Net Zero - net hero or zero use?
Taking stock of the environmental news across North Yorkshire and the North East
Good morning! Let me take this opportunity thank you for reading edition number 135 of The Northern Eco this Tuesday. I hope you’ve been enjoying being kept in know about environmental issues. We produce this newsletter on a Pay As You Feel basis so, if you feel it’s worth a few quid, now’s the perfect join our paying subscribers. The main newsletter is sent out at 7am every Tuesday and can’t exist without our paying subscribers . 🙏
We’re starting this week’s newsletter looking at two words which seem to be sparking hot tempers in political spheres - Net Zero. In a collaboration with our friends at South West Durham News, we’ve a special report into the issue. What does it really mean locally? Is it a cost (as is often portrayed) or a real terms benefit to the region? We’ve crunched some numbers below and there’s plenty more news too including:
The latest from our In the Weeds campaign
Endangered craft skills list announced for 2025
Scientists heading south to protest in London
Reforming Net Zero's added value
The recent council elections have pushed the debate about Net Zero into the limelight once more.
Reform UK, which has taken overall control of Durham County Council, winning 65 of 96 seats, as well as a significant number of seats in Northumberland (23 out of 69), has the stated aim of scrapping these projects.
If enacted, that could hit the £418M of added value that Net Zero projects bring into County Durham’s wider economy as well as impacting 5,459 jobs. Those figures came out of analysis for a report by the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit as the benefit Net Zero initiatives provide to the area. The Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit is a non-profit organisation that supports informed debate on energy and climate change issues in the UK.
The party’s leadership have been talking tough - Nigel Farage recently broadcast from Newton Aycliffe saying: “I would advise anybody who’s working for Durham County Council on climate change initiatives or Diversity, Equity and Inclusion or… things that you go on working from home, I think you all better really be seeking alternative careers very, very quickly.”
And the party’s deputy leader Richard Tice said its new council leaders would block, hinder and obstruct climate infrastructure including solar farms, pylons and battery storage systems.
“We will attack, we will hinder, we will delay, we will obstruct, we will put every hurdle in your way. It’s going to cost you a fortune, and you’re not going to win. So give up and go away.”
But might ideology hit the buffers when faced with the reality of a huge economic hit for the region?
Taking the top line figures from the report, Net Zero businesses in the North East as a whole contribute £2.2bn in Gross Value Added (GVA) while in Yorkshire and Humber it’s £5.1bn.
The two areas benefitting the most from Net Zero initiatives in County Durham are Easington and Blaydon & Consett which receive an absolute value of £62M each.
The big winner in terms of employment is Darlington where 927 jobs have been created.
We contacted the leader of the new County Durham Reform UK group, Andrew Husband with a request for interview to discuss their plans with regards to the Net Zero economy.
He said: “Happy to have a chat if you look into the fact that North Sea oil and gas once employed 500,000 people - just to put things into perspective.”
So we’ve requested a time to talk and are waiting to hear back but, in the meantime, Councillor Husband seemed to row back from the party line during an interview with the Local Democracy Reporting Service on Friday. He said:
“We have got to be more open-minded and patient, looking at everything objectively. We don’t want people throwing constructive dismissal accusations at us before we have even started work.
“Nigel is a fantastic public speaker and a really good forecaster; ultimately, what he says does happen eventually. But we could be talking four years before we shut down X number of Net Zero projects.”
If you want to look at the economic figures for Net Zero initiatives where you are, the full report from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit together with an interactive map is available here.
The only other council in the north to now be in full control of Reform UK is Lancashire where Luke Beardsworth at The Lead has crunched the figures.
The three most clicked links from last week were:
Revealed: The carbon footprints of 'digital green' initiatives
Councillors hatch plan to grow fresh strawberries and chilli peppers outside Leeds Civil Hall
In other news
Nature Friendly Farming Week launched
This week is Nature Friendly Farming Week (19–25 May) which arrives as the UK faces its driest spring since the 1950s.
No objection to gas drilling from National Park planners
North York Moors planners have decided against objecting to a controversial gas extraction test site near the national park boundary.
⚠️ The Environment Agency (EA)has launched a consultation into an environmental permit application from Fornax (North East) Ltd to operate an energy-from-waste plant. The company wants to operate a high-temperature thermal-treatment facility near Newton Aycliffe, in County Durham. Under the permit Fornax has applied for, the site would be able to accept hazardous waste and clinical waste for incineration. EA is now seeking views from the local community and interested groups on the application. [Press Release]
🪡 A stark warning has been issued for the future of traditional craft skills in the UK, as new research by Heritage Crafts has identified 20 more crafts at risk of vanishing from the UK, in the latest major update of its pioneering project – the Red List of Endangered Crafts. One of those included in the list is straw work and artist Jenny Steele is on a mission to promote the craft before it dies out. She told me: “The straw work, it's called, like corn dolly making, has been practiced historically, but there's nobody in the north of England that does it now. I find there’s a lot of people that are interested in learning it, but they can't find anybody like within their budgets to teach it in the north of England.” She’s inviting the public to collaborate at her latest exhibition featuring the craft, The Spirit of the Rag and the Corn at Rural Arts, Thirsk until June 14.
🌏 Scientists from Yorkshire represented the region, travelling to London from Sheffield, Leeds and York, to join a major protest as parliament debated the controversial Climate and Nature Bill which they say removes protections for the UK’s natural environment. Brian McHugh, writing at the Yorkshire Bylines, said the protest followed a stark warning from the UK’s Climate Change Committee (CCC) that the country was “not prepared” for the impacts of climate change.
🌿 In the latest update from our In the Weeds campaign to ban the use of the pesticide glyphosate from public spaces, Campaigner Colin Campbell shares a video of the aftermath of council spraying near his home.
🎻 I was fortunate enough to see Sarah Small perform with her viola at the weekend and there’s still time to catch her performances before she leaves our region and pedals off to Scotland. Regular readers will remember hearing about her Good Again tour which is highlighting the music industry’s carbon footprint - as well as delighting audiences! She be playing St Mary the Virgin, on Lindisfarne on the 25th May, 4pm.
💦 Yorkshire Water has announced plans for a new £1.4M wetland south of its existing wastewater treatment works in Bellerby after planning was approved by North Yorkshire Council. Joe Willis at RichmondshireToday has more.
🌺 Every year, millions of rhododendron flowers burst in bloom showering the vast landscape in a riot of colour. Rhododendrons in all shapes, colours and sizes cover the 1000-acre Cragside House estate and with the ongoing sunny weather, the hosts say it's shaping up to be a great year for the beautiful blooms - which are out now! Find out more about the Northumberland’s answer to the Chelsea Flower Show here.
🎬 The Regional Youth Climate Assembly is launching a film project to get young people in Yorkshire and Humber to send in videos about the climate crisis, our environment and their community.
Young people can submit a short video (30-90 second) on:
“What does a sustainable North look like to you?”
“What are you doing to tackle climate change?”
There is no deadline, although RYCA are planning to show films they receive at their schools’ summit in July in Leeds.
That’s all for this week but don’t forget there are updates on the website and via social media through the week too.
Next week’s Tuesday newsletter will see Claire and Alan update us with the latest reading recommendations.
Have a great week!
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Before you vote for "change" it is important to know what the change entails.