Gwynedd Council’s commitment to climate change detailed as £60k officer set to be appointed

Gwynedd Council looks set to commit towards slashing its carbon emissions by employing a specialist officer to push a new climate action plan.

In February 2020 the cabinet passed amendments to its overall plan, resulting in climate change being officially listed as a major objective within  day-to-day decision making.

But next week, senior councillors will be asked to commit funds to this ongoing drive by appointing a specialist project manager – potentially under secondment –  to coordinate the work.

Conceding that the Covid-19 emergency has so far cut across the work of establishing a task force, the report recommends that the authority makes up for the lost time by having an action plan in place “as soon as possible”.

As a result, cabinet members will be asked to divert £58,990 from the council’s transformation fund in order to employ a specialist project manager to coordinate the work for an initial year – including all associated employment costs.

The report notes: “Work is ongoing by the departments to consider what could be incorporated into such a plan and the intention is to start with those suggestions and convene a workshop with all council members to see if anything has been missed, with a view to amending the document as we proceed.

“When the task group considered the matter, whilst individual departments are developing the individual actions which could contribute to our response to climate change, one fundamental requirement was identified which is that we need a coordinator for the whole project and a recommendation was made that we should ask the cabinet for a one off resource amounting to £58,990 in order to fund a project manager for 12 months in the first instance.

“We could see whether there would be a need to continue with the post after that time.”

Among the commitments already outlined are more electric vehicle charging points, with the climate emergency now being given the same priority within the plan – which runs until 2023 – as improving access to housing, boosting Gwynedd’s economy and providing the best possible education.

The decision follows a full council meeting in July 2019 accepting a motion to back the declaration of a “climate emergency”, committing to taking decisive action to reduce carbon emissions and strive for a zero-carbon future.
Cllr Catrin Wager, who by now sits on the council cabinet, as a backbench member had sought “innovative means” to achieve zero carbon targets, which followed a demonstration in Caernarfon by campaign group, Extinction Rebellion North Wales.

Other measures earmarked for consideration over the coming years include the introduction of electric vehicles to the council’s fleet and looking at how hydrogen could power larger vans and trucks.

Speaking in February, council leader Dyfrig Siencyn said, “Over the past decade, the Council has made important steps by investing in more energy efficient boilers and heating systems in our buildings, better insulation, solar panels, installing energy-saving LED lamps on our streets and cutting down on car journeys.

“These efforts have meant that carbon emissions have been cut by almost 40% over the past ten years.

“We continue to work with the county’s residents to encourage households to make the most of the convenient recycling collections we have on-offer across the county. In addition 11,000 tonnes of food waste is processed at the Gwyriad facility near Clynnog Fawr where scraps are treated and help to generate 3,500 megawatts of electricity – enough to power a thousand homes.”

The cabinet will consider the report when it meets on Tuesday, January 26.

By Gareth Williams – Local Democracy Reporter