Tuesday 13 September 2022

Energy and carbon savings for Salford City Council after £7.45m green upgrades

Salford City Council has completed the energy efficiency improvements of more than 30 public buildings under a £7.45 million programme.

The project, which received funding through public body Salix Finance via the government's Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme, saw the installations of more than 2,500 solar panels across 21 public buildings with air source heat pumps installed at 12 sites and battery storage systems at four sites.

They have helped save more than 2.4 million kWh of energy – equivalent to travelling around the world 301 times in an electric vehicle (EV) or powering a city of 277,629 houses - and 584 tonnes of carbon.

Other measures included the installation of LED lighting, insulation, radiator valves, double glazing and metering across various buildings.

The programme supports Salford City Council's ambition to make its public estate more sustainable and become carbon-neutral by 2038.

Councillor Mike McCusker, lead member for planning, transport and sustainable development said: “This scheme will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of a number of key buildings across the estate, including our leisure and sports facilities and children’s homes, which will now be sustainably heated and better equipped to help us build a greener Salford in the coming years.

“However, we know we must do more to address the climate emergency and in addition to our £126 million of investment in our green spaces and walking and cycling routes across the city, our state-of-the-art solar farm will help us turbocharge our ability to generate clean energy in our city.”