Carbon Footprint of Housing in the Leeds City Region – A Best Practice Scenario Analysis

This 2008 report by the Stockholm Environment Institute, commissioned by the Environment Agency, analyzes the carbon footprint of the housing sector in the Leeds City Region (LCR). It evaluates the feasibility of meeting a target of an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, specifically identifying the measures needed to reduce CO2e emissions by 38 million tonnes between 2010 and 2026.

• To be on track for an 80% reduction in carbon emissions by 2050, the housing sector in the Leeds City Region must reduce its total CO2e emissions by 38 million tonnes between 2010 and 2026.
• Major retrofitting of existing homes is the most impactful measure, potentially delivering 53.2% of the required reduction (20.2 million tonnes). This involves providing loft insulation to 90% of homes, cavity wall insulation to 95% of eligible homes, and condensing boilers to 90% of gas-heated homes by 2026.
• Behavioural change, such as educational campaigns and smart metering to achieve an annual energy consumption reduction of 0.6%, could contribute 22% (8.3 million tonnes) of the total reduction target.
• The installation of Low and Zero Carbon (LZC) technologies in 35% of the housing stock (approximately 500,000 installations by 2026) would provide a 12.4% reduction (4.7 million tonnes).
• Ensuring all new builds comply with the Code for Sustainable Homes timetable—reaching 'zero carbon' by 2016—would contribute less than 10% (specifically 9% or 3.5 million tonnes) of the required reduction.
• A combination of the above essential measures would still leave a shortfall. This remaining 3.4% (1.3 million tonnes) could be met by one of three options: fitting external wall insulation to 90,000 non-cavity wall properties, installing LZC technology in an additional 170,000 homes, or the energy-efficient rebuild of 51,000 poorly performing properties.
• Under a 'Continuing Trends' scenario (a 'do nothing' approach), total CO2e emissions from housing in the Leeds City Region are projected to increase by 7% to 16% between 2007 and 2026 due to population growth.

APA

Barrett, J., & Dawkins, E. (2008). Carbon Footprint of Housing in the Leeds City Region – A Best Practice Scenario Analysis. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/sei-2008-wp-leeds-best-practice.pdf

Chicago

Barrett, John, and Elena Dawkins. Carbon Footprint of Housing in the Leeds City Region – A Best Practice Scenario Analysis. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2008. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/sei-2008-wp-leeds-best-practice.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Barrett |first1=John |last2=Dawkins |first2=Elena |title=Carbon Footprint of Housing in the Leeds City Region – A Best Practice Scenario Analysis |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=2008 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/sei-2008-wp-leeds-best-practice.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{barrett2008carbon, author = {Barrett, John and Dawkins, Elena}, title = {{Carbon Footprint of Housing in the Leeds City Region – A Best Practice Scenario Analysis}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2008}, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/sei-2008-wp-leeds-best-practice.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }