Flintshire County Council significantly reduces carbon footprint after investing in a £4.6m street lighting replacement project

Flintshire County Council has significantly reduced its carbon footprint after investing in a £4.6 million street lighting replacement project, saving approximately £575,000 a year in energy bills1.

The Council recognises the importance of climate change, reducing the effects it is having, and their role in protecting the environment.   

Following a review of their street lighting policy in 2015, and with energy prices set to increase, Flintshire decided the high energy consumption of its existing lanterns could create further pressure on its resources in the near future.  

The project was split into two phases beginning in 2017 and completing in March 2019. Inefficient sodium lanterns were replaced in 18,500 of the Council’s 20,500 streetlighting units with more energy efficient LED lights.

Completed by a local in-house team, the new LED streetlights will help to reduce both Flintshire’s energy consumption and carbon footprint, whilst providing enhanced illumination of the streets for local users. It’s predicted that over 1,782 tonnes CO2 will be saved annually, contributing to the Welsh government’s target of a 95% reduction in emissions target. The project will ensure Flintshire remains resilient to future energy price increases.

Flintshire’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Streetscene and Countryside, Cllr Carolyn Thomas, said:

“We recognise the importance of our environment in Flintshire and the impacts of climate change. Where possible, we want to ensure that we protect and enhance the natural environment, reduce carbon emissions and reduce the use of scare resources, for the well-being of our future generations and the fragile, natural world.  Initiatives such as this are important in helping us to achieve that aim.  We have installed almost 20,000 new energy saving LED lanterns to replace old and aging conventional lighting and light sources.  This will save us £575,000 per year on energy which is being reinvested in new schemes.  We have reduced our energy and carbon usage by over 56% from 2015 to 2019, benefitting the residents of Flintshire.”

1 In 2015/16, prior to the project, the council’s energy bill was approximately £856,000.