Council Non-Domestic Buildings

• Exeter City Council has been awarded £6,391,664 to deliver heat decarbonisation projects at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum (RAMM) and the Riverside Leisure Centre (Riverside). RAMM will install a new air sourced heat pump system, replacing existing gas fired boilers that are at the end of their life. The Riverside Leisure Centre will replace an end of life boiler and heating plant with air sourced heat pumps, integrate a heat recovery system and upgrade its roof to improve its thermal efficiency and accommodate the roof mounted air sourced heat pumps.
• Low Carbon Skills Fund application for Decarbonisation Surveys earlier in 2023 was not successful. However, essential surveys to secure potential Sport England grant supported by the Net Zero budget, will be undertaken at leisure sites
• Feasibility Study Underway to assess the suitability of connection to a potential City Heat Network. Three sites are being surveyed and findings will be reported to SMB for further consideration should the heat Network be developed.  
• RAMM secured MEND funding (£498,000). The grant from the Museum Estate & Development Fund (MEND) is matched by an existing capital programme budget will provide vital funds to address the maintenance backlog of the RAMM roof and will include installation of a permanent access system to the roof, upgrading the roofs’ insulation and the re-decoration of damaged ceilings
• Ongoing discussions with the Local Plan team in developing net zero related polices for the Exeter Plan.
• Including Studies via SWEEG and the Centre for Energy & Environment at Exeter University. Include the Water Lane Smart Grid and Storage Project, A Case for Electrification of Fleet. In addition, supporting Planning policy, development of the Local Plan and further emerging planning policy including retrofit, embodied emissions and future development standards. 
• Solar Survey for all remaining suitable assets to be finalised and business case developed to tender a programme of work to help decarbonise ECC owned and occupied buildings

Council-owned housing

• The Housing Service is continuing the retrofit programme across the remainder of ECC stock, financed through the Housing Revenue Account. A delivery timescale is currently being developed.
• Further Government grant of £1.494m via the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund has been secured for 2023/2025. The funding award is representing 43% of the estimated retrofit costs, with a further £1.998m co-funded contribution from ECC representing 57% and a total expenditure of £3.493m over a 2-year project period.
• This programme of works equates to a target of 98 properties for Year 1 (2023/24) and 147 properties for Year 2 (2024/25).
• Vaughan Road (91 new Affordable Passivhaus homes) is under construction
• ECL continue to work on sites through the design and development stage based on a Passivhaus design providing viability can be achieved.

Transport

• Report by SWEEG evaluating the case for electrification of the remainder of the refuse collection vehicle fleet, considering both greenhouse gas emissions and costs. High Lease costs prohibiting expansion
• Research is being carried out to ascertain the viability of using bio-diesel for fleet vehicles. To reduce costs/carbon emissions, in the interim whilst electrification of the fleet is delivered
• Investigating navigation software to provide optimisation of residential waste collection
• EV infrastructure implementation plan and City Strategy completed and to be reported to Executive.
• ECC currently working with Devon County Council and other District Councils to secure LEVI to be allocated to Tier1 authorities to install charging infrastructure across the city. ECC to allocate in line with the EV strategy commissioned (above).
• No further fleet electrifications within P&GS in the last six months due to the current 3.5 Tonne vehicles available on the market not being operationally compatible with ECC payload requirements. Electric alternatives explored routinely for any replacement requirements
• Electric alternatives to small plant and equipment within P&GS being explored as and when equipment reaches end of life. No equipment has reached end of life in the last six months.
• Commuting and homeworking emissions to be calculated more accurately in 2023/24 carbon footprint, using data collected from travel survey with ECC staff
• April 2023: New Stagecoach Corporate Discount in place for ECC staff to encourage commuting by public transport
• Green Travel Plan incentivising sustainable travel to be finalised in August 2023
• New travel survey carried out in July 2023 to improve accuracy of travel emissions within Carbon Footprint
• Waterways currently sourcing viable proposals for electrification and EV charging appraisal

Procurement

• Carbon footprint reporting used by SWEEG for Scope 3 emissions data updated and more accurate methods are in place
• Procurement T&F group working to improve supplier engagement
• Working to get Commercial Endorsement Form to include whole life environmental cost for project – details on material, plant, waste, operative
• Procurement T&F group working to seek Scope 3 emission data for larger housing maintenance contracts
• April 2023: Green Accord relaunched at Exeter Chamber Event, providing an accreditation scheme for businesses to evidence carbon reduction and way for supply chains to ensure their suppliers use businesses with proven sustainable business practices and net zero targets. Campaign being developed to promote Green Accord across the region.
• Work to get all council printing on certification programme verified paper/card, e.g. FSC and PEFC underway
• June 2023: discussions underway with district councils in Devon and other large supply chains to adopt Green Accord
• Working to ensure Green Accord or equivalent environmental accreditation is a requirement of all ECC suppliers

F gases and Waste

• Net Zero team working with Net Zero Ambassadors to help enforce waste prevention and recycling in the workplace
• Study to be sought from SWEEG to assess the carbon emissions of processing waste and recycling collected and sold on by ECC
• Discussions to be held with Corporate Property and Housing to ensure maintenance contracts include F gas losses
• Discussions with Corporate Property to accurately measure and create an inventory of fgases.
• Discussions with ECC venues to reduce single use plastic across organisation

Renewable Energy

• Full dissemination report of first year of operation of Water Lane solar farm and energy storage technology, as well as outcomes from Riverside, Matford and John Lewis battery storage installations, to be completed by SWEEG.
• Review of solar opportunities underway including 13 ECC owned non-domestic buildings.
• Feasibility survey being carried out to relocate the canopy solar PV array from Mary Arches car park to the Guildhall Car Park.
• DNO constraints restrict large scale solar development.

Land use change – afforestation

• No further afforestation developments at this stage
• Increased meadow grass programme

Overall organisational change

• August 2023: 165 members of staff (including Net Zero, business and car parking service team, Net Zero Ambassadors, SMB) and Councillors have undertaken Carbon Literacy training delivered by 2 members of Net Zero team
• August 2023: 71 members of staff and Councillors ‘certified’ as Carbon Literate so far
• ‘Climate Emergency’ section on ECC website continues to be kept up to date
• Active engagement with Scope 3 and Doughnut Economics Community of practice groups run by University of Exeter, and Devon Climate Emergency Response Group and Tactical Groups run by the Devon Climate Emergency team at Devon County Council