environment magazine

Low Carbon Freight & Logistics

By Mike Penning MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary Of State For Transport

Britain’s freight and logistics organisations deliver the goods and raw materials that help to generate economic growth, drive job creation and spread prosperity. For those who may not have considered their importance, try to picture a world without them. Our shops and supermarkets would have empty shelves, our power stations would struggle to produce energy, construction projects would face severe delays, factories would grind to a halt and access to the global economy would be closed off .

I believe this sector is absolutely vital for both our individual quality of life and our national well-being. But what is equally undeniable is the significant impact it has on the environment. Indeed, emissions from freight transport alone account for around 27% of domestic transport greenhouse gas emissions. In the interests of the environment, and the industry itself, our shared challenge is to make freight and logistics cleaner and greener.

In all honesty, this is not a challenge that can be side-lined or side-stepped. The question is not whether we should act, rather the one certainty is that we must act. And in October, I asked the freight and logistics sector to play its part and do its bit. I am glad to say that the industry is working hard to rise to the challenge of building a low carbon future. The Freight Transport Association developed a Logistics Carbon Reduction Scheme which, for the first time, has set an emissions reduction target for the freight transport sector. Members of the scheme range from retailers and supermarkets through to haulage firms and local authorities. I gave my formal backing to the scheme back in March of this year.

In road haulage innovations such as more aerodynamic trailers, engines with greater fuel efficiency and low rolling resistance tyres can significantly reduce fuel use. The Government is working with the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership and the industry to promote, and speed up, the development and adoption of these and other, greener vehicle technologies and fuels for road freight movements. Eco-driver training schemes and management of drivers also play a critical role in cutting   fuel consumption.

I have been consulting on proposals that would allow a two metre increase in the total length of articulated lorries, while ensuring that the maximum weight they are allowed to carry remains the same. Independent research suggests that this would mean fewer trucks with greater capacity, making fewer journeys. The potential environmental positives arising out of this are lower fuel consumption, less congestion on the roads and cuts in carbon emissions.

The progress doesn’t start and end with the trucks on our highways. In my capacity as Shipping Minister I’ve become aware of advances in the maritime industry that include improvements to existing marine engines; better fleet management techniques; and the use of low carbon technologies, like sky-sails, to supplement conventional propulsion systems.

I want to see rail punch its weight when it comes to carrying freight. But I’m also convinced that our environment would benefit from a renaissance of this country’s waterways and coastal shipping. And we are working hard to encourage progress on these crucially important issues.  For example, there’s our mode shift grant support scheme. This is designed to assist companies with the operating costs of running rail and water freight services, where rail and water is more expensive than road. We have a confirmed budget for these grants of £20 million for 2011-12 and £19 million for 2012-13. In addition an indicative budget is in place of £19 million for both 2013-14 and 2014-15.

We are focused on easing the burden of regulation because too many rules and too much bureaucracy will hinder, not help, the eco-efforts of our freight and logistics companies. Removing the barriers that suffocate business innovation is absolutely central to this Government’s vision, hence the launch of our Red Tape Challenge website. As the Department’s De-Regulation Minister I want people to have their say on whether a regulation provides vital protections, or if they think a regulation is badly designed, badly implemented or simply a bad idea.

There are also carbon-cutting opportunities for the industry via initiatives like the new Local Enterprise Partnerships we’ve established. Local communities making local decisions that reflect local priorities – this is the principle underpinning the Government’s localism agenda and it applies as much to de-carbonising the transport that moves our goods and raw materials around, as it does to every other part of our transport system

All of our lives, and our livelihoods, depend on the people and organisations working in freight and logistics. In truth, if this industry did not exist, then it would have to be invented. But its only viable future is a low carbon future. In truth, business as usual just won’t cut it. To meet the environmental challenges of today and tomorrow requires a powerful and productive blend of private sector innovation and supportive public policy. By working in partnership with the industry, that’s precisely what this Government is delivering.