ADBA Press Release – ADBA Welcomes Environmental Funding in Spending Review

ADBA Welcomes Environmental Funding in Spending Review

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association has welcomed elements of the Government’s 1 Year Spending Review, outlined to the House of Commons today (4th September) by the Chancellor, Sajid Javid MP.

Amongst other policies, the Chancellor announced a £30 million fund to tackle our ongoing air pollution issues, and £432 million for DEFRA to develop new environmental standards post-Brexit. In a potentially positive move, the Chancellor also announced £200 million to invest in Britain’s bus network, with particular reference to ultra-low emission vehicles, which could of course include biomethane.

Mr Javid also pledged an extra £30 million towards decarbonisation schemes led by BEIS, to help the UK meet its obligations to Net Zero by 2050. More details of this scheme will be set out in a National Infrastructure Strategy this autumn – this is on top of £87 million to help developing countries reduce their carbon emissions and adapt to climate change – a potential opportunity to promote anaerobic digestion abroad.

Commenting on the Spending Review, ADBA Chief Executive Charlotte Morton said;

“Despite the current political uncertainty, our climate emergency is not going away and will not wait for Brexit to be resolved. As such, it is good to see the Chancellor announcing additional funding to support decarbonisation efforts, new environmental standards and support for greener transportation in this one-year review.

However, we will need to see the detail behind these headline schemes to ensure the money is being well spent, and will continue our representations to key Government departments to ensure that anaerobic digestion and biogas are fully recognised as part of these new funding schemes. There can be no Net Zero without anaerobic digestion, given we can cut UK emissions by up to 5% with a readily-deployable and flexible technology. We therefore await the detail of these commitments, and will be putting forward the case for AD and biogas to be at the heart of them.“

ENDS

For more information please contact External Affairs Manager jon.harrison@adbioresources.org

Notes to Editors

The Anaerobic Digestion and Bioresources Association (ADBA) is the trade association for the UK anaerobic digestion (AD) and biogas industry.  It was established in September 2009 and now counts over 400 members. www.abioresources.org

@adbioresources

ADBA’s vision is to see the full potential of the UK AD industry realised so it can help the UK achieve its emissions targets and other policy goals, creating a truly circular economy