The planning system must not become a ‘tool for promoting economic developmentâ, the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) said, setting out its vision for the future of the English countryside. The CPRE describes the countryside it wants to see by 2026, its centenary year, as where urban regeneration contributes to green space, affordable housing,
The government’s definition of carbon neutral must be made easier for the public to understand, the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) said. It is calling for a kitemark accreditation in carbon emissions management and for carbon neutral standards to be evaluated periodically to reflect advancements.
More help to improve household’s energy efficiency will be made available as the government increases its carbon emissions reduction target scheme and introduces a new community energy saving programme. The schemes will take the energy efficiency improvement budget to £3.5 billion by the end of 2012.
The Confederation of Business Industry has said that delays in the planning system are discouraging major investment in renewable energy. It said little progress has been made in quickening up the planning process and that business was being prevented from investing in the new low-carbon technology. It wants the government to publish national policy statements
The Environment Agency has announced plans to generate enough renewable energy on its own land to power a city the size of York. Up to 80 turbines could be built on the agency’s property generating enough energy to save 200,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide and making up to £2.4 million in revenue each year. The
Housing minister Margaret Beckett today established the government consultation process for making all new homes zero carbon from 2016, adding the government was ‘absolutely committed’ to the 2016 target. The proposals include setting a minimum level of carbon reduction that developers must achieve through, for example improved insulation or providing onsite renewable energy; requiring a
Two London regeneration projects – Albert Basin and Elephant & Castle – have been named as two of the 16 founding projects of the international climate positive development programme, launched by Bill Clinton at an environmental summit in South Korea today. The project aims to reduce net greenhouse gas emissions by having developers and local
A study by the Economic and Social Research Council has said making existing homes energy efficient was a ‘herculean’ task and required radical action to bring about a 60 per cent reduction in carbon emissions by 2050. The research calculated that to reduce emissions from existing homes by 40 per cent would require work to
The public strongly supports the government’s plans to ‘decarbonise’ the nation’s housing stock according to research by the Department of Energy and Climate Change. Researchers found householders are willing to ‘play their part’ in tackling climate change, and under the Great British Refurb plans, at least 7 million homes by 2020 and every home by
In other research, a government think-tank has found that moves towards sustainable energy in the UK are being hampered by old ways of thinking. Foresight looked at how the country’s buildings and spaces will need to evolve to help cut carbon emissions and argues that the UK is ‘locked in’ to using certain forms of