Measures to cut CO2 in Welsh haulage published

It said greenhouse gas emissions in road freight and logistics represent 34% of the country’s total surface transport emissions and this was a significantly higher proportion than for the UK as a whole.

It has set out 60 objectives that require policy actions to achieve them and would save 8.4m tonnes of CO2 equivalent by 2050. Zemo Partnership added that the proposals were also “highly cost effective” and had a benefit-to-cost ratio of 5.9.

It also said they would unlock significant cost benefits for the industry in Wales, with each pound invested unlocking almost eight pounds of benefit in terms of fuel costs.

Cumulatively, this could amount to a £2.1bn reduction in fuel costs to CV operators over the next 25 years.

Zemo Partnership said electrification was the main long-term pathway to decarbonisation, but that other pathways needed to be adopted in parallel, including low carbon fuels and possibly hydrogen by the late 2030s.

Its report into decarbonising Wales said many of the actions sought to facilitate partnerships, remove barriers and educate operators, which did not require significant capital outlay and could be done quickly.

Jonathan Murray, Zemo Partnership director of policy, said: “Freight is vital to the country’s economy.

“The good news is that if we get this transition right, there will be benefits to Wales’ economy, to operators’ bottom-lines and to the local and global environment.”

“We know the technologies that can decarbonise Wales’ transport system. If we can deliver the policy changes recommended in this report, we can accelerate the pace of transition and realise the full range of benefits that we know are available.”

Robin Beckmann, head of transport, environment and decarbonisation for the Welsh Government, said: “Cutting carbon emissions from the freight sector is a key challenge for Wales; heavy goods vehicles, in particular, are hard to decarbonise and freight overall represents a very significant proportion of total emissions in the country.”

To download the report click here