Set to drastically cut the borough’s carbon footprint, North Tyneside Council’s final phase of its ambitious street lighting scheme started this month.
A total of 20,000 streetlights are being replaced by the carbon-conscious local authority as part of its plans to work towards being carbon net zero by 2030.
Over 10,000 lamps have already been swapped with modern energy-efficient LED streetlights.
As well as generating energy savings of 1,000 tonnes each year, the 20,000 new LED streetlights will also save the council around £1m in electricity costs.
Speaking about the project, Cllr Sandra Graham, cabinet member for Environment, said: “This is another very important and exciting step in our fight against climate change. We are using innovative technology to protect the borough for generations to come.
“As well as the benefits for the environment, it will save around a million pound each year – which is more important than ever with the significant rise in energy costs.
“As a council, we continue to do everything we can to achieve our goal of working towards being carbon net zero by 2030 through a wide range of initiatives, but we absolutely cannot do this alone.
“With the council only directly controlling two per cent of the borough’s carbon footprint, it is really important that we take residents and businesses with us on this journey. We can all take little steps which collectively will make a big difference.”
Since the local authority declared a climate emergency back in 2019 – and more recently announced its ambitions to work towards being carbon net zero by 2030 – a range of interventions have been delivered or are underway to reduce both the council’s and the borough’s carbon footprints.
It includes energy efficiency and energy generation measures in council homes and buildings; major steps forward in active and sustainable travel; further improvements to recycling; increasing planting of biodiversity areas and trees; electrifying appropriate council vehicles; and more.
And encouragingly, last year the council announced significant reductions in the amount of carbon emissions that had been achieved, with savings of 52 per cent for the council and 41 per cent for the borough as a whole.
The street lighting project is being delivered in partnership with Enerveo.