Sustainable Development in Government annual report published
A report published today (7 March) says the Government must do more to meet its own environmental targets.
The Sustainable Development Commission’s (SDC) annual report assesses how the Government is meeting its sustainable operations objectives in its management of its land and buildings.
Responding to the report, Environment Secretary David Miliband acknowledged progress was slower than he would like, and is not adequate to meet the increasing pace of change that is needed.
The Government announced last year a set of far-reaching and stretching targets, including the commitment to make the central government office estate carbon neutral by 2012 and to reduce office carbon emissions by 30 per cent by 2020. Other targets include reducing waste and water consumption and increasing recycling.
"Government is committed to playing its role in tackling climate change and reducing emissions – alongside the actions already being taken by business and individuals,” Mr Miliband said.
"Earlier this week, we announced how we are going to use procurement to deliver those targets and to help move the UK towards a low carbon economy.
"I have asked Cabinet Secretary Gus O’Donnell to take personal charge and we have asked the prime minister’s Delivery Unit to recommend by the end of April the structures we need to put in place to ensure these targets are delivered.”
Mr Miliband added that he had also initiated work to look at opportunities for further progress in the public sector in four key areas:
- Achieving low carbon new public sector buildings - one of the first will be a new Defra office in Alnwick, Northumberland, which will open in 2008.
- Further reducing the carbon footprint of our travel. The Government has already committed to offsetting carbon dioxide emissions from official and Ministerial air travel from April 2006 and will publish an updated new car average CO2 emissions target later this Spring. Defra is already offsetting its train travel.
- Deployment of emerging technologies in the public sector which makes them more affordable to the consumer and helps Government meet its targets. Defra and DTI will take this initiative forward, looking firstly at lighting
- How greater use of on-site renewable energy generation and green energy tariffs can help to reduce carbon emissions, expand the supply of renewable energy and show commitment to promoting green energy.
Defra is also working with the Carbon Trust through its Carbon Management Programme to reduce emissions across its estate.
Independent environmental organisation BioRegional is working with Defra to see what it means to be a “One Planet Living® department and what additional action Defra would need to take to become one. One Planet Living® is a joint initiative of BioRegional and WWF based upon ten guiding principles of sustainability (see link below).
Further information
See
- the 2006 Sustainable Development in Government report
- UK Government Sustainable Procurement Action Plan published (5 March 2007)
- www.oneplanetliving.org
Page published: 07 March 2007