What is the climate emergency?
Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) in our atmosphere help regulate global temperatures.
Over the past century, human activity has rapidly increased the production of greenhouse gases leading to more than a 1°C rise in global temperatures.
This change in temperature is already leading to more frequent and extreme weather events, such as the floods and heatwaves which have occurred in Camden in the last few years.
In 2023, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change advised that in the near future global temperature rise will likely surpass 1.5 °C. A temperature rise of 2°C would have a devastating impact on our food and water supply, human life and economic growth.
Find out more about climate change on the government website.
Find out more about climate change on the government website.
Greenhouse gas emissions in Camden
Greenhouse gas emissions in Camden are mainly caused by heating and powering buildings. Around 86% of greenhouse gas emissions are generated by buildings and approximately 14% result from road transport.
By far the largest source of direct building related greenhouse gas emissions in Camden stem from the "Commercial and industrial" sector, which includes offices and light industry - emissions from this sector account for 62% of all emissions. Housing contributes 24%.
Climate impacts in Camden
Camden has been taken bold action to help tackle the climate crisis, with borough-wide carbon dioxide (CO2e) emissions significantly reducing. However despite progress, the impacts of the climate crisis are being increasingly felt in Camden.
2025 has been the hottest summer on record, with four heatwaves declared. Nine of the last ten summers (2016-2025) have brought temperatures above the long-term average. Extreme heat poses serious risks to public health and presents significant challenges to both our built and natural environments.
In addition, Camden continues to face increasing flood risk, with significant rainfall events in July 2021 and August 2022, causing widespread disruption to public spaces, homes and residents.
We want to help communities in Camden to be resilient to climate risks, as well as protect Council services, buildings and infrastructure and we are committed to building this resilience though our Climate Adaptation and Resilience work.
What are we doing about it?
In 2019, Camden declared a climate and ecological emergency, recognising the threat of climate change and the irreversible damage to our planet it may cause. We also held our first Citizen’s Assembly on the climate crisis and the resulting 17 recommendations shaped Camden's first Climate Action Plan for 2020 - 2025. This plan has driven bold action across the borough over the past five years.
In 2025 a new Climate Action Plan for 2026 to 2030 was developed. Over the next few pages you can find out more about our priorities for the next five years as we continue to do everything we can to reduce emissions, whilst building the borough's resilience, and protecting those most vulnerable, to the impacts of the changing climate. Find out more about this new plan and how we are tackling the climate crisis.
Leading by example - Camden's Carbon Management Plan
As part of the Climate Action Plan, we are committed to doing everything we can to reduce emissions from our own properties and operations. Our Carbon Management Plan defines how we measure, manage, and reduce emissions from Camden owned buildings. Find out more about the carbon reduction programme.
How we’re tracking progress
Since 2020, we have monitored the progress of the Climate Action Plan every year in an annual review. You can explore our 2020-2025 Climate Action Plan annual reviews to learn more about what has been achieved across the borough on the following page.
A new approach to tracking our progress against delivery of the Climate Action Plan for 2026-2030 is currently in development.
Progress since 2005
Since 2005, Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions across the borough have fallen by 52%. Across the Council’s own estate and operations, CO2 emissions have fallen by 64.7% since 2010, excluding council housing.