Agenda item

Councillor Gary Hewson offered his thanks to Kate Bell, Climate Change Manager for her hard work during her years employed by the City of Lincoln Council. It was highlighted that Kate Bell had been an asset and would be deeply missed. She was wished well in future employment opportunities.

(Note: Steve Bird left the meeting at this point in proceedings).

Councillor Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Remarkable Place:

a)    presented a report to Performance Scrutiny Committee with an update towards addressing the challenge of the Climate Change Strategy Priority contained in Vision 2025

b)    explained that Appendix A of the report provided an overview of the current and live projects for this strategic priority

c)    highlighted that there were 12 projects that were currently being monitored in the work programme for Climate Change and these were listed within the report

d)    invited comments and questions from Members of the Committee.

Question: Thanks were offered for a fantastic report. Was it possible to increase media coverage on the work that had taken place on Lincoln Climate Commission? It was useful for people to be aware of the important initiatives.

Response: It would be positive to raise the profile of the Commission through communications and media which included work from University of Lincoln and Bishop Grosseteste University.

Question: Reference was made to electric vehicle infrastructure on page. 79 of the report. Had specific areas been targeted to ensure sufficient future provision?

Response: On street electrical vehicle points were something funding had been hoped for years ago. Sadly, that had not happened however the Council endeavoured to add charging points to car parks within the city in order that individuals that lived in terraced houses could access those at a particular rate without paying for parking. Additional provision would likely take place in more densely populated areas.

Question: Reference was made to the Air Quality Management plan on page. 81 of the report. Was the 3% increase of transport carbon associated with post Covid-19? Was it possible to benchmark against similar sized cities?

Response: Air quality and benchmarking was useful. It was difficult to achieve figures, like for like. The Eastern Bypass and the increased level of electric vehicles on the road helped figures. Busy roadways in the past with standing traffic had been shifted in order that traffic moved and didn’t pump out as much pollution. The 3% figure included green gases.

Comment: Reference was made to nitrous oxides, O2 and particulates. Whilst one increased, the other decreased. Nitrogen Dioxide was harmful when inhaled however the rate had improved which resulted in the proposal of the removal of the air quality area. Figures had been low for four consecutive years. There was a legal requirement to report air quality management data. Broad data was achievable as monitoring took place across a number of pollutants.

Question: Reference was made to work with partners on the Lincoln Climate Commission and Lincoln Climate Action Plan on page 78. of the report. Confirmation was requested that the information referred to the city geographically and not the CoLC as an organisation. Were there figures available for the organisation?

Response: An environmental performance report was published yearly, audited externally and published on the Council’s website. A new baseline was set in 2018 and since then, emissions around transport and electricity usage as an organisation, had reduced.

Supplementary Question: Where had the organisation gone from the baseline?

Supplementary Response: Approximately 40% since the baseline.

Question: What challenges had to be overcome between the present and 2030 in order for net zero to be achieved? How confident was the organisation that net zero would be achieved as a wider city, by 2030?

Response: There was a lot of work to be done, and retrofitting was expensive. The previous Government had not been committed to climate change in the same way that the new one was. The original motion for net zero 2030 had not included work with Government and Lincolnshire County Council for the vision to be achieved. It was hoped that central Government would provide funding further to their commitment to climate change.

Question: What had been put in place to ensure that the housing stock reached net zero?

Response: The housing business plan contained information in regard to retro fitting and vehicle stock would be replaced as and when possible.

Question: How likely was it that the target of net zero 2030 would be achieved?

Response: The CoLC remained committed to net zero by 2030 and it was a positive target.

Supplementary Question: What steps had been taken to ensure that the target would be met?

Supplementary Response: The policies that had been put in place would help the target to be achieved.

Comment: In terms of funding, it was disappointing that the previous Government had not demonstrated its commitment to climate change. Overall numbers had reduced however the CoLC building was very old and inefficient; there were also complications the way the build had been constructed and its location. Net Zero 2030 was a target within the original motion and the CoLC remained committed to the achievement of the target. The Climate Commission work was excellent. It was disappointing that Lincolnshire County Council (LCC) voted against the local plan however movement in the right direction at speed was visible. It was not possible to guarantee that the 2030 target would be met however an assurance was offered that it was a commitment and ambition. It was hoped that other partners such as LCC would work collaboratively. Climate ambitions had been evidenced within the Western Growth Corridor development. The Leader of the Council would work with the MP for Lincoln to ensure the creation of a greener future for Lincoln.

Question: Thanks were given for such a detailed report. What sort of projects were expected to come out of the community energy scheme and if successful, would it be rolled out?

Response: Funding had been secured for the initial feasibility study. Testing capacity considered what businesses were in the area and what land was in the area that could be used to generate energy. The idea was that stage 2 funding would do further works to ensure it was brought forward to the planning stage. The third stage was a capital funding announcement expected imminently. What happened in Sincil Bank and Long Leys could be replicated in other areas because of the geography.

Question: What did social housing decarbonisation entail?

Response: A recent announcement had been made about a new funding scheme. The name would be changed to ‘More Homes Local Grant,’ for old privately owned and rented properties to retrofit fuel inefficient homes. Individuals with an income under £36K a year would be eligible. The second announcement was a scheme for retro fitting social housing and discussions with consultants would take place. The target was to get to a C rating. Most Councils and Housing Associations had D, E and F ratings however we were a lot further ahead.

Supplementary Comment: A lot of houses in the St. Giles area were 1930’s builds.

Supplementary Response: There was a mixture of C and D rated homes. Prefabricated homes were likely to be D rated.

RESOLVED that the report be noted with thanks.

(Note: Kate Bell and Councillor Naomi Tweddle left the meeting at this point in proceedings).