The Summative Assessment of the ERDF funded Low Carbon Lake District programme

The Lake District National Park Authority the public body responsible for statutory and strategic aspects of the Lake District National Park. Statutory responsibilities include planning, the Partnership Plan (Management Plan) and Rights of way, access and bylaws.

The Authority's Strategic priorities are: Covid-19 recovery, Net Zero Carbon, Nature Recovery, The Future of Farming, Landscape Culture and Beauty, Smarter Travel, Affordable Housing and Lake District for Everyone.

The Net Zero Carbon priority is outlined as follows:

We will have largely implemented the necessary offsetting measures through externally funded projects on land under our control to achieve net zero carbon for our organisation in 2025. We will be leading net zero carbon in the National Park by 2037 through the Lake District National Park Partnership to resource the measurement, monitoring and communication of progress.

Low Carbon Lake District

The Lake District National Park Authority has secured £2.7M funding from the UK European Structural and Investment Fund to deliver a £4.9M programme of projects called Low Carbon Lake District (LCLD). LCLD consists of four projects:

1. Project name - Low Carbon Lake District Grant Scheme
2. Project name - Electric Vehicles and Charging Infrastructure (National Trust & Lake District National Park Authority)
3. Project name - Southern Windermere Trail
4. Project name - Low Carbon Energy and Energy Efficiency (Lake Source Heat Pump - Ferry Nab, South Lakeland District Council and National Trust - Sizergh, Hilltop, Bowe Barn and Campsites)

Low Carbon Lake District is funded under Priority Axis 4: Supporting the shift towards a Low Carbon Economy in all Sectors. It focuses on reducing business CO2e emissions, whilst also aiming to stimulate market growth of the local environmental technology sector and showcasing low carbon opportunities.

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Delivery of a Low Carbon Lake District programme by the Lake District National Park Authority has been underway for several years now, commencing in July 2019.

Between July 2019 and June 2021 the three projects have been in delivery, with some aspects of works delayed due to Covid-19 limitations in 2020.

The key output of the programme was to deliver annual CO2 savings of 261 tonnes.