This report provides a quarterly update on Devon County Council’s (DCC’s) corporate Environmental Performance programme that implements the Environmental Policy. The report is split into topics and gives a short update on the individual projects we are running to improve environmental performance.
Period
April 2023 – July 2023
Project Colour Key
Each project is assigned a colour to indicate its current status. The key is as follows:
Green 🟢 – Project is performing well. There may be minor issues that do not affect project viability or timescales significantly.
Amber 🟠 – Issues have arisen that affect the time, cost or scope of the project. However, these can be dealt with by the Environmental Performance Management Group. The Environmental Performance Board should be notified.
Red 🔴 – Significant issues that cannot be handled solely by the Environmental Performance Management Group. The Environmental Performance Board must be engaged to assess the situation.
Energy
Energy projects are being delivered slower than anticipated due to the vacant Energy Programme Manager post, which is subject to the ongoing review of recruitment procedures.
Corporate Building Retrofit [Green 🟢 ]
Target: Retrofit 10 buildings by March 2031 to save 269 tCO2e per year. Achieved 9 buildings and 346 tCO2e at current emission intensities due to unexpected funding opportunities from government.
An application to the Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme 3c is being prepared for the end of September 2023 (exact application deadline has yet to be announced). SW Norse is identify three buildings that will meet the application criteria and will prepare investment-grade businesses cases ready for the application. Application will be limited to £1m to ensure corporate sign-off processes can be completed before the end of September. The implementation will occur from April 2024 – March 2026.
A solution for ongoing training for building users needs to be designed and implemented for the buildings that have already been retrofitted.
Renewables [Red 🔴]
Target 1: 600kWp new capacity installed by March 2024 on DCC assets. Current achievement is 225kWp.
Solar PV on salt barns – The remainder of the programme (totalling 106kWp) has been endorsed by the Capital Programme Group in May 2023 at a value of £280k. Tenders have been received for all buildings and installation will be completed in the next quarter before the salting season begins. This will bring the total installed to 331kWp.
Funds have been earmarked from the revenue budget for the Carbon Reduction Plan to identify further opportunities on buildings and land assets in cooperation with the property team (to include county farms). This will be progressed next quarter.
The Waste Team is revisiting placing solar farms on redundant landfill sites.
Target 2: Use Virtual Power Purchase Agreements to buy power from 23MWp of new solar capacity in Devon by 2030. Current achievement is 0MWp.
The business case for purchasing renewable energy from community schemes via Virtual Power Purchase Agreement needs to be updated. Work has started on the options evaluation using feedback provided in January 2023 from the Power Allotments project funded by DCC’s Community Energy Fund. Taking this work further relies on filling the vacant Energy Programme Manager post.
County Farmhouses Retrofit [Green 🟢]
42 of 66 dwellings completed. This leaves 24 remaining. Up to five are expected to be completed in 2023/24.
Street Lighting [Green 🟢]
Target: Retrofit 100% of lighting with LED lamps by March 2024.
68,000 of the 79,000 lamps (86%) have been replaced. A programme of installing dimmable lenses has commenced in addition to the LED replacement to save more energy.
Schools Estate [Amber 🟠] (not reported in carbon footprint)
The enhancements that were delivered as part of the 2022/23 maintenance programme and the anticipated improvements in 2023/24 have yet to be compiled. This will be progressed in the next quarter.
Transport
Travel Plans for Strategic Work Locations [Green 🟢]
Majority of staff are continuing to work flexibly. Car parking capacity is being monitored.
An estimate of commuting emissions is being prepared for integration into the corporate carbon footprint and backdated to the baseline year of 2012.
Electric Vehicles and Charging [Amber 🟠]
Visitors and Staff
The Deletti project is providing 4 charging bays available for staff (and public) use at County Hall and Great Moor House. Two bays at Great Moor House are active. Two bays at County Hall have been delayed due to the need for the correct heritage consents. Expected to progress next quarter.
Fleet
Target: 32 electric vehicles in the fleet by March 2024. Currently achieved 18.
Fifteen more vehicles are to be procured in 23/24 meaning a total of 33 will be in the fleet – this will meet the target.
A Fleet Chargepoint Board has been established.
The tender for Phase 2 charge posts has been awarded.
The Phase 3 chargeposts will install 15 charging sockets during 2023/24 in readiness for 15 further vehicles that are planned to arrive in 2024/25. Awaiting signoff from the Capital Programme Group for the £127k spend.
£10k from the Carbon Reduction Plan has been earmarked to assist with identifying locations suitable as electric minibus charging depots during 2023/24.
Waste and Resources
Establish a new Reuse Policy [Green 🟢]
Policy has been endorsed by the Board in May 2023 and will be adopted via a delegated Cabinet member decision next quarter.
Establish a waste/recycling data management system [Green 🟢]
The waste analysis, to look at the composition of the refuse from County Hall, has budget assigned from the Carbon Reduction Plan revenue funding for this financial year (£2k). This will be progressed next quarter.
Procurement and Commissioning
Low Carbon Supply Chain Strategy [Amber 🟠]
Senior Leadership Team (SLT) considered the Strategy in July. It requires further amendment and further consideration by SLT before progressing to Cabinet as part of the review of the Carbon Reduction Plan.
A post-request to introduce a full-time post to deliver the Strategy, funded by the revenue budget attached to the Corporate Carbon Plan, is being prepared. This is delayed due to the review of recruitment procedures.
Highways, Development and Infrastructure Activity [Green 🟢]
Work to develop a service decarbonisation strategy is ongoing. A board to steer and guide this document has been established.
A382 (Including Jetty Marsh Link Road) – Carbon Negative Project
Working closely with the University of Exeter, a tool is being developed that can deal with all the changes and innovations the project encounters.
There are some great products and ideas both within the construction industry and beyond. Over the last few weeks, biochar and carbon negative aggregates have been investigated.
While we know where the carbon hotspots lie on the project, it’s been found that progress is determined more by the response of suppliers than what is more pressing for the hotspots. Our sense of urgency is not shared by the industry and so, while progress has been good, it hasn’t necessarily been in the areas we hoped.
The team were at the LCRIG (Local Council Roads Innovation Group) Innovation Festival on 4th July, which was a great opportunity to talk to many suppliers in one go and broaden our search for innovation. There is a lot of support for the project, and it’s seen as being ambitious but necessary for the industry.
On 11th July, Devon County Council and Milestone hosted our own innovation day. It was an opportunity to hear about innovations and meet suppliers, and we started the day with a challenge for all those present to reduce their own carbon footprint.
While the project team scour the construction industry and beyond for innovations and products to reduce carbon, the design team have been making changes to the design that are resulting in carbon reductions and cost savings for the scheme. This includes reducing the paved area, using sustainable drainage where possible and designing alternations to the vertical alignment that reduce the earthworks.
The project is certainly helping us to continue in the right direction, and no matter whether the A382 Live Labs project achieves its goal or not, it will provide us with lots of learning and will be a huge step toward reaching our final destination of making carbon negative roads a reality.
Environmental Risk
Produce a Template for Service-Level Climate Adaptation Risk Assessments [Amber 🟠]
No further progress this quarter. Template is available to all service areas. Requires promotion and offer of support to encourage further uptake.
Enhance Procedures for Reporting and Learning from Environmental Incidents and Near Misses [Amber 🟠]
No further progress this quarter.
Water
Water Resource Management Surveys [Amber 🟠]
Water Resource Management Surveys completed. The development of a strategy proposal is delayed due to a focus on delivering energy projects and the vacant Energy Programme Manager post.
Countryside, Coast and Heritage
The Countryside, Coast and Heritage Action Plan has been revised and approved by the Environmental Performance Board. It will be considered by Cabinet later in 2023/24 following a further update to incorporate the new biodiversity duty from the Environment Act.
Support the delivery of the Devon Ash Dieback Action Plan [Green 🟢]
There continues to be good progress in the delivery of a range of externally funded tree initiatives, including the Emergency Tree Fund, Woodland Creation Accelerator Fund and, most recent, a successful application to the Local Authority Treescapes Fund. We are currently procuring a contractor to lead our community-based tree planting over the coming winter months and have also launched a further round of our ‘Free Tree Packs’ for the public.
Carbon Offsetting
Review of Options [Green 🟢]
• The pilot of a carbon footprint assessment of one County Farm to determine carbon sequestration opportunities has completed. A further £10k funding from the Carbon Reduction Plan revenue budget will be spent on a couple more farms this financial year.
• A partnership project with Plymouth City Council has commenced looking at the viability of purchasing offsets from the retrofitting of social housing.
• £151k is earmarked for an offsetting solution for the 2023/24 emissions.
Brook Wood [Amber 🟠]
An application to the Woodland Creation Planning Grant has been successful to provide resource to prepare an application to the England Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO). Planting has been moved forwards to the planting season of 2024/2025 largely due to delays in the EWCO application and the shortage of tree stock in the UK.
The Environmental Performance Board endorsed the capital request in March 2023 for the planting scheme (£125k from EWCO and £43k from DCC Carbon Reduction Plan). This is still progressing through the Capital Programme Group for corporate approval but will now be updated reflecting the 12 month delay and resubmitted.