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<\/a><\/p>\nDevon County Council\u2019s 79,000 plus streetlights and most traffic signals have been converted to low carbon LEDs. This has reduced the carbon emissions generated by its street lighting by over 75 per cent, reducing carbon emissions by more than 15,000 tonnes each year, the equivalent of taking 8,000 cars off the road.\u202f We have installed a better management system, which means we can easily control when lights switch off and\/or dim and identify dead lightbulbs without a site visit.<\/p>\n
Energy upgrade works were completed at 9 corporate buildings during 2022 and 2023 and we have funding to decarbonise the heating at a further 3 properties in 2025 and 2026. Measures that have been installed include wall insulation (cavity and external), high-performance windows and doors, LED lighting, heat recovery systems, heat pumps (replacing gas boilers) and solar panels. In addition, we are renovating County farmhouses to the Decent Homes Standard and have done 43 so far. So far we have installed 56 solar PV systems on roofs, 25 air source heat pumps and 1 water-source heat pump. We are investigating additional opportunities for renewable energy on our estate.<\/p>\n
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Forty-six electric vehicles have replaced diesel vehicles in the council\u2019s vehicle fleet and a further eight are expected to be ordered during 2025\/26. We are replacing diesel vehicles as they get to the end of their life as replacing a vehicle unnecessarily causes an increase in carbon emissions due to the energy and materials required to manufacture a new vehicle.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re reviewing our road maintenance procedures \u2013 the materials we use, how they\u2019re produced, how they\u2019re used, how they\u2019re applied, the labour required, the time it takes, how long they last, everything \u2013 to assess the carbon impact of the work we do. We\u2019ve developed a \u2018carbon calculator\u2019 to work out what the carbon impact is of maintenance and new build jobs. And having worked that out, we are working out how to do those jobs with far less carbon impact on the environment.<\/p>\n
Innovative proposals<\/a>\u202ffor the A382 link road development near Newton Abbot to become the UK\u2019s first \u201ccarbon negative\u201d highway received \u00a33.7 million to implement ways to decarbonise the construction and maintenance of the road. The ambitious A382 scheme aims to show that moving towards carbon negative highways is possible without the need for offsetting \u2013 providing a \u201clive laboratory\u201d opportunity to promote change in the design, construction and maintenance of roads.<\/p>\n A County-wide Local Cycling and Walking Infrastructure Plans (LCWIPs)<\/a> was adopted in 2024 by the County Council. This complements plans already in place for Barnstaple and Bideford, Heart of Teignbridge and Exeter. Plans for Clyst Valley and Tiverton\/Cullumpton are in preparation.<\/p>\n These will:<\/p>\n Devon County Council delivers children\u2019s\u202fBikeability\u202f<\/a>and\u202fadult cycle\u202ftraining<\/a>. Bikeability provides children with important skills to help them cycle more safely and more often. Devon County Council has now helped over 70,000 children take part in the free training since 2006. In addition, we are one of the partners in Active Devon<\/a>, which runs many projects and events to support and encourage us all to be more active and healthy and work with the Devon Local Nature Partnership on Naturally Healthy May<\/a>.<\/p>\n There has been a big rise in the number of homes and businesses taking up superfast broadband services thanks to the\u202fConnecting Devon and Somerset\u202f<\/a>programme. This is reducing the need for people to travel to access services and for work.<\/p>\n\n The opening of a waste transfer station at Brynsworthy, Barnstaple, in February 2019 marked the end of household \u2018black-bag\u2019 waste being sent to landfill in Devon. All \u2018black-bag\u2019 waste is now processed in Energy from Waste facilities where it is converted into electricity.<\/p>\n Recycle Devon<\/a>\u202fis a campaign supported by local authorities in Devon that promotes sustainable waste management to the public.\u202f The campaign has an\u202feducation element\u202f<\/a>that provides workshops, assemblies, events and site visits for schools and youth groups, including a new\u202fScouts badge<\/a>. These have contributed to a\u202frecycling rate of more than 50%<\/a>\u202f, ensuring Devon remains one of the best performing counties in England.<\/p>\n Devon Reuse Project<\/a>\u202f\u2013 this promotes the reuse of items rather than their disposal, thereby reducing the carbon emissions associated with disposing of waste and manufacturing new items. The Project gives support to repair cafes and reuse groups, organises events, skill sharing, Devon Upcycling Day and improving reuse at Household Waste Recycling Centres.<\/p>\n You can find out more here: Devon County Council – Waste and Recycling<\/a><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Here are some of the key initiatives that the council is implementing to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Devon. Reducing the Council’s emissions Devon County Council\u2019s 79,000 plus streetlights and most traffic signals have been converted to low carbon LEDs. … Continue reading
\nReducing emissions from buildings in Devon<\/h2>\n
\n<\/a>Devon County Council has led the way on developing programmes to retrofit residents\u2019 homes, which meet eligibility criteria. \u202f Starting with the Zero Energy Buildings Catalyst\u202f<\/a>(ZEBCat) programme in 2017 and then building on this with Hug 2 and now Warm Homes in partnership with Plymouth and Torbay Councils and all the District Councils. These programmes have demonstrated that retrofit works can make homes more comfortable as well as achieving substantial reductions in energy consumption and carbon emissions. In addition, they support many enterprises in Devon to learn new skills and develop new markets for retrofit works.<\/p>\n
\n\n\nEnergy Saving Devon<\/a> is a free advice service supported by Devon County Council to facilitate and support the upgrading of Devon\u2019s homes. It includes a Plan Builder that helps you identify where the opportunities are to make your home warmer, reduce your CO2 emissions and cut your energy bills. This is tailored around what we know about your property and can highlight the opportunities and likely costs of improving your home \u2013 empowering you to upgrade your home.<\/p>\n
\n\n\nReducing emissions from transport<\/h2>\n
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\nDevon County Council (DCC) is working with local authority partners to install on-street and off-street\u202felectric vehicle charging<\/a>\u202fin residential areas and car parks across Devon. We received \u00a37 million from the UK Government to roll out further EV charging points in March 2024 through the LEVI programme<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n
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\nA new railway station has been completed at Marsh Barton in Exeter, daily services from Exeter to Okehampton restored and a second station is being constructed at Okehampton. Work has started to re-open Cullompton and Tavistock stations.<\/p>\n\n\n
\nReducing emissions from waste<\/h2>\n
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