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Cheltenham (Local Environment Profile 2011)

KEY FACTS

> Cheltenham produced 646 kt of end user CO2 in 2008, the lowest for a local authority in Gloucestershire.

> Between 2005 and 2008, end user CO2 emissions increased in Cheltenham by 1%, from 642 kt to 646 kt.

> Cheltenham produced the sixth lowest amount of road transport emissions, and the eighth lowest amount of Land use, land use change and forestry CO2 emissions for a local authority in the South West in 2007.

> Cheltenham residents were responsible for a total of 5.7 tonnes of CO2 per capita in 2008, lower then the rest of Gloucestershire and the South West average. This was the lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire and the joint sixth lowest in the South West.

> Between 2005 and 2008 per capita emissions in Cheltenham reduced from 5.8t to 5.7t.

> There are 2 river water bodies within Cheltenham. Our latest assessment of these classified 50% as poor and 50% as moderate.

> Cheltenham Borough Council had the ninth highest amount of residual waste in the South West with 693.85 kg/household. This was the second highest to be produced in Gloucestershire in 2009/10.

> Cheltenham Borough Council in 2009/10 had the tenth lowest amount of recycling in the South West with 32.85%.

> Gloucestershire County Council  landfilled 178,046 tonnes, which was the third highest amount of tonnes landfilled in the South West. This was also the fourth highest percentage landfilled (60.76%) in the South West.

> The population of Cheltenham was estimated to be 115,300 in June 2010, 2.2% of the South West’s total population of 5,273,700.

> Between 2008-2033 the number of households in Cheltenham are predicted to increase by 26% (13,000 households) from 50,000 to 63,000. This is lower than the 30% increase predicted for the Region but greater than the 21.1% predicted increase for England.

> Cheltenham is covered by two CAMS : the Severn Corridor and the Severn Vale CAMS

> In 2006, Cheltenham had a eco footprint of 4.86gha. This was the fourth highest in Gloucestershire.

> Gloucestershire County Council had an allocation of 113,928 tonnes and landfilled 116,639 tonnes (102.4%)  of their BMW. This was the highest reported in the South West. Only two councils in the South West exceeded their allocations. They were Gloucestershire County Council and South Gloucestershire Council.

Gloucestershire County (showing all districts)
Gloucestershire County (showing all districts)
GloucesterForest of DeanStroudCheltenhamTewkesburyCotswold
Act to reduce climate change and its consequences

CLIMATE CHANGE

CARBON DIOXIDE - END USER

  • Cheltenham produced 646 kt of end user CO2 in 2008, the lowest for a local authority in Gloucestershire, The highest in Gloucestershire was Stroud with 1,048 kt.
  • Between 2005 and 2008, end user CO2 emissions increased in Cheltenham by 1%, from 642 kt to 646 kt.
  • The highest proportion of end user emissions in Cheltenham in 2008 was Industry and Commercial, accounting for 44.3% (286 kt), followed by Domestic with 40.4% (261 kt). Cheltenham produced the sixth lowest amount of road transport emissions, and the eighth lowest amount of Land use, land use change and forestry CO2 emissions for a local authority in the South West in 2007.

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CO2 Levels 2005-08: Cheltenham
CO2 Levels 2005-08: Cheltenham
  • Cheltenham residents were responsible for a total of 5.7 tonnes of CO2 per capita in 2008, 31% lower than the 8.3 tonnes average for Gloucestershire and 27% lower than the South West 7.8 tonnes per capita. This was the lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire and the joint sixth lowest in the region.
  • Between 2005 and 2008 per capita emissions in Cheltenham reduced from 5.8t to 5.7t.

Please note- we are reporting on end user CO2 emissions, which are used as the National Indictor for Sustainable Development for the UK. An alternative measure of CO2 is available from the Stockholm Institute. As the data presented is from 2008, the local authority comparisons for the South West include district authorities in Cornwall and Wiltshire which have now been replaced by Unitary Authorities.

Source: Sub-national energy consumption statistics, DECC

ENERGY CONSUMPTION

  • There were 53,200 domestic electricity meter points in Cheltenham in 2009, 2% of the regional total of almost 2.4 million.

  • An average of 3,997kWh of electricity was used per consumer in Cheltenham during 2009, 10% (451kWh) lower than the regional average of 4,448kWh and 4% (155kWh) lower than the Great Britain average of 4,152kWh. This was the lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire, the highest for the County was Cotswold with 5,464kWh.

Source : AEA for DECC

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Energy Consumption 2005-09: Cheltenham
Energy Consumption 2005-09: Cheltenham

TRANSPORT

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Estimated traffic volume in Gloucestershire (1993-2009)
A graph showing estimated traffic volume in Gloucestershire (1993-2009)
Source: Department of Transport

COMMUTING

  • Driving to work is the most popular way to commute. In Cheltenham 54.6% commute by car compared to the South West average of 58.7%.

  • Walking to work in Cheltenham with 16.7% is higher than the South West average of 12.1%, and much higher than the UK average of 10.0% of commuters.

Source: Office of National Statistics

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travelling to work in Cheltenham
A graph comparing methods of travelling to work in Cheltenham, the SW, and UK (2001)
Protect and improve air, land and water quality

AIR QUALITY

Source: DEFRA

WATER QUALITY

  • There are 2 river water bodies within Cheltenham. Our latest assessment of these classified 50% as poor and 50% as moderate.
  • This compares with 94 river water bodies within Gloucestershire. Our latest assessment of these classified 3.2% as bad, 13.8% as poor, 60.6% as moderate and 22.3% as good.
  • The main reasons for less than good status include: excessive quantities of silt, high levels of phosphate, nitrate and metals
[ Zoom ]
WFD water bodies from Gloucestershire
A map showing Water Framework Directive (WFD) water bodies from Gloucestershire

Please note - Water bodies do not fit exactly within local authority boundaries. The figures have been derived from those water bodies whose centres are within the district in question. If all water bodies within a district had been included, double accounting would have taken place. Some water bodies have yet to be classified. For the purpose of this exercise, these have been removed from the figures published.

Source: Environment Agency  

LAND USE

  • In 2005 both the South West Region and the UK, the largest landuse came from Greenspace with 90.7% and 87.5% respectively. The next largest area of land cover came in the form of domestic gardens with 3.1% in the South West, and 4.3% for the UK average.

  • In Cheltenham, the two largest landuses are the same, however domestic gardens is significantly higher with 23.5% and greenspace is significantly lower with 51.0%.

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Landuse in Cheltenham
A graph showing the Landuse in Cheltenham (2005)
Source: Communities and Local Government

QUALITY OF LIFE

~ Overall Standards within England remain the same as last year, with no change in the Cleansing Index score, which is 76, out of a possible 100.

~ 63% of standards for all LEQ indicators were either Good or Satisfactory.

~ The South East joins the South West as top performing region overall, for the first time this year.

~ The South West has been either the top performing region or joint top performing region since the 2007/08 Survey.   

NITRATE VULNERABLE ZONES

  • Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs) are areas of land that drain into waters polluted by nitrates, such that the ecosystem is at risk of being disturbed, or the water is likely to exceed 50 milligrams of nitrate in each litre.
  • Within Gloucestershire County Council, there are a number of areas designated NVZ and a number of areas of deferred slurry storage.
  • NVZ regulations come fully into force on 1 Jan 2012, except in deferred Slurry storage areas which have until 1 Jan 2013.
  • For more information on NVZ, please see Environment Agency pages.
  • For detailed maps relating to NVZ areas, please see source pages.

Source: Environment Agency

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Gloucestershire Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs)
Gloucestershire Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZs)

CATCHMENT SENSITIVE FARMING

  • Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF) gives advice on dealing with diffuse pollution from agriculture and the impact on water courses. 
  • CSF is a voluntary initiative, where as NVZs is a statutory obligation. CSF looks at : best practice on manure and pesticide usage; Promoting good soil structure; protecting watercourses from run-off and best practice on stock management.
  • There are no Catchment Sensitive Farming projects in this area.

Source: Environment Agency

POLLUTION INCIDENTS

  • For the period April 2005-March 2010 inclusive, there were no incidents of major impact to land, air or water in Cheltenham. There were only 2 incidents of significant impact to water for the same period.

  • For the period April 2010- March 2011 inclusive, there were no incidents of major impact to land, air or water in Cheltenham.

  • For the same period, there was 1 incident of significant impact to water.

Source : Environment Agency

FLYTIPPING

  • During 2009/10 there were 364 reported incidents of flytipping in Cheltenham, the second lowest in Gloucestershire. This was a 43% decrease from 623 incidents in 2008/09.

Source: DEFRA

Please note: incidents of fly tipping are reported differently by each council. One may log black bin bags out on an incorrect day as a fly tipping incident where another council do not log this. Please be aware of these reporting discrepancies on Flycapture when looking at the data in comparison to other councils.

MUNICIPAL WASTE

  • Cheltenham Borough Council had the ninth highest amount of residual waste in the South West with 693.85 kg/household. This was the second highest to be produced in Gloucestershire.

  • In 2009/10, South Hams had the lowest level of residual waste in the South West with 341.04kg/household. The highest in the South West was Isles of Scilly Council with 1,452kg/household. 

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Recycling in the South West (2009/10)
Recycling in the South West (2009/10)

  • Recycling and composting has increased significantly in the South West, from 14.9% in 2000 / 2001 to 43.5% in 2009 / 2010.

  • Cheltenham Borough Council in 2009/10 had the tenth lowest amount of recycling in the South West with 32.85%.

  • The highest rate of recycling in the SW was Cotswold District Council with 60.4%,  and the lowest rate in the SW was Isles of Scilly with 18.9%.

 Source : DEFRA  

TOTAL MUNICIPAL WASTE LANDFILLED

  • Gloucestershire County Council  landfilled 178,046 tonnes, which was the third highest amount of tonnes landfilled in the South West. This was also the fourth highest percentage landfilled (60.76%) in the South West.

  • Bournemouth Borough Council landfilled the least percentage waste in 2009/10 (37.8%). Plymouth City Council landfilled the largest percentage of waste in 2009/10 (64%).  Devon County Council however landfilled the largest amount in tonnes with 194,720 tonnes. 

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Gloucestershire Waste disposal
A graph showing Gloucestershire Waste disposal
Source: Environment Agency
Put people and communities at the heart of what we do

POPULATION

  • The population of Cheltenham was estimated to be 115,300 in June 2010, 2.2% of the South West’s total population of 5,273,700.
  • Of this population, 17.5% were aged under 15, 65% were of working age (16–64), and 17.3% were of pensionable age (65+).
  • Cheltenham had a slightly higher proportion of it’s population of working age (65%), than did the South West Region (62.8%), but was almost exactly that of the England value, of 64.8%.

Source : Office of National Statistics

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Population Growth in the South West: 2008-2033
Population Growth in the South West: 2008-2033

NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS

  • Between 2008-2033 the number of households in Cheltenham are predicted to increase by 26% (13,000 households) from 50,000 to 63,000. This is lower than the 30% increase predicted for the Region but greater than the 21.1% predicted increase for England.
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Household Estimate and Projections 1991-2033: Cheltenham
Household Estimate and Projections 1991-2033: Cheltenham

Please note - Figures to 2008 are based on ONS mid-year population estimates and projected rates of household formation from trends in Census and Labour Force Survey data. All projections are 2008-based. The 2008-based household projections are linked to the Office for National Statistics 2008-based Population Projections, and are not an assessment of housing need or do not take account of future policies. They are an indication of the likely increase in households given the continuation of recent demographic trends.

Source: Communities and Local Government

NEW HOMES ON PREVIOUSLY DEVELOPED LAND

  • The proportion of new buildings built in England on previously developed land, rose 23% between 1994-2009. More than half of local authorities in the South West has an increase higher than the English average.

  • Over the same period in the South West, South Gloucestershire had the highest overall increase with 57%, and the lowest was Isles of Scilly with -10%. The second lowest local authority was  jointly Cotswold and Torbay with only a 5% increase over the same period.

  • The increase in Cheltenham was 25%. This was the third highest increase in Gloucestershire.

  • For the period  2006-2009, only 4 councils achieved over 90% of new dwellings on previously developed land in the South West. These were Bournemouth (97), Poole (97%), City of Bristol (95%) and Christchurch (94%).

Source: Communities and Local Government

FLOODING

  • One in six properties in England are at risk of flooding.  In the South West over 200,000 properties are at risk of flooding from rivers or the sea and around 6,000 properties are at risk from coastal erosion in the South West.

  • The causes of flooding in Gloucestershire are varied; rivers, and surface water or combinations of the two, depending on location.

  • To see locations at risk of flooding in Cheltenham, please click here for the Environment Agency flood map.

Source: Environment Agency

PLANNING APPLICATIONS AND FLOOD RISK

  • The Environment Agency lodged objections to 6,200 planning applications in England and Wales on the grounds of flood risk in 2007/2008 up from 4,750 in 2006/2007. Of these, 1,160 objections were in the South West, accounting for almost 19% of the national total. 

  • An additional 21 applications for minor development were also approved contrary to Environment Agency advice in the South West.  One of these was in Cheltenham  

  • In 2008/09, a summary report was published which had no detailed information to local authority level.

  • The number of planning applications to which we objected on flood risk grounds fell slightly to 5,198 in 2008/09 compared to 6,232 in 2007/08, representing 43% of consultations received. This is the first fall in the proportion of consultations objected to since 2001/02.

Source: Environment Agency

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WATER RESOURCES

  • Cheltenham is covered by two CAMS : the Severn Corridor and the Severn Vale CAMS.

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Catchment Area Management Strategy (CAMS) for Gloucestershire
Catchment Area Management Strategy (CAMS) for Gloucestershire

Source : Environment Agency

ECO FOOTPRINT

  • The ecological footprint is an indicator of the total environmental burden we place on the planet. It represents the area of land needed to provide raw materials, energy and food, and to absorb pollution and waste created. It is measured in global hectares (a hectare of land with world average productivity) and is usually expressed as a per person measure. The Stockholm Environmental Institute (SEI) calculate the ecological footprint of consumption activities.
  • One of the main features of an ecological footprint indicator is that it is based on consumption, not just domestic production. It takes into account the impact of all products that are consumed, whether they are produced in the country of consumption, or elsewhere in the world.
  • In 2006, an average UK citizen had an eco-footprint of 4.64gha, which is significantly above the available budget of 1.89 gha. The South West Regional average was 4.74 gha
  • In 2006, Cheltenham had a eco footprint of 4.86gha. This was the fourth highest in Gloucestershire.
  • The ecological footprint of all local authorities in the UK is significantly above the available global budget. If everyone in the world consumed the same as a UK citizen we would need nearly 3 planets worth of resources.

Source: Resource Accounting

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Cheltenham Eco footprint
A graph showing the Cheltenham Eco footprint (2006) by themes

LANDFILL ALLOWANCE TRADING SCHEME

  • In 2009/10 the amount of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW)  landfilled by the 16 local authorities within the South West was 1,032,967 against their combined allocation of 1,134,910 tonnes.

  • Gloucestershire County Council had an allocation of 113,928 tonnes and landfilled 116,639 tonnes (102.4%)  of their BMW. This was the highest reported in the South West. Only two councils in the South West exceeded their allocations. They were Gloucestershire County Council and South Gloucestershire Council.

Source: Environment Agency

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Amount landfilled in 09/10 within the South West
Amount landfilled in 09/10 within the South West

Downloads

 

Please use these images in presentations/reports, but remember to reference the South West Observatory Environment Module Local Profiles 2011.

 PDF 2011