Agenda item

The Devon Carbon Plan

To consider the report of the Director Net Zero Exeter & City Management.

Decision:

Agreed:

RECOMMENDED that Council:-

(1) note the Devon Carbon Plan;

(2) reflecton the implications for the City of Exeter’s goal of a Net Zero Exeter 2030, given the Devon Carbon Plan target for Net Zero being 2050, in-line with Government’s goal for the country. Transport being one of the largest sources of carbon emissions for the City and County, the consequences of reductions to Net Zero by 2030 were profound and Members may wish to satisfy themselves that the 2050 goal provided a supportive policy context for the city of Exeter’s Net Zero plans:

(3) agree to continue working in collaboration with the Devon Climate Emergency Partnership in reducing county carbon emissions;

(4) agree that Exeter City Council led projects on the implementation of the Devon Carbon Plan be scrutinised by Exeter City Council’s Strategic Scrutiny Committee;

(5) request that a biannual update be presented to the Strategic Scrutiny Committee on the progress made in delivering the Devon Carbon Plan;

(6) reflect and discuss the ambition of the Devon Carbon Plan and how it relates to the ambition of a clean growth region;

(7) request that Devon County Council, identify Exeter as an early innovation zone or test bed for net zero initiatives; and

(8) request that an all-Member Briefing/Scrutiny be arranged with presentations provided from Devon County Council.

Reason for Decision: As set out in the report and amended at the meeting.

Minutes:

The Executive received the report of the recently released Devon Carbon Plan, which had been produced by the Devon Climate Emergency Partnership. The report outlined the work of the Devon Climate Emergency Partnership in researching and producing the Devon Carbon Plan. The report highlighted the two Net Zero target dates of 2030 for Exeter City Council and 2050 for Devon County Council and the impact on achieving the target. The report highlighted that transport was the third largest emitter of carbon emissions in the region and the importance of working with Devon County Council as the transport authority to align the work.

The Leader moved for the following additional recommendation to be included:-

· To request that Devon County Council identify Exeter as an early innovation zone or test bed for net zero initiatives.

It was explained that the reason for the additional recommendation was that the 2050 County target for Net Zero was a challenge. Exeter City Council had already been undertaking implementation work with a focus on practical actions and interventions which had highlighted the expertise available in the area on delivering the Net Zero target. If Devon County were to identify Exeter as an Innovation Zone for Net Zero, the expertise available in the City could assist the County 2050 target and also help advance the City Council 2030 target.

The Leader confirmed Exeter City Council would continue to work to the established target for Net Zero 2030 and highlighted that the Devon Carbon Plan was Devon County Councils’ plan.

Emily Reed, (Climate Emergency Project Manager) from the Devon Climate Emergency Partnership was in attendance and provided a presentation on the Devon Carbon Plan. Particular points raised during the presentation included:-

· The Devon Climate Emergency Partnership was established in 2019, and included a broad range of partners, which included all local authorities in Devon, third sector and private organisations.

· The Partnership had committed to working to reduce carbon emissions to Net Zero by 2050 at the latest, despite some partners having earlier target dates. The Partnership was also working to improve the resilience of Devon’s environment and prepare communities for living in a warmer world.

· The Net Zero task force was formed of 15 specialists and chaired by Patrick Devine-Wright from the University of Exeter to develop the Devon Carbon Plan, which was a strategic county wide plan.

· The Devon Carbon Plan was developed through an open call for evidence with 893 submissions received, a Youth Parliament meeting with 75 representatives from schools across Devon and thematic hearings to bring expertise to address the themes and create the Interim Devon Carbon Plan. Public consultations were also undertaken to form the final plan.

· There were eight objectives outlined in the Devon Carbon Plan, which included minimised energy consumption and phasing out fossil fuels.

· Key themes included changing behaviours and encouraging community engagement, sharing knowledge and skills, accessing finance and additional resources.

· Energy supply options included using less energy, moving to renewable energy and developing a means to capture unavoidable carbon emissions.

· Existing houses and commercial properties would be retrofitted with energy efficiency measures and low-carbon heating technologies. New buildings would need to be built to Net Zero standard, to save on the cost of future retrofitting.

· Transport was aligned to the Council’s plan for reducing the need for travel, moving to sustainable transport options and introducing technology reduce vehicle emissions.

· There was a need to develop a demand for providing nutritious and sustainably produced food, reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions from farming and maximise carbon storage in the environment.

· The proposed governance structure was presented, which highlighted the response group, who would oversee delivery of themes outlined in the plan and a change forum to represent the people of Devon. Indicators would be used to monitor progress of the plan which would be reviewed by the response group.

Councillor Jobson, as an opposition group leader, spoke on this item and highlighted a suggestion that recommendation 2.5 in the report should be a biannual (six monthly) update to Strategic Scrutiny.

Councillor D. Moore, as an opposition group leader, spoke on this item. She welcomed the report and enquired about aviation emissions, which were missing from the transport section. Clarification was also sought on the Equality Impact Assessment which stated that certain religious groups maybe against retrofitting buildings, and welcomed contributions of religious groups for action on climate change.

Councillor D. Moore, further enquired if there would be any additional work on the alignment of the County Council and City Council Net Zero plans and what could be prioritised. She highlighted that there were ongoing discussions on establishing an oversight committee to monitor progress on meeting the 2030 Net Zero target and it was important that Devon County Council provide information on the progress.

During the discussion the following points were made:-

· thanks were made to the Climate Emergency Project Manager for the informative presentation;

· the additional recommendation was welcomed and would further highlight the level of ambition and expertise at the City Council and strengthening working relationships with partners;

· achieving the 2030 target in Exeter would be beneficial for Devon County Council in reaching their 2050 target; and

· there were gaps in the emission reporting which needed to be addressed, which included the 35% emissions from buildings. Legislation was also needed from central government to enforce new building construction to meet the Net Zero standard.

The Portfolio Holder for Climate Change highlighted that the challenge in Devon was that the region covered a vast urban, coastal and rural area, with particular issues with transport in rural areas. The Devon Carbon Plan had been assembled from a range of contributors to deliver a large and complex plan for 2050, however Exeter was still committed to its 2030 goal. 22% of greenhouse gas emissions in the city was from transport, which Devon County Highways as the authority for transport were focussed on addressing, and were working with the City Council. Exeter needed to be an early innovation zone for net zero initiatives work going forward.

Emily Reed, (Climate Emergency Project Manager) in responding to questions and points raised stated that: -

· she represented the Devon Climate Emergency Partnership and could not speak on behalf of Devon County Council in regards to the additional recommendation;

· the University of Exeter, in helping to develop the plan, had advised that aviation emissions accounted for only a small proportion of emissions in Devon and there had been greater focus on building and transport emissions; and

· there was a specific work being undertaken on buildings and building legislation, which involved working with central government to allow local authorities to enforce higher building regulation standards. Conversations were also ongoing between local authorities on requesting higher quality builds ahead of legislative change.

Following the discussion, as well as in addition to the additional recommendation, the Leader moved an amendment to recommendation 5 in the report and a further additional recommendation for inclusion as follows:-

· to request that a biannual update be presented to the Strategic Scrutiny Committee on the progress made in delivering the Devon Carbon Plan; and

· to request an all-Member Briefing/Scrutiny, with presentations from Devon County Council.

It was explained that the reason for the amendment and additional recommendation was to allow regular updates to the Strategic Scrutiny Committee and ahead of these meetings, to provide an inclusive Members briefing to ensure that all Members could attend and ask more detailed questions.

The amendments were seconded by Councillor Wright, which was voted on and unanimously supported.