Rising to the challenge - What is Somerset County Council Doing?

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WHAT IS SOMERSET COUNTY COUNCIL DOING?

Somerset County Council is seriously committed to tackling climate change, both by addressing the causes and preparing for the impacts. We are also collaborating with communities, businesses and the voluntary sector to find ways of working together on this issue.

Here is some information about some of the programmes that Somerset County Council is involved in relating to climate change. To find out more, please follow the links.

Climate Change Strategy
Somerset County Council has developed a draft Climate Change Strategy - Responding to Climate Change in Somerset. It makes a commitment to reducing the Council's contribution to climate change, as well as preparing the county for adapting to the impacts of climate change. Consultation is currently taking place. To find out more, visit www.somerset.gov.uk/climatechange

Nottingham Declaration
In February 2007, Somerset County Council joined other councils across the UK in making a commitment to tackle climate change.

Renewable Energy Strategy
Somerset County Council has developed a strategy to support and encourage the installation of new renewable electricity, heat and transport technologies in Somerset.

Wind Energy Initiative
As part of its commitment to renewable energy, the council will be installing wind turbines on Somerset County Council Farm estate, with the aim of providing 11-15% of the authority's electricity requirements by 2010. A full public consultation will take place.

Moving Forward
Moving Forward is a major new campaign from Somerset County Council aimed at engaging motorists to help reduce traffic congestion and pollution across the County. The campaign will raise awareness about the issues and provide information to encourage, promote and support the use of sustainable travel alternatives.

Somerset Food Links
Somerset County Council supports Somerset Food Links, a not-for-profit organisation committed to developing a thriving and sustainable local food system in Somerset and the surrounding area.

Watts On
Somerset County Council is running an internal awareness raising campaign to make staff more aware of the importance of saving energy and combating climate change.

Somerset Biofuel Project
Last summer Somerset County Council became the UK's first council to take delivery of a fleet of 10 Flexi-Fuel Vehicles as part of its bid to drive down the authority’s carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent by 2010.

Biomass Heating
Wood pellet boilers power two of the County Council’s primary schools - Otterhampton and Kingsbury Episcopi - as part of Somerset County Council’s drive to reduce carbon emission from its estate. The Charterhouse Centre is equipped with a wood chip boiler with the renewable fuel sourced from within a mile of the centre itself. There are plans to extend similar schemes to other Authority properties.

Somerset Water Management Partnership
Somerset County Council is coordinating this new body, made up initially of 14 partner organizations. The partnership will tackle impacts of flooding on the communities, landscapes, economies and ecologies of the county's three main river catchments – the Parrett, Axe and Brue. The aims are to manage flood risk and water management in a more sustainable way. The partnership will build upon the work of its predecessor, the Parrett Catchment Project.

Somerset Landscape Scheme
Somerset provides hundreds of grants each year to encourage landowners, farmers and community groups to carry out small scale landscape conservation work. These schemes involve caring for those features of the countryside which make it special and help to maintain traditional elements which can help lessen the impact of climate change, including pond restoration, tree and hedge planting.

Woodland Strategy for Somerset
This is a long term plan to increase woodland coverage in Somerset (currently 8%) to nearer the national average (10%). Woodland has many benefits including providing pleasant places to walk, habitats for wildlife, producing oxygen and filtering polluted air, Improving the landscape, screening unsightly development and taking up Co2. Locating woodland in the right place is the key and it can then also increase rainfall infiltration, reduce water runoff and erosion.