Since June 2020, we have annually targeted achieving a set of Top 20 Actions for the coming year. We set out a flavour below of what we have achieved so far.
In 2019/20 we:
- declared a climate emergency, and began our journey to reduce carbon emissions and reverse the decline in nature
- we started to collect detailed data on what the council's emissions are, so we could target our actions effectively
In 2020/21 we:
- moved our electricity contract to 100% renewable energy supply
- replaced our entire street and car parking lights to low energy LED lighting
- adopted two new planning policy documents, covering climate change and the natural environment, so that new developments in East Cambridgeshire could be more environmentally friendly than ever before
- undertook energy audits of our buildings, so we could commission energy efficiency improvements
- started a programme of staff training to embed environmental thinking into all the services we undertake
In 2021/22 we:
- helped 10 local schools commence their journey to Eco-Charter status
- implemented new grass cutting and wildflower management on our parks and open spaces, with fabulous results arising
- installed energy efficiency measures in our own buildings, helping to reduce our energy use
- started a multi-million pound programme of retrofit improvements to people's homes
In 2022/23 we:
- achieved bronze level Investors in the Environment accreditation, the first council in Cambridgeshire to do so
- installed PV Solar Panels across our E-Space North office building at Littleport, targeting at least a 50% reduction in grid electricity usage and aiming to halve its electricity bill
- reduced our paper use by 35%
- committed to shift our fleet vehicles, such as our refuse collection lorries, away from diesel fuel to much more environmentally friendly vegetable oil
- installed 24 electric vehicle charging points, across three separate public car parks
- helped create, through a free tree give-away programme, 28 new community orchards right across East Cambridgeshire
In 2023/24 we:
- awarded over £60,000 towards 18 community nature projects, under our Pride of Place grant scheme
- committed to long term hedgehog recovery, following a public vote
- gave away 75 oak trees to communities to mark the King's Coronation
- trialled using hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) fuel in our refuse collection vehicles
- reduced our paper use by a further third compared with the previous year
- commenced carbon literacy training for all staff
- saved £14,000 in electricity bills and 7 tonnes of carbon emissions in the first year of using our newly installed solar panels at E-Space North
- achieved silver level Investors in the Environment accreditation
Detailed Monitoring Reports
From 2024, we have started to produce a detailed annual monitoring report. Each report sets out how well we did at meeting our Top 20 targets from the previous year.
The report also provides a detailed breakdown of the council's carbon emissions, the district's carbon emissions, and Cambridgeshire's emissions as a whole.
Actions underway
If you want to know what actions and activities are underway or planned for the current year, please visit our environment plans and actions page
