8 minute read
Cover Feature - Green Economy Transition
Making the transition
to a green economy
Recently the UK government launched a new initiative to urge businesses to reduce their carbon footprint. The Together for our Planet Business Climate Leaders campaign is designed to encourage small and micro businesses to commit to cutting emissions in half by 2030 and to net zero by 2050.
The campaign is the latest move to tackle climate change – one of the most pressing challenges that individuals and businesses face as they move into a post-COVID world. It will enable small businesses to use the new UK Business Climate Hub to find practical tools, resources and advice to understand their emissions and develop a plan to tackle them, as well as providing ideas for steps they can take.
With tough emissions goals set by UK ministers and governments around the globe, it’s clear that a greener future depends on all of us doing more to reduce our impact on the environment.
Locally in Kingston, businesses, academics and local authorities have been working out how people and companies in the borough can improve their carbon footprint. Kingston Chamber of Commerce and Kingston Council recently held a virtual roundtable event with businesses to discuss the commercial opportunities that could arise from the transition to a green economy. The ultimate aim was to help local businesses grow back from the pandemic stronger and greener.
Ioanna Rossi, Strategy and Partnerships Officer at Kingston Council, believes that there are opportunities for companies to innovate and grow while reducing their carbon footprint. Here is her take on the situation.
“Research and policy have so far disproportionately focused on the risks of climate change, rather than any business opportunities that might arise. Adaptation and mitigation strategies for climate change and particularly the decarbonisation of the economy create significant favourable circumstances for businesses to gain competitive advantage and grow.
“The UK government has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. This will affect policies, regulation and funding, as well as new and existing infrastructure, housing, energy and community assets. Kingston Council declared a climate emergency in July 2019 and is committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions for its operations by an earlier date of 2038.
“Direct growth opportunities exist in the following four sectors:
a) Environmental goods and services: air quality, tree planting and habitat restoration. Statistical data (BRES 2018) show that the main sub-sectors in Kingston are: retail sale of flowers, plants, pet animals and pet food; landscape services; and retail of second-hand goods. There will be opportunities for these sectors to grow further.
b) Energy: further developing the renewable energy sector including wind and solar power, bioenergy, geothermal energy and hydrogen.
There are only around 60 jobs in the mainstream energy sector in Kingston (BRES 2018). There are almost 70,000 households across the borough and all of them will need to transition to low-carbon energy, meaning that the business and employment opportunities are significant.
c) Construction and built environment: buildings are responsible for about 40% of the UK’s total carbon footprint. A large proportion of Kingston’s residential buildings and business properties need to be retrofitted. There are 4,750 (BRES 2018) jobs in the built environment sector in the borough, meaning that this sector will have to expand to accommodate the decarbonisation and regeneration of Kingston.
d) Transportation: the future is about electric vehicles, cycling, cargo bikes and micro-mobility.
There are more than 1,700 jobs in Kingston in transportation and storage, as well as maintenance and repair of motor vehicles. In 2020, the UK government announced the 2030 ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars. This indicates a major need for manufacturing, installation and maintenance of electric vehicle charging points.
“The transition to a green economy will be amazingly fast and this is what differentiates it from other transitions in the past. It will be accelerated by changes in legislation, standards and technology. This creates opportunities but it is also a challenge. There will be an impact on the volume, structure and pattern of employment. Some new jobs will appear while some current jobs will be substituted or disappear. The availability of the right skills and upskilling of employees is paramount for business growth.
“The public sector has a very important role to play to make the transition process smoother and ensure that no-one is left behind. Kingston Council established the Transition to a Green Economy Group as a key workstream of the Kingston Economic Recovery Taskforce. This sought to address the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit and was chaired by councillor Hilary Gander and David Symons, head of sustainability in WSP Global Inc.
“Working in partnership is fundamental. The transition process is complex and requires knowledge from every discipline and in every industry. The group consists of local partners and representatives from large and small businesses and currently focuses its work on four priority areas: greening local businesses, decarbonising business transport, green skills and employment, and creation of ‘deep green’ highstreets and town centres.
“The recent roundtable discussion co-organised by Kingston Council and Kingston Chamber of Commerce was part of this group’s work. Ninety-three per cent of businesses participating in the first roundtable discussion told us that they would like to see more of this type of debate. From this feedback a series of other roundtable discussions will follow.
“A summary of the discussion, the presentations and the recordings can be accessed at:
www.kingston.gov.uk/communications/roundtablediscussion-business-growth-opportunities-green-econom y/2?documentId=756&categoryId=20176
“For regular updates on our work and how to get involved, companies can register to receive the Kingston Business Newsletter:
www.kingston.gov.uk/council-democracy/borough-ne
wsletter/2?documentId=544&categoryId=20019.” Also participating in the roundtable event was Dr Neil Jennings, Partnership Development Manager at the Grantham Institute, which sits at the heart of Imperial College London’s work on climate change and the environment. Analysing recent data, Neil outlines the stark challenge facing the country in the fight against climate change.
l The planet has warmed by 1.2oC in the last 150 years due to the emission of greenhouse gases
l The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere now is 50% higher than it was before the
Industrial Revolution and is higher than it has been for at least the last two million years
l At the current rate of change, the recordequalling hot summer we had in the
UK in 2018 will be an average summer within the next 50 years – and obviously the extremes of heat will be even more extreme
l At the current rate of change, all warm-water coral reef will be dead within the next 50 years
l To avoid the worst consequences of climate change we need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions rapidly – we need to approximately halve global emissions of carbon dioxide by 2030 and get to net zero emissions by 2050 Neil says: “To meet the UK’s 2050 net zero target for greenhouse gas emissions, significant action will be required across most sectors of our society. This brings with it significant opportunities for job creation and sustainable economic growth – from improving the energy efficiency of homes and offices to growth in electric vehicles, e-mobility and increasing the amount of green space across the UK.
“In the housing sector, for example, gas boilers will need to be replaced by a low-carbon alternative and the government has set a target of 600,000 heat pumps to be installed per year by 2028. This transition also brings with it significant opportunities for improving public health, reducing social inequality and improving the energy security of the UK.
“From 2009 to 2019, annual growth of the UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was been between 1.5% and 3.1% while the green economy grew consistently at around 5%. Given the commitments of nations across the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it’s hard to imagine that growth of the green economy won’t continue to outstrip that of the wider economy.
“One of the main challenges of any transition is to make sure that the costs and benefits are distributed fairly across society – something referred to as the Just Transition. Governments from the local to national level need to make sure that the employees of industries that go into decline as a result of the transition – the oil and gas sector, for example – are provided with opportunities to reskill into low-carbon employment.
“Another challenge is the speed and scale with which change is required. There are, for example, 26 million homes in the UK that will need to be retrofitted by 2050 to reach housing emission reduction targets. At the moment we lack the skilled workers to fulfil this demand so a significant amount of training and reskilling is required; this poses a challenge but also an opportunity in terms of growth and job creation.”
“To provide businesses with the confidence to invest in new technology or upskill their employees for the low-carbon economy, Neil believes it’s essential that the government puts the right incentives in place and sets out clear, long-term policies.
“My view is that central government needs to devolve more powers and resources to local government, which is best placed to direct support at the local level,” he says. “For example, local authorities could be given more powers to use tools such as business rates to support zero and lowcarbon businesses.”
To meet the UK’s 2050 net zero target for greenhouse gas emissions, significant action will be required across most sectors of our society. This brings with it significant opportunities for job creation and sustainable economic growth – from improving the energy efficiency of homes and offices to growth in electric vehicles, e-mobility and increasing the amount of green space across the UK.
