Gosport Council pledges to reach carbon zero by 2050

GOSPORT Borough Council is to decide on a climate change strategy to reduce its own emissions and work with the community to reach carbon zero by 2050.

In its draft climate change strategy the council has outlined three main priorities that include reducing the carbon emissions from council operations, boroughwide emissions and making

Gosport resilient to the impacts of climate change.

Councillor Zoe Huggins, chairman of the climate change board said: ‘Since March 2020 we now have a climate change officer which we didn’t have when we first produced the strategy.

‘The draft strategy is far more robust - it does now include a lot more information on partnership working, communication and governance.

Councillor Lesley Meenaghan added: ‘It’s about how Gosport Borough Council in relation to their housekeeping is going to minimise their impact on the climate.

‘Also how we’re going to try to encourage and support the population to make the right choices to help reduce climate change.

‘Climate change is going to be a part of every board.

‘We should always by default now consider the impact on the environment and that’s very much what we’re doing.’

The council’s priorities for addressing its own carbon emissions centre around energy-efficient housing, refuse collection vehicles using alternative fuels and sustainable travel options for staff.

To make the borough more resilient to the impacts of climate change the council have proposed flooding infrastructure, shading and vegetation to mitigate heatwaves and preventing habitat loss.

If the draft strategy is approved by the climate change board on Thursday it will go to a full council decision on February 2.