What can you do to help?

Composting is an inexpensive, natural process that transforms your kitchen and garden waste into a valuable and nutrient rich food for your garden. It's easy to make and use.

You can see what options there are for different compost bins at the Get Composting website, or by phoning 08445 714444. They also offer water butts to collect rainwater.

To compost successfully it is important to include a mix of Greens and Browns. Aim for a balance of 50% Greens and 50% browns:

Greens – material that decomposes quickly, providing nitrogen and moisture:

• Fruit and vegetable scraps

• Egg shells

• Pet bedding

• Grass clippings

• Garden waste including plants and weeds

Browns – material that decomposes more slowly, providing carbon and fibre:

• Paper and cardboard

• Kitchen roll and tissue

• Vacuum cleaner contents and hair

• Straw

• Autumn leaves

• Woody garden waste

For more advice on setting up a compost bin, visit the Recycle Now website.

Understanding a problem is the first step in solving it. So, the first thing you could do to support climate sustainability is to understand your environmental footprint.

The WWF Footprint Calculator is a great tool which can help you understand your own personal carbon footprint.

Through this tool you can compare your carbon footprint with the national average and understand the areas where your output might be concentrated.

Households are a big emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for just under a third of our total emissions on average. Daily activities which are carbon intensive include heating our homes, or using electricity through lighting and the use of large appliances.

Think energy efficiency - Installing measures to improve your home's energy efficiency will help you save carbon as well as reduce how much you spend. New funding is now available through the Home Energy Upgrade Scheme and the ECO4 scheme. To read more about the Home Energy Upgrade Scheme and to check your eligibility, click on our webpage here.

The Energy Saving Trust has put together some helpful top tips to reduce your carbon emissions. For more information, click here.

In South Kesteven, transport is responsible for over 30% of the district's total carbon emissions.

National figures indicate that carbon emissions from transport are even higher than before the pandemic, as people are less likely to use public transport and are buying more goods online.

Every little helps - Each journey not taken in a petrol or diesel car contributes to improving air quality and lowering emissions. Road transport constitutes the highest proportion of overall transport emissions.

Cut your idling time - When stopped in traffic or parked and waiting in your car, turn your engine off.  Two minutes of an idling engine emits the same level of carbon as driving a mile.

SKDC is home to a beautiful array of wildlife and green open spaces. Of particular note are our parks; from Grantham's Wyndham, Queen Elizabeth and Dysart to Stamford's Rec and Meadows, not forgetting Wellhead Park in Bourne and Deepings Lakes.

Did you know that the UK's gardens cover more land than our national parks do? The RHS have put together 12 ways in which you can grow a low-carbon garden and combat climate change in your own way, click here to read more

By reducing the waste you generate, you're lowering your carbon emissions. Next time you're at the supermarket, choose food items that don't come in as much plastic or packaging, and plan meals so less food is wasted.

If you can't reduce the waste, can you reuse it somehow? Or can you pass unused items on, through donating?

Look at the rubbish in your bins to identify where you can change your habits and make sure that you understand the correct recycling system for where you live.

Our processes to sourcing fresh water and treating sewage go through an energy-intensive process, so the less water we use the fewer carbon emissions are generated. Get water saving tips and devices from Anglian Water's Love Every Drop campaign.

SKDC is passionate about maximising opportunities to develop a greener economy in our District.

There are several websites you can access in the UK to gain funding for your business to become greener.  For more information see here.

This might include the installation of boilers, central heating and insulation in your home, as well as solar and renewable energy technologies.

You can be approved for funding based on the following:

• Income - households with a gross household income of under £31,000.
• Proxies - households that meet a combination of two proxies. Examples of proxies include homes in areas of high multiple deprivation and households receiving a Council Tax rebate.
• NHS Referral - households identified as low-income and vulnerable, with an occupant whose health conditions may be impacted further by living in a cold home.

As a Council we are now able to approve even more applicants under ECO4-flex. These are set out in the South Kesteven District Council Statement of Intent.

Click here to see our signed statement of intent.

Please read our ECO Flex Guidance for Householders if you are a homeowner or tenant and would like to know more about ECO4-flex.

Please read our ECO Flex Guidance for Installers if you are an installer and want to know how to access ECO4-flex on behalf of a South Kesteven householder.