Research by University of Exeter students has concluded that local councils need to provide clearer and more accessible information on how they are addressing the climate emergency.
The study, published by the Environmental Law Foundation, found that without councils doing so there is a risk that “local climate emergency declarations become worthless political statements, and the opportunity for effective action will be missed”.
Researchers from eight universities and members of the UK Environmental Law Association examined local authority climate emergency declarations and used freedom of information legislation to assess whether councils across the UK had developed clearly defined decarbonisation plans, with milestones and monitoring for emissions reduction targets.
A team from the University of Exeter examined South West local authorities, among which only one was able to confirm its plans for emissions reduction by scope. It wasn’t Exeter City Council.
