Devon County Council shortlisted for national ‘Local Energy Leadership’ award
Devon County Council has been shortlisted for the Green Energy Award for Local Energy Leadership.
The awards celebrate innovative companies and individuals as well as local energy organisations who are leading the way in the creation of a more sustainable future.
The Council has been shortlisted for its carbon-reduction action, overarching Strategic Plan and Environmental Policy which commit to reducing energy demand and promoting renewable energy, both in terms of the operation of the organisation and within the broader community.
These commitments include decarbonising the authority including its supply chain by 2030, retaining the existing target of providing 30% of energy demands through renewable sources and continuing to identify business models and opportunities for investment in low carbon energy in the county.
The Council is helping to create a more sustainable future through its introduction and funding of numerous projects. This includes investing £250k to put in place a Devon Carbon Plan, a roadmap to a ‘Netzero’ Devon.
The funding will also help the Local Energy Advice Programme (LEAP), which help vulnerable people improve the energy efficiency in their homes and the setting up of community energy organisations. There are currently 23 in Devon, more than any other county in the country.
The Council is a founding member of the South West Energy Partnership and is leading and supporting numerous projects that reduce carbon output and encourage sustainable development.
Projects include the scheme to replace all street light bulbs in Devon with low carbon LEDS, reducing carbon emissions by 15,000 tonnes per year and cutting council emissions by 36%.
The Council will also be supporting the introduction of 175 car charging points across the county over the coming years and has demonstrated innovative refurbishment approaches to create zero carbon buildings.
More than 120 entries were submitted this year across five categories for both companies and individuals. Categories included, Clean energy system disruptor, Clean energy pioneer, Clean energy scheme, Community energy initiative and the Local energy leadership.
The panel of judges includes Lord Robin Teverson (member of the House of Lords), Afsheen Kabir Rashid (Founding Director and Chief Executive Officer of Repowering London), Adriana Laguna (Senior Innovation Strategy Manager, UK Power Networks), Phillip Graham (Chief Executive of the National Infrastructure Commission) and Phil Bazin (Environment Team Lead for Triodos Bank).
The final stage of judging will be carried out by the expert panel, with the winner being announced on 27 November 2019 at the awards evening in Bath.
Councillor Roger Croad, the Cabinet Member for Environment, said: "Devon County Council is delighted to have our environmental plan recognised in this way. Climate Change is a hugely important issue in today’s society, and it has become increasingly important that, as an authority, we create a strategic plan to enable the county to work towards a more sustainable future. We as a council will continue to support and commit to the reduction of carbon output in the county and the promotion of renewable energy.”
Merlin Hyman, Chief Executive, Regen, said: “We were excited to see so many strong nominations for the awards from inspiring people, great companies and pioneering projects at the forefront of the transformation to a zero-carbon energy system. The awards dinner is set to be an uplifting celebration of the extraordinary achievements of the sustainable energy sector.”
