Penzance Council’s vehicle fleet has turned electric as part of its journey to cut its carbon emissions whilst continuing to deliver important services for local people. 

The authority now has a range of electric vehicles (EVs) that are helping the council deliver important services across the parish, from street weeding to playground maintenance. 

Mayor of Penzance Stephen Reynolds said: “A key part of our Climate Emergency Action Plan for the parish of Penzance was upgrading our fleet of vehicles and moving away from our use of fossil fuels.  

“In a UK first, a fully electric Etesia ET Lander started its rounds in the parish earlier this summer. At just 3.72 metres long, it’s very compact with a flatbed ideal for transporting our water tank and larger gardening and maintenance equipment, all whilst running 100 per cent on electricity.  

“We’ve crunched the numbers and, by switching from our previous diesel vans to the new electric fleet, we will be saving 7.3 tonnes of CO2 per year from being released into the atmosphere (based on each vehicle travelling 8km per year)1. That’s the equivalent of planting 365 trees or taking 19 economy flights from London to Portugal. 

“This is a milestone for Penzance Council. Our leisure and amenities team do a great job around the parish, as witness the five-star “Pride in Parks” rating awarded to Penlee Park for three years running.  

“Investing in a fully EV fleet means they can carry on providing this service to the local community while reducing air and noise pollution, and doing their bit to protect the planet for future generations.” 

Penzance Council unanimously declared a climate emergency in April 2019. 

A Climate Emergency Sub-Committee was then set up, which includes representatives from Sustainable Penzance, Plastic Free Penzance, Extinction Rebellion West Cornwall, the Women’s Institute, and Mounts Bay Marine Group, to establish a comprehensive action plan and forge local partnerships to help lead the battle to tackle climate change. 

Cllr Reynolds said: “We know that we need to lead by example in our community so have been working hard to implement our Climate Emergency Action Plan which, besides switching to electric vehicles, includes using locally sourced food at all Council events and in The Orangery Café. 

“Providing climate emergency grants for local organisations and groups actively working to make difference on the ground. Installing multi-waste bins in our open spaces for general litter and mixed recycling 

“Stopped using glyphosate-based weed killers, swapping to electric powered gardening equipment, replacing our office windows with energy efficient double glazing and investigating the switch to a green energy provider for all council buildings 

“We are single-use plastic free in both The Orangery Café and the Penlee House shop and the Penlee House has upgraded the majority of its lighting to LED lamps, with more planned in the future.” 

Rachel Yates from Sustainable Penzance added: “The move towards electric vehicles at Penzance Council is a step in the right direction, and an indication of how the council is still working to put its Climate Action Plan into place.  

“We look forward to seeing more actions that create and protect the kind of community we need for the future, as we face the impact of changing climate, sea-level rise and the loss of the nature systems that support the town and everyone who lives here.”