Sunderland 'has lowest eco-footprint in the North East' » Environment » 24dash.com

Residents in Sunderland have the lowest eco-footprint of all North East cities, according to results published in a new green league table of mainland UK cities by WWF.

The report comes just three days after Forum for the Future, the charity founded by Jonathon Porritt, placed Sunderland in the top five greenest cities in the country in its Sustainable Cities Index.

The WWF report ranks the 60 cities in England, Scotland and Wales by the average ecological footprint of their residents. Sunderland has the eighth lowest eco-footprint in the whole UK.

The eco-footprint is a measure of how much of the world’s resources each person uses – energy, food, land, housing, goods. The average resident in Sunderland is consuming the equivalent of 2.83 planets, or 2.83 times more than the Earth can provide. This is compared to the worst city – Winchester – where each resident consumes the equivalent of 3.62 planets.

And when it comes to consumer goods, Sunderland residents came top overall, consuming the least of all UK cities - showing that unlike other cities Sunderland isn’t joining the throw-away culture.

The City Council welcomes the findings. In 2006, Sunderland was one of the first cities to work with WWF to complete its own Eco-footprint, as part of the Eco-budget UK project.

But there are lessons to be learnt too and the City Council will be looking at the findings to see how it can further reduce its ecological footprint in line with its commitment to sustainability and the environment.

The City Council's Cabinet Member for Planning and Transportation, Cllr Joe Lawson, said: "As a city we're committed to offering our residents a balanced way of life, which means making the most of the precious resources we have and looking after our environment.

"We’ve been working for many years to understand and reduce the city's eco-footprint – and to see that we are the top fifth greenest city and in the top 10 cities in the country for our ecological footprint is very encouraging. 

"Hopefully, ongoing environmental initiatives such as the climate change action plan should continue to reduce the city’s environmental footprint even further, and see us move even higher up the league table.

"Sunderland is aiming to be the most liveable city in the UK. And being liveable also means helping residents live greener lifestyles. These findings confirm that Sunderland is ahead of most other cities in this regard, and on track with its 'liveable' aspirations."

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