The Carbon Trust could be doing more to encourage small businesses to improve their energy efficiency, research suggested today.
Although the Carbon Trust is on course to meet its emissions reduction targets, many businesses are ‘yet to be convinced that improving their energy efficiency makes commercial sense’, said the report, by the Committee of Public Accounts.
Edward Leigh, chairman of the Committee, said the Trust needs to encourage more businesses to take their emissions into account by assisting ‘more eligible businesses under its interest-free loan incentive scheme’.
The government-backed Carbon Trust, which was set up in 2001 to help businesses reduce their carbon dioxide emissions, has a target to reduce emissions by 4.4 million tonnes by 2010.
However, Leigh condemned the target as ‘small beer’. “It can surely do a lot better, especially given soaring fuel prices and the consequent public desire to cut energy use,” he said.
But the Carbon Trust's chief executive, Tom Delay, defended the organisation, saying by 2010 it will be saving ‘more than the entire current carbon emissions of Glasgow’ each year.
“We welcome the findings of the PAC, in particular the recognition that we are on track to help our customers save 4.4 million tonnes of carbon a year by 2010,” he said in a statement.
“Far from being ‘small beer’, our work generates significant cost savings for business. Our work last year alone will generate direct cost savings to business of up to £650m.
“Since we were established we have worked with tens of thousands of businesses and helped our customers generate carbon savings of more than 13 million tonnes.”
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