Net zero and rurality: feasibility study into a cross-sectoral, place-based approach to overcoming non-technical barriers to net-zero living in South Lakeland, Cumbria

A partnership of South Lakeland District Council, Cumbria Action for Sustainability (CAfS), University of Cumbria and businesses will work together to help communities, individuals and organisations in South Lakeland District tackle climate change.

This feasibility project builds on the work of the Zero Carbon Cumbria Partnership (ZCCP) - a ground-breaking collaboration of 80+ public, private and third sector organisations that has identified the priority actions needed to reduce carbon emissions.

The project will establish how 'non-technical barriers' to decarbonisation in rural areas, such as high transport costs, inability to achieve economies of scale, green skills shortage, inefficient housing stock, lack of funding, can be reduced or removed. The outputs of this project will help to inform approaches to overcome these barriers and accelerate the transition to Net Zero in South Lakeland.

The project will focus on the priority areas for carbon emissions reduction which have already been identified by the ZCCP and include: improving the energy efficiency of buildings, enabling active travel and electric vehicle infrastructure (mobility), decarbonising local manufacture/production (make and use) and the rural economy (land-use). The project will apply the emissions reduction actions identified by ZCCP to South Lakeland, ensuring their deliverability and fundability and feedback to ZCCP to help inform and refine Cumbria wide decarbonisation plans.

The project will involve two workstrands:

1. Workshops which will apply an innovative approach, called the Place Standard Tool, to assess the potential for a network of integrated net-zero hubs within the South Lakeland area. Local residents, diverse businesses, young people, community groups and training providers will be invited to identify synergies between different aspects of decarbonisation. The workshops will explore ways in which local business pioneers could catalyse actions which benefit local residents.
2. Alongside the Place Standard approach the project will also assess new forms of finance which will enable the establishment of a rural net-zero-living fund for South Lakeland to overcome the financial barriers to decarbonisation in rural areas. This feasibility study will consider repayable grants/revolving loan schemes, income from individuals and organisations seeking to inset irreducible carbon emissions, community benefit funds, and more.

The project will deliver a collaboratively developed plan for overcoming non-technical barriers to enable the reduction of priority carbon emissions in South Lakeland.