Helping to make big strides in cutting its carbon footprint, North Tyneside Council has replaced hundreds of street lamps across the borough.
Almost 300 old street lamps have been replaced with new LED lighting thanks to a partnership between the council and SSE Enterprise.
The project is set to save the council £8,500 in energy costs each year and reduce carbon emissions annually by around 75 tonnes.
SSE Enterprise manages street lighting in North Tyneside on behalf of the council and it has also met the cost of replacing the lights in this project.
Cllr John Stirling, cabinet member for Environment, said: “As a council, we continue to work extremely hard to reduce our carbon footprint through a variety of different projects.
“With help from our residents, staff and partners, our hard work paid off last year when we achieved a 23 per cent reduction in our carbon footprint. Despite this fantastic achievement, we are committed to doing even more to reduce our impact on the environment and we have set ourselves an even bigger target of a 50 per cent reduction by 2027.
“In total, we have now reduced our street lighting energy consumption by a third. By doing so, not only does it mean financial savings for the council, but more importantly, a huge reduction in our carbon footprint.
“I’d like to thank SSE Enterprise for help with this latest scheme.”
George Marshall, Lighting Delivery Manager for SSE Enterprise, added: “Through working together we have developed a strong partnership with North Tyneside Council, and this scheme came about through a mutual agreement that an LED replacement was the best long term solution.
“This is the first LED project we have worked with North Tyneside Council on, and we hope that the benefits that will be reaped will lead to further collaborations in the future.”
To reduce the council’s overall carbon footprint, it has installed a high tech central management system on 13,000 street lights called Mayflower; upgraded 11,000 street lights to more energy efficient lamps, installed LED lighting in a number of public buildings, set buildings and staff carbon reduction targets and installed other modern technology such as combined heat and power units in swimming pools.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
North Tyneside Council’s Low Carbon Plan, approved by Cabinet this year, commits the local authority to doing even more to reduce its impact on the environment.