West Yorkshire Combined Authority presents Net Zero Region plan

£40m of indicative funding has been allocated to help the metropolitan area radically reduce its carbon footprint and build on its green jobs drive.

The Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, is setting out proposals for turning the entire county into a Net Zero Carbon Region by 2038. Ideas were presented to the Climate, Energy, and Environment Committee on Tuesday 19th July.

In addition to dramatically reducing emissions, plans also prioritise the creation of new green jobs, a transformation of public transport infrastructure, and working with individuals and businesses to help them reduce energy consumption, and therefore also bills. 

The Committee was told how the first phase of this initiative is accelerating at pace, with specific actions such as retrofitting homes with insulation and energy saving measures, protecting vulnerable communities from flooding risks, and expanding green skills training programmes just some of the examples as to how money is being invested. 

‘As Mayor, I made tackling the climate and environment emergency one of my key pledges to the people of West Yorkshire alongside creating 1,000 new jobs in the green sector for young people and improving the sustainability of housing,’ said Brabin. ‘The West Yorkshire Climate and Environment Plan will deliver on those priorities and ensure that we create a region where everyone in all communities can really feel the benefits of a net zero carbon economy.’

The Climate, Energy and Environment Committee is made up of councillors from across West Yorkshire, representatives from business and organisations like the Environment Agency. In January, the region launched a Green Jobs Taskforce in a bid to improve skills needed to address the climate emergency.

Image credit: Dave Noonan