Net Zero Carbon Supplementary Planning Document

1. Introduction

1.1 In June 2019 Warwick District Council declared a climate emergency. Following this declaration, the Council made the commitment to reduce total carbon emissions to as close to zero as possible by 2030.

1.2 The Council's Climate Emergency Action Plan recognised the importance of the built environment in reducing carbon emissions and have implemented the Net Zero Carbon Development Plan Document (NZC DPD).

1.3 The NZC DPD aims to minimise carbon emissions from existing and new buildings within the District to support the achievement of national and local carbon reduction targets. From adoption, the DPD will aim to ensure new development should be net zero carbon in operation. For the purposes of this DPD net zero carbon relates to regulated operational energy, which results from fixed building services and fittings (space heating, cooling, hot water, ventilation and lighting).

1.4 To work towards this aim, the DPD is designed to ensure that new development's contribution to the District's carbon deficit is minimised and that new homes do not add to the significant number of existing buildings in the District that will need costly and disruptive retrofit as part of the local and national transition to achieve net zero carbon.

1.5 The purpose of this Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) is to assist applicants in implementing the policies of the NZC DPD by providing technical guidance to inform the design of developments, and to illustrate what measures applicants need to consider in the preparation of an Energy Statement. Furthermore, an Energy Pro-Forma has been prepared, and is annexed to this SPD, which outlines the technical calculations required to be submitted by applicants in compliance with the NZC DPD policies.

1.6 This document is being prepared as a Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) under Regulation 14 of the Town & Country Planning Regulations (Local Plan) 2012, as amended.

1.7 This SPD will be subject to consultation during October - November 2023 before adoption. Once adopted this guidance will be a material consideration in deciding planning applications within Warwick District.

1.8 The format of this SPD provides supplementary information and technical guidance relating to the six NZC DPD policies and follows the energy hierarchy to identify how applicants can: reduce energy demands through fabric efficiency, utilise zero or low carbon energy sources, and offset any remaining carbon emissions. The SPD also provides guidance on embodied carbon assessments and how existing buildings can be retrofitted to reduce carbon emissions.