REDUCING carbon emissions has saved Gwynedd Council over £3 million over the past six years, it claimed this week.

Thanks to a series of projects set out in Gwynedd Council’s Carbon Management Plan, the authority has reduced electricity and heating fuel bills in its buildings, as well as electricity used for street lighting, and fuel for its fleet of vehicles.

The council is now saving £886,005 a year on its energy and fuel bills, and £3.09 million over the past six years, which is positive news in a time of cuts and constraints on local authority budgets.

As well as these cost savings, the council has saved a total of 35,000 tonnes of Co2 since starting to implement the Carbon Management Plan in 2010. That’s the equivalent of 210,000 double decker buses filled with Co2.

Cllr John Wynn Jones, Gwynedd Council Cabinet nember for environmental matters said: “We are extremely pleased with these results. They highlight the importance of taking ownership of our actions in order to manage our environmental impact as a result of the Co2 we emit into the atmosphere.

“This sets a good example for us all to try and reduce our energy and resource use at home so that we can reduce our carbon footprint and costs at the same time.”

See the full story in this week’s Meirionnydd and Arfon/Dwyfor edition of the Cambrian News