Lambeth Council is set to consider new indicators for measuring carbon emissions from the built environment, a move Councillor Scott Ainslie believes is crucial given that most carbon emissions come from the built environment.
Councillor Ainslie, Cabinet Member for Planning and Development, Built Environment, and Public Realm, proposed the inclusion of these new metrics, arguing that the council needs to hold developers accountable for genuinely sustainable buildings.
Councillor Ainslie questioned the current methods, asking, I want to know how we're measuring, we're using the planning system to hold developers to account, so that the buildings sustain, genuinely sustainably, and not causing further harm to our environment.
He highlighted that the built environment accounts for a significant portion of carbon emissions, stating, 40, 45%. That's where the lion's share of carbon savings are to be made.
He also raised concerns about promoting sustainable travel, noting that while some indicators exist for car travel, the focus should be on the built environment's substantial impact.
Ryan Devlin, Director of Strategy, Communications and Change, confirmed that there are opportunities for regular revisions to the existing framework and that new indicators, such as those related to emissions, could be considered. There's absolutely an opportunity to consider for regular revisions,
he stated. He noted that the council produces an annual carbon emissions report, but acknowledged a significant challenge with data availability due to a lag. Often that data is available on an annual basis or held by other organizations, not by the Council,
Devlin explained, suggesting that incorporating this into quarterly reporting would be a consideration, alongside contextual information from other organisations or the council's own data.
Devlin also pointed out the potential implications of incorporating new emissions indicators into quarterly reporting, noting the data lag as a key challenge. He suggested that while revisions could be made for the next financial year, bringing data in time for Q1 reporting would require careful consideration of how to integrate information that is often only available annually or from external sources.
The council's existing framework is being reviewed to better reflect the current administration's values, with a specific focus on ensuring developers are creating genuinely sustainable buildings through the planning system. The proposed new indicators aim to provide a more robust and timely measure of the built environment's carbon footprint, enhancing the council's ability to hold developers accountable and drive genuine sustainability.