Environmental campaign group Friends of the Earth have launched a new campaign promoting the reduction of carbon emissions by challenging local councils to get serious about CO2. The campaign was launched with the release of independent research conducted by Carbon Descent, leading climate change advisors for councils.
The campaign aims to highlight the role that local councils should be playing in helping reduce the UK’s carbon footprint by making a commitment to achieve a 40% reduction in carbon emissions by 2020 in their local area. In addition, councils are being asked to draw up action plans to explain how they’ll make their cuts in CO2, which Friends of the Earth’s research demonstrates could create 77,000 jobs in green industries across the UK. Jobs could be created in industries such as insulation, loft lagging and green building techniques, and that is without the consideration of warehouse and admin staff required behind the scenes.
Some councils have already taken steps to introduce schemes for making their areas less carbon hungry, such as Kirklees Council in Yorkshire who have created 120 jobs through an insulation programme for 21,000 homes in the area. Councils could still be doing more to help prevent climate change becoming a big problem for millions of people in years to come however. Andy Atkins, Executive Director at Friends of the Earth said,
“Local councils must play a big part in slashing the UK’s carbon emissions to help avoid runaway climate change. With the economy in such a sorry state at the moment, our towns, cities and villages could really use a boost from new green jobs. If every council in England and Wales took action too they could create 70,000 new jobs, cut fuel bills and make people’s homes more snug.”
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Tags: campaign, carbon emissions, co2, friends of the earth, get serious about CO2, local councils