Due to the current political upheavals and changes in the UK government, the current Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak has decided not to attend the COP27 climate conference in Egypt. This decision has been met with widespread criticism from parts of the UK population. Mr. Sunak stated he wants to focus on the “domestic challenges” but went on to say, “when it comes to tackling climate change, “the UK is an example for others to follow”.
The UK has pledged to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. Net zero basically means a country is producing less climate-changing emissions in the atmosphere that it puts in. The bad news for the UK government is that UKCCC, also known as the UK Committee on Climate Change, acts as an advisory body to the government, and has criticised the UK’s current climate plans.
Power production
A target was set for all of the UK’s electricity supplies to come from clean sources by 2035.
So far the UK government has been quite successful in cutting emissions from energy sources.
Between 1990 and 2021, there’s been a drop of 73.4%. Due to the closures of coal-fueled power plants, and an increase in spending on solar, wind, and nuclear energy.
There is a risk that the government may fail to reach its 2035 target, due to a lack of a clear strategy, warned the UKCCC.
Boris Johnson’s government gave planning permission to construct a new nuclear reactor, to be named Sizewell C, and had expressed his wish to build eight more.
Heating and buildings
Approximately 14% of UK housing accounts for greenhouse gas emissions, this is due mainly to gas boiler heating systems and inadequate insulation, according to the UKCCC. Under Boris’s commitment, it was planned to install 600,000 heat pumps a year by 2028 to replace gas boilers. These are designed to transfer heat from the ground, air, or water around a property and transfer it into the heating system, which then is used to generate electricity, rather than gas.
The traditional modes of transport
Overall, transportation, such as cars, buses trains, and bikes accounts for 31.5% of UK emissions in 2021. In order to help reduce this, the government announced the banning of new petrol and diesel cars sold from 2030. And by 2028, it’s set another target of 52% of car sales to be electric. In 2021, electric car sales were 11.6%, so the market is “currently growing well”.
There was some bad news in this sector, with the government announcing the end of grants which went toward the purchase of electric cars, and stating the grants were withdrawn because they were having “little effect on rapidly accelerating sales”.
Instead, the funding will be used to test and trial zero-carbon HGVs, taxis, and motorbikes, and also to help increase the public charging infrastructure. The government’s aim is to have 300,000 publicly-accessible charging points by 2030.
Flights and shipping
The pandemic had an adverse impact on the world’s economy, and this affected shipping and flights too. Before the pandemic struck, flying contributed to 7% of overall emissions, whilst shipping came in at 3%.
In the published UK strategy for delivering net zero aviation by July 2050, criticism has arisen for the UK relying too much on technologies such as sustainable fuels and zero emission aircraft that do not yet exist and also developing ways to remove CO2 gases from the earth’s atmosphere to make up for the remaining emissions by 2050.
The UKCCC went on to add that given the uncertainty about whether the new technology will be commercially available in time, the government should be looking at how to manage demand and not allow it to grow 70% from 2018 levels by the year 2050.
Food sources
The target for emissions in the agricultural sector between 2019 to 2035 has been set for a reduction of 30%
To do this, we need to:
Eat 20% less meat and dairy on average, by 2030
Land shifting from agricultural use to support trees and restoring peatland
Less food waste
As it stands today the government has yet to its food strategy about the environmental impact of people’s diets or a clear, wider approach for agriculture and land use across the UK.
The UKCCC made the following statement, “current plans largely rely on the willingness of farmers and landowners to undertake measures”. And added that there are signs that consumers would be willing to change what they eat.
Every little helps
Even by upgrading your old car for a nearly new used car or a quality, modern used car, you can help reduce emissions and even choose from a variety of Ulez compliance cars. Reputable used car dealerships, like WOO Carz, based in Southampton, offer a huge selection of quality used cars, as well as used electric cars, used hybrid cars, and used vans.
Even if you have existing finance on your old car, WOO Carz can still assist you in upgrading to a newer and more fuel-efficient used car, and have it delivered to your home or place of work, anywhere in the UK for absolutely free of charge. All cars come with a full warranty, and HPI checks and are fully inspected by qualified mechanics.
WOO Carz also offers a car-sourcing service, in case you can’t find the car you are looking for on our website, simply fill out our online form and we ask a couple of questions, and in most cases, we can find the right car for you.
To find out more about WOO Carz offers and current deals, as well as part exchange evaluations, call us now at 02380 225 666 and speak to one of our friendly advisors, or if you want to apply for instant car finance and get approval within an hour, click here to get approved today.