🎄 Welcome to our December newsletter, containing all the latest environmental news and updates from across West Sussex. 🎄
 From left to right Tim Macaulay (Landbuild Contracts Manager), Lee Maskell (Senior Project Manager; Traffic Signals and Street Lighting, West Sussex County Council); Simon Osborne (Asset Manager, Traffic Signals and Street Lighting, West Sussex County Council); Joe Harper (Telent Contracts Manager) at one of the new LED signal crossings on South Street in Chichester.
We’ve just completed upgrades to all of our road traffic signals which will reduce our carbon emissions by nearly 600 tonnes – the equivalent of taking 283 petrol cars off the road for a whole year.
We’ve installed the latest LED technology at 94 traffic signal sites. The new lights use 84% less energy than halogen bulbs which, as well as reducing carbon emissions, will also save us an estimated £594,000 in energy costs.
The LED lights will last longer, meaning we can avoid the unnecessary disposal of approximately 20,000 halogen lamps. During the works we also managed to divert 99% of waste away from landfill, and recycle almost two thirds of materials.
As well as improving safety, reliability and operational performance, the LED upgrade aligns with the council’s focus on achieving long-term value for public investment. It also supports the council's Climate Action and Adaptation Plan through forecast carbon savings.
 The festive season is a time for warmth and celebration, but it can also lead to higher energy use. By making a few small changes, you can keep your home cosy, cut costs, and reduce your carbon footprint.
Top tips for energy savings:
- switch to LED lights for your Christmas decorations, they use up to 80% less energy, turn off lights when not in use and use timers for outdoor displays
- cook smart and batch cook meals and keep oven doors closed to save heat
- use slow cookers or pressure cookers for festive meals - they consume less energy than ovens
- lower the thermostat slightly and wear layers; even 1°C can make a big difference
- lower your combi boiler flow temperature to 60°C makes your boiler run more efficiently and could save you money
- find and fix draughts, check for gaps around doors, windows, floors and pipes
- thermal curtains or simple draft excluders can keep heat in without major renovations
- turn radiators down, not off to avoid damp while saving energy.
Promoting carbon reduction and energy efficiency helps deliver our Climate Action and Adaptation Plan by engaging residents, businesses, and community groups in building climate resilience.
Visit the government's Clean Energy page, alternatively for practical advice, useful links and easy actions you can take, visit our climate action pages via the link below.
 Christmas, like many celebrations, tends to revolve around sharing meals with friends and family, a time when people want to ensure plenty of food is on the table. However, there is the unwelcome peril of buying or cooking too much, stealing the fun from Christmas by filling our bins with food we have worked hard to buy and prepare.
A household of four wastes around £1,000 of food every year. Wasted food also feeds climate change, with 16 million tonnes of CO2 generated by UK homes from wasted consumable food and drink each year.
Take a look at Love Food Hate Waste’s festive food campaign for tips on how to make the most of your Christmas food with festive food storage advice, magical meal planning tips, and ‘Love Your Leftovers’ recipe ideas.
Our recycling team will be sharing festive tips every day on social media (@WSRecycles) to help us reduce our waste, here are a few of their favourites:
- prepare for your Christmas shopping and write a list of meaningful gifts before you go, that way you avoid panic buying something the recipient may not need
- buy wrapping paper that passes the ‘scrunch test’; paper which scrunches into a ball means it can be recycled at home
- give experiences, shop second hand or opt for secret Santa instead of giving away presents that won’t last long
- recycle everything you can - Christmas cards, wrapping paper (that passes the scrunch test), paper bags, glass bottles and jars, plastic bottles (with lids on), plastic pots, tubs (including sweet/chocolate tubs), trays (including black plastic), tins, cans, foil, and even Pringles tubes
- make sure your recycling is:
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Clean – free from food and drink leftovers
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Dry – keep your recycling bin lid shut
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Loose – not in plastic bags.
- Due to the bank holidays, some bin collection days may change over the Christmas period. It is important to check with your local district or borough council for more information on how you may be affected. All of our Recycling Centres will be closed on 25 and 26 December 2025 and 1 January 2026. For more information on Recycling Centre opening hours, please visit our website.
- If you have any kind of watercourse or public right of way running through or beside your property, please check that it isn’t getting clogged up with fallen leaves, branches, brambles or litter. Find out more about maintaining a riparian.
- Buses are an environmentally friendly way to travel, helping reduce congestion and carbon emissions on the road. In the county, you can enjoy discounted bus fares for young people with the 16 to 20 Bus Saver and free bus travel for concessionary pass holders. Try Book-a-Bus for travel in rural areas surrounding Barnham, Chichester, Midhurst and Petworth. Leave the car behind and catch the bus!
- A consultation on a proposed new bus service for Chichester city centre has launched. Tell us what you think by Monday 22 December.
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Improvements at RSPB Pulborough Brooks and RSPB Pagham Harbour have been completed as thousands of migrating birds arrive for their winter stay. Pagham Harbour site is managed by the RSPB on behalf of the county council. The work, part of Downs to the Sea project, includes measures to fix problems of wetlands drying out when rainfall is low and also creating more nesting sites for birds. Work will continue to restore wetlands across Sussex and Hampshire as the project moves forward.
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Sign up to 12 Days Wild, the festive nature challenge from the Wildlife Trusts. They are encouraging people to do one wild thing a day from the 25th December to the 5th January. You’ll receive digital resource pack to help you plan your wild activities, plus daily emails with wildlife facts.
If you have any questions, or want to share local climate action stories, email us at climatechange@westsussex.gov.uk.
Join our community of climate champions and add a new map pin to our Community Climate Action Map.
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