Council supply chains are responsible for over 10% of UK carbon emissions, according to research from finance technology company Oxygen Finance.
The research suggests that local authority supply chains emitted more than 43m tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2020/21 based on published data by all English authorities and a proportion of those in Wales.
Typically, 96% of carbon emissions from councils comes from their supply chain, with only 2% coming from the council’s own operations, and another 2% from indirect emissions from purchased energy.
Over 300 council in the UK have declared a climate emergency, with many pledging to go well above the minimum requirements set by government and achieve net zero by 2030. However, supply chain emissions have continued to rise with a 14% increase in emissions over the past five years to 2021.
“Until now, the scale of these emissions hasn’t been visible, and as a result authorities have tended to focus efforts on emissions from direct operations and indirect emissions from energy,” said Rebecca Dyer, carbon product manager at Oxygen Finance.
“This data presents local authorities with a real opportunity to work collaboratively with suppliers and other public bodies to act where it will have the greatest impact.”
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