London continues to "lead the UK" in reducing emissions from new buildings

London continues to outperform the rest of the UK in cutting energy use, driving down carbon emissions and supporting investment in green technologies from new developments through Mayor Sadiq Khan’s planning policies, according to a new report.

The Mayor’s London Plan includes policies that address both the climate emergency and the housing crisis, as well as setting out how to make London a greener and healthier city for all.

The London Plan’s net zero carbon target applies to all major planning applications and is delivering carbon reductions which are over 50 per cent more than required by national building regulations. Where developers cannot achieve net zero onsite, they also contribute funds to support other decarbonisation projects in London boroughs.

The new ‘2022 Energy Monitoring Report’, published by City Hall, summarises the impact of Mayoral policies on the 47,862 new dwellings and 2.4 million m2 of non-residential floorspace approved in 2022 that were referred to the Mayor.

Key findings include:

• Nearly 60,000 tonnes of carbon emissions from proposed new developments were saved compared to if they were built only to national building regulations. Savings from residential buildings were 57 per cent greater than national requirements, up 4 per cent from 2021.
• 118 of 134 proposed developments will be heated through heat pumps, a total of 31,000 homes (including 103 large scale heat pumps serving multiple homes) and an increase of 8,000 homes from 2021.
• Nearly £30m of new investment has been made in solar panels, doubling capacity secured in 2021 across 96 per cent of developments.
• For the first time eight large developments have been designed as ‘net zero buildings’ from the outset and achieved net zero carbon through on-site measures alone (in 2021 all applications required offsetting to meet net zero carbon).
• As well as onsite savings, an estimated £162.2m is potentially available through carbon offsets to support climate action in the boroughs.

Deputy Mayor for Environment and Energy Shirley Rodrigues commented: “The Mayor has committed to reaching net zero carbon by 2030 and this report shows that we are progressing swiftly in the right direction.

“Sadiq is using all his powers to help boost London’s green economy while accelerating climate action through his many energy saving initiatives. Whilst the UK is falling behind on key targets, London is leading the way with ambitious planning policies that support the environment, bring down energy bills and help Londoners become more energy efficient.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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