Agenda item

To receive the report of the Director, Corporate Estates, which provides an update to the Climate Change Cabinet Steering Group with regards to the work underway on the project to develop an understanding of the Carbon Footprint of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council activities and how it relates to the wider RCT Council Net Zero and Carbon Reduction commitments. 

The Head of Energy Project Management provided an update to the Climate Change Cabinet Steering Group with regards to the work underway on the project to develop an understanding of the Carbon Footprint of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council activities and how it relates to the wider RCT Council Net Zero and Carbon Reduction commitments. 

The officer drew Members’ attention to Section 4 of the report, which detailed the steps undertaken to calculate a Carbon Footprint profile for RCT Council for the Financial Year 2019-2020. Members were informed that the total footprint for Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT) during the Financial Year (FY) 2019/20 had been estimated at 105,257tCO2e and could be broken down into three separate scopes, according to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol:

·       Scope 1: Direct emissions associated with the use of natural gas in buildings, fleet fuel consumption, other fuels and refrigerants (17,888 tCO2e);

·       Scope 2: Indirect emissions associated with purchased electricity in buildings (6,360 tCO2e); and

·       Scope 3:Indirect emissions associated with the embodied emissions from procured goods and services, capital goods, employee commuting, business travel, upstream emissions from scope 1 and 2 activities, leased buildings and water consumption in FY 19/20 (81,009 tCO2e).

Members were informed of the intention for the next phases and noted that further updates would be provided to the Steering Group in the future.

The Chair thanked the officer for the update on the Council’s Carbon Footprint data, which had been requested by the Steering Group at a previous meeting. The Chair commented that the data was honest and would play an integral role in reducing the carbon footprint in the various areas of the Council.

Referring to Welsh Government’s substantial ‘Welsh Public Sector Net Zero Carbon Reporting Guide’, one Member noted that the process for formal reporting would have considerable implications for RCT Council’s future Carbon reporting obligations and also for certain aspects of the Carbon Footprint project, and queried whether there was opportunity to share best practice with other Local Authorities. The officer advised that the various reporting deadlines within the guidance were considered impractical by many Local Authorities and it was hoped that these would be amended in the near future. Members were assured that officers regularly meet with the Welsh Government Energy Service and attend the South East Wales C.L.A.W meetings, which allows counterparts to meet regularly and share information across the 22 Local Authorities.

One Member was pleased to note the inclusion of indirect emissions associated with embodied emissions. The Member questioned whether the Council were taking into consideration all projects and spoke of the energy consumption costs associated with the recent implementation of 20MPH traffic calming measures throughout the County Borough. The Member felt that such schemes would evidence the difficulty of achieving carbon targets without abandoning usual Council Policy. The officer advised that calculations are made as part of the carbon trust calculation but only at a high level. It was explained that the Council invest a vast amount of money in capital projects and therefore the figures are higher than those with smaller capital contracts. Members were assured that from officer experience, contractors were also working on reducing their own carbon footprint and moving forward, officers would consider individual projects to calculate the embodied energy.

When questioned whether the Council’s pension fund was included within the figures, the officer advised that it was not included.

The Climate Change Cabinet Steering Group RESOLVED:

1.    To note the contents of the Carbon Footprint project update report as part of the ongoing work of the Climate Change Cabinet Steering Group; and

2.    To receive a further report in 2021 providing a further update on progress for phases 2 and 3.