Reduced Use of Resources

Ask yourself this question: "Is it possible to continue to do what I am doing in the long term?" If the answer is ‘no’, then what you are doing is not sustainable.

Something is sustainable if doing it now does not make it more difficult or impossible to do it in the future.

Sustainability has been described as ‘not cheating on our children’ and it is central to the aims of the Council.

We all need to play our part in making the best use of the planet’s resources and this is at the heart of environmental sustainability. Photograph courtesy of Monymusk School

Aberdeenshire Council recognises it has an important role to play in ensuring that it makes the best use of resources so that future generations can enjoy an even better quality of life than we do today. The Sustainability Charter pledges to reduce the resources that the Council uses, and includes targets for energy consumption, waste production and travel. In addition, through the services we provide we try and make it easier for Aberdeenshire residents to lead ‘sustainable’ lifestyles.

Green Living: How Can You Be ‘Sustainable’ ?

There are lots of things that anyone can do to cut down on the resources we use and be more sustainable. For instance, did you know that switching electrical appliances off rather than leaving them on standby can reduce your yearly electricity use by up to 10 per cent, reducing your fuel bill and your global footprint.

Visit Aberdeenshire Council’s Energy Efficiency Web Site for energy saving tips and advice on how you or your school can do more to save energy.

The Energy Savings Trust website provides useful advice on energy efficiency improvements to your home, cleaner transport and funding and grants for renewable energy.

Be ‘waste aware’ and find out how you can reduce, re-use and recycle your waste by visiting our Recycling and Waste section.

Monitoring the Council’s Resource Use

To ensure Aberdeenshire Council continues to reduce resource use we have produced an annual report to describe the progress we have made. The first report on the new Sustainability Charter 2008-2012 will be published on this web page in April 2009. Please check back to view our progress.

Sustainability and Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) Training Event

Aberdeenshire Council will recommence training events for staff and Councillors. Powerpoint slides from the day will be available shortly.