Gloucester (Local Environment Profiles 2011)

KEY FACTS

> Gloucester produced 670 kt of end user CO2 in 2007, the second lowest for a local authority in Gloucestershire.

> Between 2005 and 2008, end user CO2 emissions decreased in Gloucester by 2.8%

> Gloucester had the second lowest emissions for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) in the South West (East Dorset had the lowest).

> Gloucester residents were responsible for a total of 5.8 tonnes of CO2 per capita in 2008, lower than both Gloucestershire County and the South West. This was the second lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire.

> Between 2005 and 2008 per capita emissions reduced in Gloucester from 6.1t to 5.8t.

> There are 2 river water bodies within Gloucester. Our latest assessment of these classified 100% as moderate.

> Gloucester City Council had the tenth highest amount of residual waste in the South West with 611.95 kg/household. This was the third highest to be produced in Gloucestershire

> Gloucester City Council in 2009/10 had the seventh lowest amount of recycling in the South West with 32.08%.

> 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 Gloucester was estimated to be 118,400 in June 2010, 2.2% of the South West’s total population of 5,273,700.

> Between 2008-2033 the number of households in Gloucester are predicted to increase by 28% from 50,000 to 64,000 (an increase of 14,000 households). This is below the 30% increase predicted for the Region and higher than the predicted increase for the England (21.1%).

> Gloucester is covered only by the Severn Corridor CAMS.

> In 2006, Gloucester had the lowest eco footprint in Gloucestershire with 4.52gha.

> 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)

Act to reduce climate change and its consequences

CLIMATE CHANGE

Gloucestershire has a Climate Change Action Plan. Please click here for more information.

CARBON DIOXIDE - END USER

Gloucester produced 670 kt of end user CO2 in 2007, the second lowest for a local authority in Gloucestershire, The highest was Stroud with 1,048 kt and the lowest was Cheltenham with 646 kt.
Between 2005 and 2008, end user CO2 emissions decreased in Gloucester by 2.8%, from 689 kt to 670 kt.
The highest proportion of end user emissions in Gloucester in 2008 was Industry and Commercial, accounting for 45.1% (302 kt), followed by Domestic with 37.2% (249 kt). Gloucester had the second lowest emissions for Land Use, Land Use Change and Forestry (LULUCF) in the South West (East Dorset had the lowest).

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CO2 Levels 2005-08: Gloucester

Gloucester residents were responsible for a total of 5.8 tonnes of CO2 per capita in 2008, 30% lower than the 8.3 tonnes average for Gloucestershire and 25% lower than the South West 7.8 tonnes per capita. This was the second lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire.
Between 2005 and 2008 per capita emissions reduced in Gloucester from 6.1t to 5.8t.

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 51,800 domestic electricity meter points in Gloucester in 2009, 2% of the regional total of almost 2.4 million.
An average of 4,031kWh of electricity was used per consumer in Gloucester during 2009, 9% (417kWh) lower than the regional average of 4,448kWh and 3% (121kWh) lower than the Great Britain average of 4,152kWh. This was the second lowest recorded by a local authority in Gloucestershire, the lowest for the County was Cheltenham with 3,997kWh.

Source : AEA for DECC

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Energy Consumption 2005-09: Gloucester

TRANSPORT

6,312 million vehicle kilometres were made in Gloucestershire County unitary authority area in 2009.
This was the second highest recorded by a unitary or county council (behind Devon), accounting for just 12.8% of the 48,588 million km total for the region as a whole.
Between 1993 and 2009, the total number of vehicle kilometres travelled within Gloucestershire area increased by 33% (1,379 million km). This was higher than the average increase in the South West of 26%.

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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 Gloucester 60.2% commute by car compared to the South West average of 58.7%.
Walking to work in Gloucester with 10.5% is lower than the South West average of 12.1%, and a little higher than the UK average of 10.0% of commuters.

Source: Office of National Statistics

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A graph comparing methods of travelling to work in Gloucester, the SW, and UK (2001)

Protect and improve air, land and water quality

AIR QUALITY

Gloucester has declared three areas of poor air quality, needing Air Quality Management Areas.
Please click here for more information

Source: DEFRA

WATER QUALITY

There are 2 river water bodies within Gloucester. Our latest assessment of these classified 100% 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.

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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 3.07% in the South West, and 4.3% for the UK average.
In Gloucester the two largest landuses are the same, however domestic gardens is significantly higher with 24.9% and greenspace is significantly lower with 41.06%.

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A graph showing the Landuse in Gloucester (2005)

Source: Communities and Local Government

QUALITY OF LIFE

The ninth Local Environmental Quality Survey conducted by Keep Britain Tidy, was carried out between April 2009 and March 2010. The Summary Report key messages included :

~ 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.

The survey carried out between April 2006 -March 2007, is available down to Local Authority Level, please click here for the details.

Source: Keep Britain Tidy

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 Gloucester Council, there is no area designated NVZ and one small area 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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A map showing Gloucester Nitrate Vulnerable Zones (NVZ)

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 water in Gloucester Council.
In addition there were 2 incidents with significant impact to air, 2 incidents of significant impact to water, and 1 incident of significant impact to land.
For the period April 2010 - March 2011 inclusive, there were no incidents of major or significant impact to land,air or water in Gloucester.

Source : Environment Agency

FLYTIPPING

During 2009/10 there were 729 reported incidents of flytipping in Gloucester, the second highest in Gloucestershire. This was a 21% decrease from 924 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

Gloucester City Council had the tenth highest amount of residual waste in the South West with 611.95 kg/household. This was the third 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 and composting has increased significantly in the South West, from 14.9% in 2000 / 2001 to 43.5% in 2009 / 2010.
Gloucester City Council in 2009/10 had the seventh lowest amount of recycling in the South West with 32.08%.
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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A graph showing Gloucestershire Waste disposal

Source: Environment Agency

Put people and communities at the heart of what we do

POPULATION

The population of Gloucester was estimated to be 118,400 in June 2010, 2.2% of the South West’s total population of 5,273,700.
Of this population, 20.0% were under 15, 64.9% were of working age (16 – 64), and 15.2% were of pensionable age (65+).
The proportion of the population of pensionable age was lower in Gloucester (15.2%) than in the South West (19.6%). Both the working age population and the young population were higher (64.9% and 20.0% compared with 62.8% and 17.6%, respectively).

Source : Office of National Statistics

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Population Growth in the South West: 2008-2033

NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS

Between 2008-2033 the number of households in Gloucester are predicted to increase by 28% from 50,000 to 64,000 (an increase of 14,000 households). This is below the 30% increase predicted for the Region and higher than the predicted increase for the England (21.1%).

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Household Estimate and Projections 1991-2033: Gloucester City

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, 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 Gloucester was 20%, lower than the UK average. This was the third lowest 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 Gloucester, 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. None of these was in Gloucester.
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

Work with businesses and the public sector to use resources wisely

WATER RESOURCES

Gloucester is covered only by the Severn Corridor CAMS.

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Catchment Area Management Strategy (CAMS) for Gloucestershire

Please click here for the full documents

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, Gloucester had the lowest eco footprint in Gloucestershire with 4.52gha.
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 three planets worth of resources

Source : Resource Accounting

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A graph showing the Gloucester 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 tonnes 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

Downloads

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

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