Climate Emergency

We have adopted an exciting and far-reaching Climate Emergency Plan which will put us at the forefront of the battle to tackle climate change.

Our Climate Emergency Action Plan

We are committed to leading the fight against climate change in Penzance and have already adopted a Climate Emergency Plan to tackle issues locally.

Our Climate Emergency Sub-Committee have created a plan that sets out how we need to take action to ‘put our own house in order’, as well as working with partners and community-based groups to help raise public awareness to reduce carbon emissions and restore ecology.

Download our Action Plan

Climate Emergency Sub-Committee

Penzance Council unanimously declared a Climate Emergency in April 2019. The Council set up a Climate Emergency Sub-Committee to come up with a comprehensive action plan and forge local partnerships to help lead the battle to tackle climate change.

The Sub-Committee is made up of Town Councillors:

Cllr Jonathan How (Chair)
Cllr Stephen Reynolds (Vice Chair)
Cllr Nicole Broadhurst
Cllr Bonnie Jackson
Cllr Richard Sorrell
Cllr Penny Young

and representatives from Sustainable Penzance, Plastic Free Penzance, Extinction Rebellion West Cornwall, the Women’s Institute and Mounts Bay Marine Group.

Our “in house” actions so far:

Using locally sourced food at all Council events
Adopted a Plastic Free Event Charter for Council events and for funded events
Introduced mixed recycling bins in our offices
Providing Climate Emergency training for staff and Councillors
Ensuring that Penzance Council has no direct investments involving the fossil fuel industry (with ongoing investigation into more ethical investments)

Use of composting in Penlee Park
Where possible we have upgraded gardening equipment to be electric/battery powered
Invested in a new weed machine that does not use glyphosate-based chemicals
Introduced criteria that favours external companies with environmental considerations
Installed dual waste and mixed recycling bins in Penlee Park

Our Local Partners

We are currently working with Plastic Free Penzance, Transition Penwith, Sustainable Penzance, Extinction Rebellion, Cornwall Federation of Women’s Institutes and Mounts Bay Marine Group.

If your school or organisation is interested in working with us within the Parish to help tackle the Climate Emergency please contact us.

Climate Emergency Grant Funding

Climate Emergency Grants are available from Penzance Council for environmental projects and events that help to raise awareness and/or address the Climate Emergency in our Parish.

All applications are considered by the Climate Emergency Sub-Committee in the first instance before progressing to the Finance & General Purposes Committee/Full Council as appropriate.

For more information and to access the application forms to apply please visit our Grants webpage.

Refill PZ

Refill PZ launched in May 2021, to give locals and visitors to Penzance an easy and immediate way to avoid single-use plastic.

The scheme, which is a collaboration between Plastic Free Penzance, Sustainable PZ and Penzance Council, came about after queries to Plastic Free Penzance asking why there wasn’t a dedicated Refill Shop in the town where people could do the weekly shop, and as the existing community water refill scheme looked to expand to public water fountains.

Here’s how it works:

Check out the Refill PZ map to see businesses involved and what’s on offer
Download the Refill App to search on the fly. You can use it across the rest of the UK (in fact the world) to find refill locations
Look out for window cards and posters in shops to indicate they offer refill
Choose to refill water and coffee instead of using single-use bottles and cups
Switch up the weekly shop and buy goods on refill instead of single-use wrapped
Check out the Plastic Free Champion Business Directory to see where else you can shop in PZ to reduce plastic
Spread the word to friends and family

Earth Protector Town

In January 2021, we became an Earth Protector Town – a global collaborative movement of towns to protect the earth!

As a Council we have committed to collaborate and cooperate with communities, other local government bodies, businesses and other organisations to protect land, wildlife, air, soil and water.