced a climate emergency back in 2019 when only local level data for carbon dioxide emissions was available. 
 

Although being one of the lowest areas in the region for carbon emissions, the new inclusion of methane and nitrous oxide pushes greenhouse gas emissions in the county up to 68%, owing mainly to county’s large agricultural sector. 
 

Cllr Sanderson continued: “We want to encourage all our residents and visitors to work with us to make Northumberland a cleaner and greener place to live, work and visit.”