Online council services cut carbon, says report

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Online services for local councils could save millions of tons of carbon emissions, according to a new report.

And the carbon savings made from reducing the number of trips people make to their local council offices outweighs the extra impact from increased server use - contrary to what was expected.

Parmjit Dhanda, e-Government minister, said: "We know that driving to the Town Hall to carry out a transaction uses 20 times more energy than doing it online. That's why it's so important that we encourage people to talk to their local authority through the web."

The research examined data from Sunderland City Council. Using online services instead of traveling to council offices would cut carbon emissions by 55 per cent, while saving staff time and paper would save 40 per cent and seven per cent, respectively. However, increased data transfers would add only one per cent more to the council's emissions output.

By increasing the number of online applications for five areas - planning, school admissions, registrars' certificates, environment services requests and council tax payments - the council could save 80,000 kilograms of carbon dioxide emissions annually. According to the report, that could equate to 14,000 tons across the UK each year, on par with the annual energy use from about 2,000 households.

The study, by Best Foot Forward on behalf of Communities and Local Government, showed that letting local citizens access council services through the web saves staff time, as well.

A report last year showed that online services could help cut councils' costs, with one city saving £1 million on its budget.

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