No local authority in Kent will meet their Net Zero targets they set for either their Council estate or whole district by 2030. In fact, only two of the thirteen local authorities in Kent are set to meet the Net Zero Targets for 2050, according to the latest data available.
The ambitious targets were set by the Council set themselves. So if we take Ashford BC, it said it would meet its Net Zero targets for its council estate by 2030, or at least that was their “ambition”. However, the latest available data shows the ABC will meet its net zero target, for its estate, in 2062, some thirty two years after the target date it initially set itself. Also ABC will not meet the 2050 net zero targets set by His Majesty’s Government (HMG) by 12 years.
Net zero refers to the balance between the amount of greenhouse gases (GHGs) produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere. In other words, it means adding no more GHGs to the Earth’s atmosphere than the amount taken out.
All of the UK must meet net zero by 2050, in line with the target set out in legislation. However, whilst the UK has a legal commitment to achieving Net Zero by 2050, there is no requirement for Local Authorities to follow.
The data we use is produced by the Department for Net Zero and Energy Security; with the technical report compiled by Ricardo Energy & Environment. So this blog uses their narrative and evidence.
Across the whole of the UK only 10% of Local Authorities are on track to hit net zero by 2050.
In Kent only two LAs will meet HMG Net Zero target by 2050. They are Gravesham & Dover. The rest will miss their net zero targets by some margin, and Swale BC will miss the 2050 Net Zero target by 272 years.
Below is a league table taken from the data produced by the Department for Net Zero and Energy Security and mapped by dedlynetracker.com
dedlynetracker.com also produce an interactive map for all UK local authorities and can be see below
The actions of all thirteen Kent LAs rarely follow their intentions, for a whole variety of practical reasons, or simply because they change their minds about what they wish to achieve. It’s essential, especially with critical sustainability commitments, that all Local Authorities, not just Kent, are transparent about how far away they are from those commitments, based on the progress made to date. The gap between their intent and their effective actions demonstrates how much more they need to do individually, as Local Authorities, and collectively to create a sustainable future for all the people in Kent and beyond.
The Shepway Vox Team
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