Borough Climate Change Strategy

In response to our declaration, we have developed this strategy to achieve the ambition of making Tunbridge Wells a 2050 Net Zero Borough. This strategy will provide ambitions and frameworks for delivering climate action by the Council, residents, businesses, communities, and wider stakeholders.

This strategy will not be delivered by the council alone and will not be a fixed course to Net Zero. We appreciate that there will be further developments in policy, understanding and technology that may impact the scope and delivery of this strategy in the future.

The strategy uses an evidence-based approach to develop the actions across all sectors, bringing in the views of all council departments and the public.

Net zero means balancing the greenhouse gases emitted into the atmosphere with those removed. Such removals could come from activities such as tree planting, peatland restoration, and carbon capture and storage.

Achieving Net Zero requires immediate action across the borough, however we must acknowledge that TWBC, our businesses, and our communities do not fully have scope of influence over achieving net zero. National government have an important role to play in ensuring that the UK achieve net zero by 2050.

We have developed 21 ambitions as a vision for what the borough must achieve by 2050. Our ambitions are split into seven priorities, each with three ambitions and an action plan.

A net zero borough will not be achieved and delivered by the council alone. Achieving net zero will be reliant on all of us taking action to deliver real change. These ambitions are only achievable with the whole borough working together.