{"id":2595,"date":"2026-02-02T18:13:09","date_gmt":"2026-02-02T18:13:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/?page_id=2595"},"modified":"2026-02-03T14:26:32","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T14:26:32","slug":"devon-county-council-2024-25-carbon-footprint-summary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/our-environmental-performance\/environmental-performance-progress\/carbon-footprint-2\/devon-county-council-2024-25-carbon-footprint-summary","title":{"rendered":"Devon County Council 2024-25 Carbon Footprint Summary"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2600\" class=\"wp-image-2600 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1.jpg\" alt=\"Devon County Council 2024-25 carbon footprint summary. Title image with image of hand holding a spring of leaves and image of footprints.\" width=\"629\" height=\"354\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2600&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2600\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide1-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 629px) 100vw, 629px\" \/><\/h2>\n<h2><span class=\"TextRun SCXP93138939 BCX8\" lang=\"EN-US\" xml:lang=\"EN-US\" data-scheme-color=\"@000000,,\" data-usefontface=\"true\" data-contrast=\"none\"><span class=\"NormalTextRun SCXP93138939 BCX8\">Purpose<\/h2>\n<p>This is a summary of Devon County Council\u2019s annual carbon footprint report for the financial year April 2024 to March 2025 (2024\/25). The Council\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions are compared to previous years\u2019 data and our baseline year of April 2012 to March 2013 (2012\/13).<\/p>\n<p>The Carbon Reduction Plan sets out the activities we are implementing now and over the next two years to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030\/31. In other words, the Council\u2019s remaining emissions will be matched by reductions and\/or removals in other ways.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2613\" class=\"wp-image-2613 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Leaves-in-snow-image-e1770066595357.jpg\" alt=\"Leaves in snow image\" width=\"340\" height=\"455\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2613&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2613\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Leaves-in-snow-image-e1770066595357.jpg 515w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Leaves-in-snow-image-e1770066595357-224x300.jpg 224w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Leaves-in-snow-image-e1770066595357-448x600.jpg 448w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 340px) 100vw, 340px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Summary<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>There has been great progress and we are 57% below the baseline figure of 2012\/13 and 1% below the previous year. We are ahead of target to achieve a 70% reduction by 2030.<\/li>\n<li>Total emissions were 18,775 tonnes of carbon &#8211; about 25,000 tonnes below the baseline year 12\/13.\u200b\u200b<\/li>\n<li>Since 23\/24, an increase in emissions associated with home-working, due to a greater number of staff, was countered by reductions in emissions from our buildings, fleet and business travel.\u200b<\/li>\n<li>Reductions are largely due to the replacement of older boilers, LED lightbulbs and greater controls on street lighting, electric fleet vehicles, staff reducing their travel for work, and retrofitting of 9 buildings.\u200b<\/li>\n<li>Overall, whilst we have made good progress &#8211; there is still a lot to do to achieve the net zero target.\u200b<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2614\" class=\"wp-image-2614 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below.jpg\" alt=\"Trees from below\" width=\"375\" height=\"211\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2614&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2614\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Trees-from-below-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 375px) 100vw, 375px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Progress<\/h2>\n<p>This bar chart shows the gross corporate greenhouse gas emissions for each year. Included is an orange line showing the level below which our emissions need to be to reach our target of reducing gross corporate emissions by 70% by 2030 from 2012\/13 levels. You can see emissions are below the line and we are ahead of where we need to be to meet our reduction targets. However, we need to make further large reductions to hit our target.\u200b<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2598\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2598 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line.jpg\" alt=\"Progress - DCC's greenhouse gas emissions 2012-2025 with Actual bars and Target line. Bars and line steadily decreasing over time. Actual bars are below the target line.\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2598&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2598\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Progress-DCCs-greenhouse-gas-emmissions-2012-2025-with-Actual-bars-and-Target-line-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Source of emissions<\/h2>\n<p>The biggest contributors to Devon County Councils carbon footprint emerged as school transport (taxis and buses) followed by street lighting and then the County Council&#8217;s buildings, commuting and business travel. The pie chart displays sources of emissions by percentage.\u200b<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2602\" class=\"wp-image-2602 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart.jpg\" alt=\"DCC Source of emissions pie chart. Largest portion is school transport 36%; street lighting 18%; business travel 10%; commuting 10%; corporate estate 10%; home working 9%; and vehicle fleet 7% is smallest.\" width=\"869\" height=\"489\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2602&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2602\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/DCC-Source-of-emissions-pie-chart-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 869px) 100vw, 869px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Benefits<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Increasing the efficiency of street lighting by installing LED light bulbs has reduced electricity bills by \u00a34,948,292 in 2022\/23.<\/li>\n<li>Investment in solar panels on our buildings generated about 213 MWh of clean, local energy in 24\/25 saving about \u00a365,000 and 60 tonnes of carbon, whilst air source heat pumps are providing renewable heat.<\/li>\n<li>Switching our smaller fleet cars to EVs is saving money and reducing air pollution.\u200b<\/li>\n<li>17% of the fleet vehicles are now electric.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2603\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2603 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Green-footprints-on-Planet-Earth-graphic-image.jpg\" alt=\"Green footprints on Planet Earth graphic image\" width=\"246\" height=\"245\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2603&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2603\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Green-footprints-on-Planet-Earth-graphic-image.jpg 246w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Green-footprints-on-Planet-Earth-graphic-image-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 246px) 100vw, 246px\" \/><\/p>\n\n<h2>Action<\/h2>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2606\" class=\"wp-image-2606 size-full aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7.jpg\" alt=\"Action photos of external wall insulation; external wall insulation, air source heat pump and PV panels; and land purchased for tree planting.\" width=\"1365\" height=\"768\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2606&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2606\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide7-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1365px) 100vw, 1365px\" \/><\/p>\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2609\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2609 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8.jpg\" alt=\"Action photos of people standing by electric cargo bike for business travel; electric vehicle for highways; and LED street lights for Teignmouth.\" width=\"1365\" height=\"768\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2609&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2609\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8.jpg 1365w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/Slide8-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1365px) 100vw, 1365px\" \/><\/p>\n\n<h2>Offsets<\/h2>\n<p>We are intending to offset the Council\u2019s residual emissions through certified carbon offsetting mechanisms in the United Kingdom to achieve \u2018net-zero emissions\u2019.\u200b<\/p>\n<p>We have built our experience in carbon offsetting by purchasing units under the Woodland Carbon Code and the UK Carbon Code of Conduct. We are working with a local landscape recovery project in Devon to supply the remaining credits we will need from 2030\/31.\u200b<\/p>\n<p>\u200bWe bought 11 hectares of land near Okehampton to trial a more direct approach to\u200b offsetting; providing benefits for wildlife and public access. The trees were planted early 2025 and we are now validating the project under the Woodland Carbon Code, although we will keep the credits.\u200b<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" id=\"longdesc-return-2618\" class=\"size-full wp-image-2618 aligncenter\" src=\"http:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image.jpg\" alt=\"Tree graphic image of various tree species in a line with shrub layer and grass\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" longdesc=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment?longdesc=2618&amp;referrer=2595\" aria-describedby=\"longdesc-link-wp-image-2618\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image-800x450.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/112\/2026\/02\/tree-graphic-image-640x360.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Purpose This is a summary of Devon County Council\u2019s annual carbon footprint report for the financial year April 2024 to March 2025 (2024\/25). The Council\u2019s greenhouse gas emissions are compared to previous years\u2019 data and our baseline year of April &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/our-environmental-performance\/environmental-performance-progress\/carbon-footprint-2\/devon-county-council-2024-25-carbon-footprint-summary\" aria-label=\"Continue reading Devon County Council 2024-25 Carbon Footprint Summary\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":602,"featured_media":0,"parent":2470,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"class_list":["post-2595","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-26 10:48:00","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2595","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/602"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2595"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2595\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2638,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2595\/revisions\/2638"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2470"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.devon.gov.uk\/environment\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2595"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}