Extra funding for council's climate change plans

A council has agreed to spend an extra £6m on reducing greenhouse gas emissions at a faster rate.

It will bring Dorset Council's target to become a carbon neutral authority forward by five years to 2035.

With the new funds total spending on climate projects at the council over five years is likely to reach £25m, much of which is expected to come from the government.

Council leader Nick Ireland, who leads the authority's climate change programme, said he was "confident" it could meet its own targets five years early.

The decision, made by cabinet on Tuesday, will mean more solar panels, switching street lights to lower energy bulbs, more support for house owners with insulation and more efficient heating systems.

A target of £500,000 could be saved at Charminster Highways Depot through changes to heating systems and insulation.

Replacing old lights with LEDs in council buildings could also save £600,000.

While £2.12m could be saved by installing an extra 2.25MW of solar panels.

Ryan Hope, Liberal Democrat councillor for Weymouth, said it was good to be "an ambitious council" that was aiming to "lead on climate change".

He added that the sooner the investments were made, the quicker the savings.

But former portfolio holder for climate Ray Bryan said advances in technology might achieve the targets without the additional investment.

Blandford councillor Nocturin Lacey-Clarke raised doubts about what he claimed was the lack of detail for some of the work.

He questioned whether property leased to others by the council, including farms, came under the scope of the council's own plans.

"I wouldn't want us to sign a blank cheque. I would exercise caution," he said.

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