London, Manchester, Bournemouth, Leicester and Coventry are the top English cities leading the field in climate action alongside global capitals such as Mexico City and Athens, according to CDP's latest annual rankings released today. 

The assessment stems from CDP's analysis of key environmental data released by city authorities of more than 850 cities on emissions, climate-related vulnerabilities and actions taken to reduce CO2 and adapt to risks. The climate data non-profit said it then scored cities from 'A' to 'D' based on the detail and quality of their data and the level of action taken, with 105 cities making the top list in 2019.

To reach the A-list, a city must have a city-wide emissions inventory, an emissions reduction target, a published climate action plan, and a climate adaptation plan to demonstrate how it will tackle climate hazards now and in the future, the CDP explained.

Greater Manchester in particular scores highly in the rankings for having set a 2038 carbon neutral target, which includes annual emissions cuts of 15 per cent, with the city working to add at least 45MW of locally generated renewable electricity to the grid by 2024, said CDP.

The analysis also notes Bournemouth's success in far exceeding its target to reduce carbon emissions by 30 per cent in 2020 from a 2015 baseline, with the city having already achieved a 40 per cent reduction. And in the West Midlands, the Coventry and Warwickshire Green Business Programme is highlighted in the analysis for its work aimed at helping businesses with fewer than 250 employees save money on energy, waste and water bills.

Beyond the UK, many developing world cities also showed a marked improvement, CDP said. The number of cities from Latin America on the A-List increased nine-foldin 2019, with only Buenos Aires having made the cut in 2018. The Asia Pacific region also saw an improvement, with the number of cities from the region more than doubling.

Overall, too, the total number of cities receiving the top grade more than doubled last year, which CDP's director of cities, states and regions Kyra Appleby said indicated climate action was ramping up around the world.

"These 105 cities are setting an example for the level of transparency and action we need from cities worldwide," she said.

Cities are currently expanding at breakneck speed with the current global urban population of 4.2bn forecast to rise to 6.5bn by 2050, at which point two-thirds of humans on earth would be living in cities, she added. As a result, tackling the climate impact of urban areas is set to become increasingly important, argued Appleby.

"Cities play a crucial role in meeting this challenge: covering just two per cent of the earth's surface, they are the source of 70 per cent of emissions," she explained.

 

As a result, decarbonising the world's urban spaces will be critical if the world is to meet its climate goal of keeping warming well below two degrees, as set out in the Paris Agreement.