Tyne Tunnels crowned Carbon Neutral and is now helping combat pollution in Delhi

TT2, which runs the Tyne Tunnels and is a major North East employer, has been certified Carbon Neutral for a second year running and is now offsetting its employees’ carbon footprint to help combat pollution.

The Tyne River crossing - which has slashed its carbon emissions by 90 per cent since it changed to open-road-tolling last year - has achieved Carbon Neutral status for a second time by further reducing its direct and indirect emissions, from owned or controlled sources.

The biggest impact has been made from optimising energy consumption through employee initiatives and education, LED lighting installation and purchasing 100 per cent green energy.

Plus the recent introduction of open-road-tolling, a team garden with beehives, employee composting and an internal recycling scheme are all counting towards supporting the Government’s 2050 net zero target, reducing carbon footprint and energy consumption.

To celebrate its green achievement, the company has decided to off-set its 150 employees’ annual carbon footprints – which is a comined total of 1,043 tonnes, costing £4,533 – by donating that cash to help reduce pollution in Delhi, India.

Chief Executive at TT2, Philip Smith, explains more: “We are encouraging every one in our team to think greener and make active efforts across the whole site to reduce energy use and increase recycling and, it’s working - everyone’s pulling together and doing a great job.

“We asked all our people to vote for a United Nations carbon offsetting project they would like to support and they chose a ‘Gold Standard’ off-set scheme to help upgrade a composting plant in Okhla, Delhi. We are proud to be making a difference to the environment, not just on our doorstep, but now on the other side of the world, too.”

The Delhi composting plant turns 200 tonnes of waste collected from dumpsites every day, into compost which is used by local farmers to help rejuvenate the soil that has been affected by the overuse of chemical fertilisers.

TT2 announced earlier in the year that it is trialling its first electric vehicle, with a view to replacing its full diesel-powered fleet with EVs, to reduce yearly carbon emissions by 60 tonnes.