Sefton Council pledges that 2022 will be the borough’s greenest year yet

Two months on from the international environment summit COP26, Sefton Council is pledging that 2022 will be the greenest year yet.

The year will see a number of key projects reach or move towards completion and significantly reduce the carbon footprint generated from Council operations.

Work is underway at Bootle and Southport town halls and will finish later in the year and begin making carbon savings. The work has consisted of new energy efficiency measures like double glazing and insulation resulting in a 32% reduction in gas consumption. Across the borough the installation of LED street lights is continuing with 3,311 lanterns installed so far along with 213 full column replacements saving 148,852 kWh of electricity already.

After significant progress towards a net zero carbon target of 2030 over the past two years, the Council is set to embark on a number of key projects this year to reduce emissions borough wide.

Sefton Council recently approved plans for over £3 million to be spent on retrofit measures in over 500 homes in the Borough which will make homes more energy efficient, cheaper to run and better for the planet. Schools in Sefton are also getting involved in green projects like the AirWatch project to monitor air quality it playgrounds and set about improving it.

Cllr Paulette Lappin, Cabinet Member for Regulation, Compliance and Corporate Services said:

“I am extremely excited to see all the projects and initiatives we have planned to combat the climate emergency in 2022.

“Every year we get closer to our target date of net zero carbon by 2030 for our own operations and to see progress continue steadily towards this target is fantastic and a testament to our commitment to eliminate our net carbon footprint.

“I was so proud to see all the efforts and pledges right across our Borough during COP26 and it seems that spirit has followed us into 2022. I know this year will be productive in reducing borough wide emissions and our work with residents, businesses, partners and schools will make Sefton cleaner, greener and healthier.”

The Council, alongside partners, businesses and schools will honour those pledges made during COP26 as part of the Council’s #IPledge campaign which saw over 50 business and schools make pledges towards a greener future.

In addition, the Council’s Green Sefton service has launched a new nature’s calendar to tell people what will be happening along the Borough’s unique Natural Coast and its many greenspaces.

Each month the nature’s calendar tells people what they can expect to see and hear happening around them as the seasons progress. It also describes what work the Green Sefton teams are doing and sometimes explain what they are not doing, to nurture our protected habitats landscapes, plants and wildlife.

Also, the calendar, which you can locate here, will provide some advice on what Sefton residents might see or be doing in the garden or their nearby park or greenspace.

Snowdrops starting to appear, robins and wrens singing, and the unearthly mating calls of foxes are among the things the calendar’s January page says we should look out for.  It also explains that during the winter, Green Sefton cuts back invasive scrub on the coast and uses visiting Belted Galloway cows and Herdwick Sheep to improve habitats through conservation grazing.

Cllr Ian Moncur, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said:

“Working on Sefton’s green spaces and along our 22-mile nature coast, much of our Green Sefton teams’ work is determined by the seasons and they have a month-by-month programme designed to enhance and protect our unique combination of environments, plants and wildlife.

“Ensuring we provide protection for these sometimes means carrying out measures including scrub clearance, which some people may be surprised to see.

“It also sometimes means not doing things people expect we would, such as not mowing in certain areas this month to provide food sources during the lean winter months.

“This year we thought it would be good to share some of those seasonal update elements with Sefton residents telling them what’s going on around them in nature and what to look out for.”

To see the latest Sefton Council annual report, click here.