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Limiting your vehicle emissions can help you to reduce your environmental impact and benefit your business.

Emissions from vehicle exhausts are a significant source of air pollutants including:

• CO2
• carbon monoxide
• fine dust particles
• nitrogen oxides
• unburnt hydrocarbons

You should try to limit the emissions that your business vehicles produce as they may:

• lead to ill health, such as respiratory problems, among your staff and the public
• cause a nuisance to your neighbours
• contribute to roadside levels of pollution in urban centres
• contribute to climate change

You can also reduce your transport costs, such as fuel bills and vehicle tax, by choosing vehicles that are more environmentally friendly and using them more efficiently.

Financial savings

By using vehicles more efficiently you can make significant financial savings through:

• reduced fuel costs
• less wear and tear and maintenance costs
• using your employees' time more efficiently
• finding new uses for land previously used for parking

Improved business image

Reducing your environmental impact can help to demonstrate corporate social responsibility.

Awareness of environmental issues is growing, and customers, investors and other stakeholders increasingly prefer to deal with businesses that have good environmental credentials. Having environmental policies and procedures in place is likely to be viewed positively and can also help you win contracts when you tender for business.

Employee benefits

Educating your employees about the environmental impacts of transport and encouraging them to walk, cycle or use public transport for commuting and business travel can benefit their health and finances. It may also contribute to reduced sickness absence, increased staff retention and improved local air quality.

A cost-effective way for you to put these policies in place is to draw up a workplace travel plan.

Training your employees to drive safely and efficiently and to maintain vehicles can help reduce vehicle emissions and the number of work-related road incidents. Employees also benefit from a cleaner and safer environment and save money if they drive work vehicles more efficiently.

Rethinking your logistics - the planning and implementation of moving goods and supplying services - can help you reduce your environmental impact.

If your business transports either your own or another organisation's freight, improving your systems may benefit your business and reduce your impact on the environment.

Sustainable logistics

If your business is making and receiving deliveries to and from a warehouse, it might make sense to have one central distribution centre. This could be cost-effective and has less environmental impact than a dispersed distribution system.

To reduce your carbon footprint further you should also consider the journeys that suppliers of goods and services make to and from your premises. You could aim to use local businesses where possible and check out your suppliers' environmental credentials by asking to see their environmental reports and policies - see supply chain efficiency and environmental impact.

Reducing fuel use

Fuel can account for at least 30 per cent of operating costs of most road freight transport operations, so you should start by improving fuel management. The most basic way to reduce fuel bills and lowers accident rates is by . More efficient driving can produce around 15 per cent reduction in fuel use and CO2 emissions, and increase electric vehicles range by 20 per cent.

You can find information and resources to help your business lower its costs, while reducing the carbon emissions from your organisation’s vehicles and employee travel with the .

By sourcing blends of renewable fuel you can reduce the carbon intensity of your fleet. Operators can get independent assurance of purchasing sustainable, low carbon fuels approved under the Renewable 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ Fuel Obligation (RTFO), and customer supply chain specific greenhouse gas emission performance data through the .

Vehicle emissions are one of the biggest drivers of climate change. The mass adoption of zero emission vehicles can help deliver carbon reductions, improve air quality and grow the green economy.

The United Kingdom government has committed to a pathway for the decarbonisation of cars, vans and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) to help businesses to plan for the transition over several years.

Cars and vans decarbonisation dates

The UK government has set out a path for all new cars and vans sold to be zero emission by 2035.

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HGVs decarbonisation dates 

A two phase approach to decarbonising HGVs is being adopted by the UK government:

1. The phase-out of non-zero emission heavy goods vehicles weighing 26 tonnes and under by 2035.
2. All new HGVs sold in the UK will be zero emission by 2040.

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Buses, coaches and minibuses decarbonisation plans

The UK government ran a consultation in spring 2022 on ending the sale of new, non-zero emission buses, coaches and minibuses.

The Department for 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ (DfT) is analysing feedback and will announce the outcome in due course – find out more about the .

L-category vehicles decarbonisation plans

The UK government ran a consultation in summer 2022 on ending the sale of new, non-zero emission L-category vehicles – for example, mopeds, motorcycles, powered tricycles and quadricycles.

DfT is analysing feedback and will announce the outcome in due course – find out more about the .

Electric vehicles offer a great reduction in transport costs for businesses, especially for fleet vehicles with regular journeys of up to 100 miles per day. Although electric vehicles can be more expensive to buy, they have significantly lower running costs when compared to petrol or diesel equivalents.

It can cost as little as 2 pence a mile to run an electric vehicle when charging on off-peak electricity. This is compared to over 20 pence per mile for petrol and diesel, representing a huge saving on fuel costs.

There are a series of financial incentives for businesses, including tax and duty exemptions for you and your employees and capital allowances.

Moving to use electric vehicles gives businesses the chance to become involved in innovative transport developments which are addressing environmental issues. Electric vehicles have no tailpipe emissions. It is estimated that an electric car powered by today's grid could emit between 15 per cent and 40 per cent less CO2 over its lifetime than a similar-sized petrol car.

Setting environmental concerns at the heart of your business can be a key part of demonstrating your corporate social responsibility.

Electric vehicles work well for regular short to medium journeys. The growth of rapid charging infrastructure is enabling businesses to use electric vehicles (EVs) for longer journeys. This makes EVs a realistic transport option for many businesses operating within Northern Ireland.

The Department for Infrastructure (DfI) has been installing public charging points across NI. This network enables EV users to charge at various points during longer journeys. Knowing where the public charging points are sited can help with a decision to invest in an EV. There is also financial 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ for the installation of certain types of private charging points.

Workplace Charging Scheme

The Workplace Charging Scheme (WCS) is a voucher-based scheme that provides eligible applicants with 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ towards the upfront costs of the purchase and installation of EV charge points.

The WCS is open to businesses, charities and public sector organisations that meet the applicant and site eligibility criteria.

The grant covers up to 75 per cent of the total costs of the purchase and installation of EV charge points (inclusive of VAT), capped at a maximum of:

• £350 per socket
• 40 sockets across all sites per applicant, eg if you would like to install them in 40 sites, you will have one socket available per site

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Chargepoint and Infrastructure Grant for business staff and fleet car parks

EV infrastructure grants can give small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) money off the cost of wider building and installation work that’s needed to install multiple chargepoint sockets.

The work can be for sockets you want to install now and in the future. For example, an EV infrastructure grant can cover things like wiring and posts.

The grant covers 75 per cent of the cost of the work, up to a maximum of £15,000. You can get up to:

• £350 per chargepoint socket installed
• £500 per parking space enabled with 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵing infrastructure

You can receive up to five grants across five different sites.

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Chargepoint and Infrastructure Grant for landlords, including car parks

There are two grants you can get for installing chargepoints for electric vehicles at a property you own.

1. Electric vehicle (EV) chargepoint grant 

An EV chargepoint grant gives you money off the cost of installing an electric vehicle chargepoint socket. 

You can get 75 per cent off the cost to buy and install a socket, up to a maximum of £350 per socket.

You can receive up to 200 grants a year for residential properties, and a further 100 for commercial properties.

2. Electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure grant (You cannot apply for the infrastructure grant if you’re a commercial landlord)

An EV infrastructure grant gives you money off the cost of wider building and installation work that’s needed to install multiple chargepoint sockets. The work can be for sockets you want to install now and in the future. For example, an EV infrastructure grant can cover things like wiring and posts. 

You can get 75 per cent off the cost of the work up to a maximum of £30,000. The amount depends on how many parking spaces the work covers. 

You can get up to:

• £350 per chargepoint socket installed
• £500 per parking space enabled with 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵing infrastructure

You can receive up to 30 grants each financial year for installing infrastructure in residential carparks.

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Public rapid charge points

Rapid charge points are 50kW outlets - these can charge capable vehicles up to 80 per cent in around 20 to 25 minutes. These are located in petrol stations and on key strategic routes around Northern Ireland.

Public fast charge points

Fast charge points are 22kW double-headed outlets able to charge two vehicles at the same time. They are located in shopping centres, car parks, on-street, tourist attractions and other locations where electric vehicle drivers tend to park regularly. Depending on the type of electric vehicle, they charge within one to six hours.

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Electric vehicle technology is evolving rapidly, however purchase costs for many electric cars and vans are still more expensive than some equivalent petrol and diesel vehicles. While the ongoing running costs are highly attractive to businesses, the initial investment costs of electric vehicles can be significant. Your business may be eligible for grants and other 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ to make electric vehicles an easier choice.

Grant for electric cars

The plug-in car grant scheme closed to new orders on 14 June 2022.

The scheme 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵed the creation of a mature market in the United Kingdom, helping to increase the sales of fully electric cars from less than 1,000 in 2011 to almost 100,000 in the first five months of 2022 alone. Due to this, the UK government is now refocusing funding towards the main barriers to the electric vehicle transition, including public charging and 91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵing the purchase of other road vehicles where the switch to electric requires further development.

Grant for electric vans

Grants are available of up to £5,000 for large vans and £2,500 for small vans, with a limit of 1,000 per customer per year.

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It’s not only vans which can attract a plug-in grant - the eligible categories are:

• wheelchair accessible vehicles
• motorcycles
• mopeds
• small vans
• large vans
• taxis
• trucks

Not all low-emission vehicles will get a grant. Only vehicles that have been approved by the government are eligible for a grant. .

Tax incentives for electric vehicles

Owning or operating an electric vehicle can attract various tax benefits, including exemptions from:

• fuel duty
• vehicle excise duty
• company car tax
• van benefit charge
• fuel benefit charge

Tax incentives for electric vehicles can save drivers over £2,000 a year.

You can claim capital allowances for a business electric car or van - see capital allowances.

The United Kingdom government has identified the potential for hydrogen to play a significant role in the decarbonisation of transport.

Greenhouse gas emissions savings of between 10 per cent (compared with a diesel HGV) and around 43 per cent (compared with a petrol car) are possible with hydrogen-powered transport.

Hydrogen is likely to be most effective in transport in areas ‘that batteries cannot reach’, where energy density requirements or duty cycles, weight and volume restrictions and refuelling times make it the most suitable green energy source.

Benefits of hydrogen vehicles

Hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs) have zero tailpipe emissions. FCEVs use electric motors to drive the wheels, but store energy on-board as compressed hydrogen, rather than just in a battery. Hydrogen reacts with oxygen from the air in an on-board fuel cell to produce electricity. Water is the only by-product. 

While no greenhouse gas or air pollutant emissions are produced by FCEVs themselves, like battery electric vehicles (BEVs), their well-to-wheel greenhouse gas emissions depend on the method of energy production.

FCEVs have had two advantages over BEVs:

• fast refuelling with high pressure hydrogen
• longer range

While BEV techology is gaining ground in these two areas, in the long term hydrogen vehicle technologies may be well suited to use in HGVs and by fleet operators - .

91Ï㽶»ÆÉ«ÊÓƵ biofuels are a renewable alternative to limited resources of fossil fuels. They can be liquid or gas and can help to reduce your business transport emissions.

Biofuels are produced from energy crops or organic waste. Vehicle carbon emissions from biofuel combustion are classed as zero because carbon dioxide has been used in plant growth, creating a closed loop in the carbon cycle.

The overall impact that biofuels have on reducing greenhouse gas emissions will depend on where they come from and the way they are produced.

Biofuels are currently blended with conventional petrol, diesel and natural gas in the Northern Ireland. Only some biofuels are commercially available in Northern Ireland for use in vehicles.

Biodiesel and bioethanol

Biodiesel is a substitute fuel produced for diesel engines. It is a renewable fuel made from vegetable oil crops, for example rapeseed or soybean. You can also make biodiesel from waste cooking oils. It doesn't contain petroleum and is biodegradable.

Bioethanol is a renewable fuel used as a petrol substitute for vehicles. It is made from starches or sugar, for example corn or sugar cane. It is biodegradable and less toxic and explosive than petrol.

Most of the fuel you buy at petrol stations will already have some biodiesel or bioethanol added to it. Large fuel suppliers have increased the amount of biofuel content in their fuel each year and . E5 is now only available as "Premium blend".

You can buy fuel with a higher concentration of biodiesel and bioethanol at some outlets. You should contact your vehicle manufacturer before using a higher blend as it could affect engine performance and warranty if your engine is not modified.

You should only use biodiesel that conforms to the recognised European quality standard EN14214 and meets the current diesel specification EN590.

Biogas

Biogas is a renewable fuel made from biodegradable materials including maize crops and wastes, such as municipal or food wastes. The main component of biogas is methane. Biogas can be purified to produce liquid biomethane (LBM), which can be used as a vehicle fuel. You can also purify landfill gas to produce biomethane.

Biomethane can be stored as a compressed gas for road vehicles. Any vehicle that can operate on compressed natural gas (CNG) or liquefied natural gas (LNG) can run on LBM.

If you want to use other biofuels, for example biogas, you will need to consider installing your own refuelling facilities.

You may need a pollution prevention and control permit or waste management licence if you produce your own bioethanol or biogas.

How to produce bioethanol

You can make bioethanol fuel from a variety of sugar and starch-rich materials, mainly by fermentation and distillation. It can also be produced by the reaction of ethylene with steam.

When you produce bioethanol, the by-product is a residue called dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS). DDGS are classified as a by-product and not a waste if they are used without further processing, either as animal feed or as a fuel. Waste management controls will not apply to your DDGS if you meet these requirements, for example you do not need to transport it using a waste carrier or with a waste transfer note.

How to produce biogas

Biogas can be produced from biodegradable materials including maize crops and wastes, including municipal or food wastes. The biodegradable material is turned into a gas by anaerobic digestion, using bacteria to break down the organic matter without oxygen in specially designed digesters.

You can then upgrade the biogas, for example using a membrane separation technique, to remove the CO2 and impurities and produce biomethane. You can use biomethane as a vehicle fuel.

The solid waste from anaerobic digestion is called digestate and it can be used in a similar way to compost.

If you follow you can produce a high quality digestate which can be sold without waste management controls. For example, if it is not classed as a waste, you do not need to transport it using a waste carrier or with a waste transfer note.

If you don't achieve the standards in the quality protocol then you must follow waste management controls when you handle, transport or apply the digestate.

How to produce biodiesel

There are two ways of producing biodiesel using waste or virgin vegetable oil:

• Chemical production using transesterification - where the oil is heated, filtered and combined with an alcohol (usually methanol) and a catalyst. The mixture will separate producing biodiesel and a by-product, glycerol.
• Physical production - where the oil is heated to melt the fat and remove water. It is then filtered and blended with hydrocarbons to alter the cetane rating (how easily a fuel ignites and how fast it will burn).

If you follow you can produce a high-quality biodiesel which you can sell without following waste management controls. For example, if it is not classed as a waste, you do not need to transport it using a waste carrier or with a waste transfer note, making it easier to sell your biodiesel.

Find out more about .

Quality standards for biofuels

You must meet quality standards to sell your fuel in countries within the European Union. These standards apply to biofuel and blends containing biofuel. For example, the standard EN14214 specifies the requirements and test methods for biodiesel produced for use in diesel engines.

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If you want to produce biofuel for commercial or personal use, you may need a pollution prevention and control (PPC) permit or waste management licence. This will depend on how much biofuel you want to make and the method you use.

Check if you need a biofuel permit or licence

If you produce biodiesel or bioethanol by chemical means from waste or virgin vegetable oils you will require:

• a PPC permit if you make more than 5,000 litres per year
• a waste management licence if you make less than 5,000 litres per year

If you produce small amounts of biodiesel by physical means you may also require a waste management licence. You will need a waste management licence if you make more than 100 litres per batch for business or personal use.

Biofuels from anaerobic digestion of waste

If you produce biogas from the anaerobic digestion of waste you must also have a PPC permit or waste management licence.

Biofuels from animal by-products

If you produce biodiesel from waste edible fats and oils of animal origin that are not catering waste, you will also be subject to any .

For example, , your treatment operations will need approval from the Divisional Veterinary Office.

Check if your biofuel activities are low impact

If you produce biodiesel by chemical means and need a PPC permit, your activity may be considered to be low impact. If you meet the criteria set out in the Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) guidance you may be eligible for a low impact installation (LII) permit. The fees and charges you pay will be less to reflect the lower environmental impact.

For guidance on whether an installation can be classified as low impact, contact the NIEA Industrial Pollution and Radiochemical Inspectorate Helpline on Tel 028 9056 9299 or email ipri@daera-ni.gov.uk.

Follow rules to store waste cooking oil

You may need a waste management licence to store waste cooking oil. If you store more than 1,000 litres of waste cooking oil at any one time you will need a licence.

You must always store your used cooking oil within a suitable secondary containment system, for example a bund.

Follow rules for collecting waste vegetable oil

If you collect and transport waste vegetable oil, for example used cooking oil, for the production of biodiesel then you will need to be a registered waste carrier and follow your duty of care for waste.

Biofuels and REACH regulation

Manufacturers or importers of biofuels in Northern Ireland may need to register those substances when they are manufactured or imported in quantities of one tonne or more per year - .