THE FOREST of Dean District Council has made good progress towards becoming carbon neutral by 2030 by testing out low carbon vehicles to be used by ground staff.

The hybrid vehicle was tested by the council’s street warden teams during the first week of December in an attempt to tackle the climate emergency declared by the authority last year.

Council-owned vehicles, operated by employees such as the street wardens, make up almost five per cent of the council’s annual emissions.

Low carbon al-ternatives to the street wardens’ diesel vans were investigated and a Toyota Corolla Hybrid T/S Icon Tech Estate was trialled by the team.

One warden said: “It was a pleasure to drive and would make a wonderful family vehicle or a great option as a company pool car.

“However this par-ticular hybrid vehicle could not fit the cages used for the collection of stray dogs which is a statutory ser-vice under The Environmental Protection (Stray Dog) Regulations 1992.”

In addition to the trial, a survey for the installation of an electric vehicle charging point (EVCP) at the council office staff car park has been undertaken with a view to supporting the move to electric vehicles in the future.

Joint Deputy Leader Chris McFarling, who is the cabinet member responsible for the climate emergency, said: “It is crucial that we research and gather evidence before we invest in the transition from diesel to electric vehicles.

“We need to make decisions which are cost effective whilst lowering our carbon footprint as quickly as we can.

“Our lead will enable others to follow and the whole community to benefit,” added Cllr McFarling.