+44 1865 259200
The challenge
Merton Council declared a climate emergency in July 2019 and set carbon reduction targets to decarbonise the Council by 2030 and the borough of Merton by 2050. Merton has a history of taking strong action in this area and has had a climate strategy since 2009. However, unprecedented change will be necessary going forward. Merton Council contracted Aether, along with SE2, to provide support in the preparation of Merton’s climate action plan. The challenge was to identify and quantify a range of actions that Merton might undertake to achieve the decarbonisation targets.
The solution
To underpin the development of Merton’s Climate Strategy & Action Plan, Aether supported Merton Council by:
- Establishing the scope of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to be included in the inventories and net zero carbon targets
- Developing GHG inventories for the borough and council
- Modelling decarbonisation pathways to reach the targets
- Identifying and costing the range of actions that may be required
- Identifying means to track progress towards the targets.
We partnered with SE2 to deliver two workshops; a small initial session with council staff focusing on the scope and principles of the targets, and a larger workshop with local stakeholders and interest groups to discuss the key actions that should be included in the decarbonisation modelling scenario.
Our modelling used the Carbon Scenario Model (CSM), an Excel based tool to develop decarbonisation pathways for the council up to 2030 and the borough to 2050, including individual GHG savings and costs of actions.
The result
Merton Council now has a greater understanding of the actions that are required within Merton to meet their decarbonisation targets. The actions identified and cost estimates have been used in the preparation of the new Climate Strategy & Action Plan.
Find out more about how Aether is supporting local authorities with Climate Emergency declarations here.
Chris Dore
Director
Related case studies
Luton Council Net Zero Roadmap and Climate Policy and Action Plan
Category: Cities and Local Authorities
Aether, alongside SE2 and associate Joanne Wade, developed a Net Zero Roadmap and Climate Policy and Action Plan to support the council in its vision of a net zero town by 2040.
Read case studyLewisham Route to Neutral
Category: Cities and Local Authorities, Emission Inventories, Policies and Measures
Support to Lewisham Council to define the route to carbon neutral for the Borough
Read case studyAssessing the Benefits of Enhanced Freight Speed Differentials on the GB Network
Category: Cities and Local Authorities, Rail
Aether undertook data analysis and modelling as part of a RSSB project to investigate the benefits of allowing freight trains to run at higher speeds at locations where the signal spacing is sufficient for the increased stopping distance. Such enhanced speeds could potentially lead to improved timetabling, with more competitive running times and better use of capacity on congested routes. The project was led by Railfreight Consulting, supported by specialists Railway Braking Associates, Carrickarory Consulting and D2 Global; Aether developed a geographical model of the rail network and signal locations, and undertook modelling of freight train running times under revised speed limits.
Read case studyNews
Latest news
Posted on: 19 June 2026
NECD Review Week in Brussels
Aether spent a week at the European Commission in Brussels as part of the review of air pollutant inventories submitted under the EU’s National Emission reduction Ceilings Directive (NECD).
Read full storyPosted on: 18 May 2026
Power Query Workshop in Estonia
Aether travelled to the Estonian Environmental Research Centre (EKUK) in Tallinn to deliver a two-day training workshop for the inventory team to build capacity on the Excel power queries used in the GHG inventory templates previously set up by Aether in 2022.
Read full storyPosted on: 30 April 2026
Capacity Sharing in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Aether delivered a three-day GHG inventory capacity building workshop in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, towards development of the BTR1.
Read full storyPosted on: 17 March 2026
Central Asia Study Tour: Air Quality Workshop
Aether provided representatives from Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan) who were visiting the UK on a study tour with an introduction to air quality management.
Read full storyFilter news by category
Aether Blog Air Pollution Air Quality Assessments Barriers to Net Zero Capacity Building Carbon Footprint Climate Emergency Climate Equality Climate Finance Consumption COP28 Culture Data Visualisation Economic Status Emissions Reporting European Topic Centre GHG Infrastructure Inventories Local Government Mitigation MRV National Government Net Zero Oxfam Paris Agreement Policy Recruitment Society Stakeholder Engagement Waste Sector Wider Impacts
Testimonial
