Decarbonisation is the process of reducing carbon dioxide emissions and is a key objective in meeting legally binding targets. The mission is to embrace renewables, ditch fossil fuels, and save the planet.
The Climate Change Act (2008) commits the UK government by law to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by at least 100% of 1990 levels (Net Zero by 2050). The good news is that we’re nearly halfway there – as the BBC reported yesterday, UK greenhouse gas emissions have more than halved since 1990.
But there’s much more to do. The Committee for Climate Change (CCC), an independent, statutory body established under the Climate Change Act 2008, responsible for monitoring progress, has said that by the year 2040 the UK has to be emitting just 13% of the greenhouse gases it did back in 1990.
This is going to take effort from us all, and we’re all becoming more and more aware of the need to reduce our impact on the environment in our daily lives, so in this blog we’re going to explore decarbonisation, why it’s important, how we can all help achieve it and what the changes might cost us.
Why decarbonisation is so important
Recent weather has been extreme in some areas of the country with floods and storms, and scientists are putting these significant changes to weather patterns down to global rises in average temperatures due to increased greenhouse gas emissions.
Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas that traps heat in the atmosphere, leading to rising global temperatures and decarbonisation directly addresses this by reducing our dependence on fossil fuels such as oil, LPG and solid fuels, thus reducing emissions such as carbon dioxide as well as particulate matter, nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide, and therefore improving air quality. Moving towards clean energy is key to a sustainable future.
What’s been done so far
The UK Government has implemented various policies and initiatives already. Wind, solar and hydro power are all playing a role in reducing reliance on fossil fuels, as has investment in public transport, and in particular, electric vehicles and the expansion of the EV charging network. In Harrogate, where the Northern Energy head office is located, The Harrogate Bus Company became the first operator in the UK to create a fully electric bus network in 2018 due to Government funding.
What does decarbonisation mean for UK households?
The CCC provides independent advice on how much the UK should emit over five-year periods, known as ‘carbon budgets’ in the stepping stone to net zero, and has said that one-third of emissions cuts between now and 2040 need to come from households making low-carbon choices.
As individuals, we can indeed all do our bit. Reducing our energy consumption with simple energy saving measures such as reducing the amount of water we use, switching lights off when not in a room, insulating our homes and reducing draughts, and using energy-efficient appliances can all help reduce your home’s carbon footprint and save money too.
Source: Energy Saving Trust. Savings for Great Britain are based on an electricity price of 24.5 p/kWh and a gas price of 6.29 p/kWh, calculated from a weighted average of projected, current and recent energy price caps. Savings for Northern Ireland are based on fuel prices as of November 2024.
Walking, cycling or sharing transport can significantly reduce our emissions too. As can switching to an electric or hybrid vehicle, and the Committee has said that by 2040, 80% of our cars will need to be electric.
Then there’s the energy we all use to fuel our homes, a particular challenge for off-grid households that traditionally have relied on heating oil and LPG to power their boilers. The government is pushing for a mass switch to heat pumps, and indeed the CCC has said that half of our homes are going to need a heat pump by 2040. It has recommended that no new boilers should be fitted from 2035. However, quite simply, heat pumps are not suitable for all properties.
However, if you use heating oil or LPG, you can still do your bit now. With the Northern Energy Premium Package, heating oil customers receive an upgrade to our Premium Heating oil which contains an additive and is cleaner burning and kinder to the environment, plus at Northern Energy we automatically offset the CO2 emissions every time we top up the tanks of both our oil Premium Package and our LPG customers. If you'd like to know more, please contact us on 01423 770 666.
For more information, read our top tips on reducing your carbon footprint.
The cost to households
The cost to households could be significant. Solar panels can cost upwards of £5K and heat pumps are expensive to install costing upwards of £7.5K. In addition, heat pumps often require expensive home improvements to generate an equivalent heat output, such as upgraded insulation, underfloor heating, and larger radiators, which can add a significant amount of money to the overall cost.
Whilst heat pumps are very efficient – for every unit of energy you put in, you get 3 units of heat out – they run on electricity, which is currently 4 times the cost of gas. Indeed, the BBC reported this week that the savings to be had from switching from a gas boiler to a heat pump are tiny.
In a commitment to moving towards cleaner energy and to give homeowners a choice, the heating oil and LPG industries are working hard to transition to cleaner renewable fuels as an alternative for those homes that are off-grid. Hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and renewable gases such as bioLPG and rDME are drop-in solutions that work in existing systems with no reduction in efficiency.
Whilst not yet widely available, the good news it hat the trade associations, Liquid Gas UK and UKIFDA, are working with the government and taking leading roles in consulting on policy framework to make renewable fuels an affordable choice for off-grid homes.
George Web, CEO of Liquid Gas UK, has said that LPG and bioLPG will have an important role to play and that if the government is serious about meeting its ambition, is must ‘drop its one size fits all approach to decarbonising heating’.
The cost of transitioning from a petrol or diesel car to an electric vehicle can be prohibitive for many households, whilst they have lower fuel and maintenance costs, they are generally more expensive to purchase.
However, the CCC has said that decarbonising should filter down to lower bills in the long term.
Due to the UK’s legally binding commitment to reach net zero by 2050, decarbonisation is inevitable. But the biggest hurdle for many households, especially in the current cost-of-living crisis, is affordability, which remains a major challenge, and a gradual approach is necessary for many. In addition, the UK’s electricity grid needs substantial upgrades to handle the increased demand from electrified transport and the proposed shift to heat pumps. Which is another reason why renewable fuels offer such a great alternative to off-grid households.