Race to Zero
The Broads Authority is committed to reducing its share of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and is taking part in the ‘Race to Zero’, alongside other UK National Parks.
This is the United Nations-backed initiative to halve global emissions by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050.
The Authority’s work towards achieving net zero spans its entire operations, from decarbonising its work programme, partnership projects with farmers, landowners, local and district councils, through to working with the tourism industry and the wider public to reduce carbon emissions.
In 2019, in recognition of the climate emergency, the Authority pledged to make its own operations carbon neutral by 2030, and to aim for a zero-emissions by 2040, which means reducing its carbon emissions by half by the year 2030. By 2022, it had achieved a reduction in its carbon footprint of 21%.
The overall footprint of the Broads National Park, including the visitors, residents, industry and agriculture was analysed by Small World Consulting. Their analysis suggest that hitting Net-Zero will be more challenging for the Broads than other UK National Parks because of the limited potential of the landscape to sequester (draw down) Greenhouse Gases from the atmosphere.
The data shows that if the Broads National Park cuts GHG emissions at a “Paris Aligned” rate, we will reach net zero later than the other National Parks - after 2050. This is due to the residual emissions that will remain economy wide after 2050, and the limited capacity for the Broads to increase the rate at which its landscape absorbs CO2 from the atmosphere. This does not mean that the Broads has been set a less strenuous target than the rest of the National Parks Family.
We will review the latest science and best practice to ensure we maximise our efforts to reach net zero by 2050, whilst protecting the special qualities of the Broads’ natural and cultural heritage.
Reports
Each year we submit data to the CDP project that rates our performance against the Race to Zero goals, and they issue a score based on the reports we submit. There have so far been two reports submitted, one for 2024 and one for 2025. These can be accessed at the links below.
Latest score
2024 CDP Score is: C