Glasgow has drastically reduced its carbon emissions by 41% since 2006, surpassing the 30% target set for 2020.

The Energy and Carbon Masterplan (ECMP) created by the Sustainable Glasgow Partnership in 2015 identified 33 actions required to significantly reduce the city’s emissions across the transport, domestic and commercial sectors.

Since the masterplan was incorporated, Glasgow City Council and its partners have invested heavily in a host of ground-breaking projects, such as the opening of the Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre. The centre, which became fully operational in 2019, delivers savings of 90,000 tonnes of CO2 per year by extracting recyclable material from waste and generates enough energy to power 22,000 homes city-wide.

The Council has also adopted several policies across their sustainability portfolio, including initiatives to increase renewable energy production in the city and improving active travel networks to help encourage individuals to reduce their carbon footprint by walking, wheeling and cycling.

City Convenor for Sustainability and Carbon Reduction, Anna Richardson, welcomed the news: “Glasgow’s climate ambitions are well known, and the data released show that as a city we are on the right path to achieving net-zero carbon by 2030.”

“Although these figures are promising, there are still challenges which we will need to continue to address, such as reducing fuel poverty across the city and improving our sustainable transport infrastructure.”

“We must ensure that climate change doesn’t disproportionately impact those in our most vulnerable communities. Since 2013, Glasgow City Council and its partners have invested £101 million in Glasgow’s Affordable Warmth Programme. We’ve also committed £106 million to install energy efficiency measures in those households which need them the most.”

“Collectively, we will need to continue to tackle the climate emergency at pace, and these figures should encourage everyone that we can become a greener city while ensuring that our transition to net-zero carbon is fair to residents across Glasgow.”