Lib Dem Council's Greening Plans for South Cambridgeshire Hall

As part of their continued efforts towards making South Cambs carbon neutral by 2050, Lib Dem councillors have drawn up a bold plan to dramatically reduce the energy bills and carbon emissions of the District Council building in Cambourne.

This includes a ground-source heat pump, which will reduce gas consumption by 80%; a solar canopy over the car park to generate more than 20% of the electricity needed; LED lights to save around 15% on energy; much more efficient systems for heating, cooling and air circulation in the building; and 20 electric-vehicle charging points.

These measures will save the Council about £100,000 within the first year as well as reducing its carbon footprint by almost half. The investments will pay for themselves within 16 years, after which they will start to generate revenue - and they will have lower ongoing maintenance costs too. It’s a win-win-win!

This is part of a £5-million investment to tackle the climate crisis in the Council’s 2020-21 budget, agreed by councillors in February 2020. It includes spending £1.3 million on improving the energy-efficiency of council homes, replacing 1800 streetlights with LED lighting and purchasing an electric bin lorry to see whether it’s viable to shift to an all-electric fleet.