Climate & Environment

What is Net Zero and how is Great Missenden Parish Council reacting to the Climate and Ecological Emergency?

Leading environmental scientists across the globe have been vocal for many years now, that greenhouse gases are causing changes to our planet, which shift temperatures and are increasingly creating extreme weather events impacting every single country on the planet, some more seriously than others.

Greenhouse gases are the term commonly used for carbon emissions.  We all carry a carbon footprint with us.  Our everyday actions create carbon dioxide, from the food we eat, the transport we use, heating our homes, and the manufacture of the goods that we buy.

At COP26 last year, the UK government made it’s boldest environmental move yet in making an agreement for the UK to reach net zero by 2050.  This commitment put simply put, refers to the balance between the amount of greenhouse gas produced and the amount removed from the atmosphere.  We reach net zero when the amount we add is no more than the amount taken away.

The ecology crisis is in part due to climate change, and certain habitats being adversely affected by changing temperatures and extreme weather events, but is mainly caused by mankind’s intrusion into natural habitats, and pollution.

Great Missenden Parish Council recognise these issues that affect us locally, and also affect the world at large, and we recognise our need to take responsibility and ensure that all decisions that we make for the local area, also consider the environmental impact, and our ecological impact.

USEFUL RESOURCES

BMKALC Conference 2022 – Climate Change – Practical Local Actions – October 2022 – Review of the conference – please click here.

Great Missenden Parish Council – Carbon Reduction Report – Please click here

Great Missenden – Impact Tool – Community Carbon Calculator – Please click here