As critical tipping points within the earth's natural systems begin to be breached, the urgency of rapidly reducing our greenhouse gas emissions is becoming increasingly fundamental to policy agendas worldwide. Our National Parks have a crucial role to play in this crisis, leading nature-based carbon sequestration at a landscape scale and demonstrating how to achieve decarbonisation in a deeply rural setting.

Together, the UK’s 15 National Parks have worked with Small World Consulting to produce a consumption-based assessment for each protected landscape. These reports provide a robust and consistent evidence basis for climate action, matched to the unique characteristics and circumstances of each National Park. The assessment is consumption-based, accounting for all emissions produced directly in Dartmoor National Park as well as indirect emissions embodied in goods, services and travel patterns consumed by residents and visitors within Dartmoor. It is the most honest and accurate assessment of Dartmoor's carbon footprint to date.

As we enter an era in which climate mitigation and sustainable land management become ever more central to all our lives, our work and to all policy decisions, the data and objectives within these reports will become critical to maximising climate mitigation on Dartmoor while we work to conserve and enhance the National Park's Special Qualities for future generations.

> Dartmoor Greenhouse Gas Assessment (PDF)

> Dartmoor Greenhouse Gas Assessment Summary Report (PDF)

Net-Zero Challenge for Exmoor & Dartmoor National Parks webinar

A joint webinar was hosted on 23 May 2023 to explore the net zero challenge based on the carbon footprint assessments for  the National Parks. A recording is available below along with links to the two presentations shared.

Welcome & Introduction – Sarah Bryan, Chief Executive, Exmoor National Park Authority

Exmoor & Dartmoor National Park carbon footprint assessments - Professor Mike Berners-Lee and Dr Dmitry Yumashev from Small World Consulting present the key outputs from the Exmoor & Dartmoor National Park carbon footprint reports, including the potential pathways to Net Zero for the National Parks and the key areas where action is needed. Presentation slides (PDF). Jump to this in video.

Understanding the carbon performance DNPA-owned landscapes and the potential to help deliver net zero ambitions Hannah Jones from Farm Carbon Toolkit reflects on their practical experience analysing carbon stocks and fluxes of woodland and moorland habitats on Dartmoor National Park Authority's estate. Presentation slides (PDF). Jump to this in video.

Net Zero, carbon accounting and the National Parks Professor Sir Dieter Helm, Professor of Economic Policy at University of Oxford presents his thoughts on how our National Parks should respond to the climate crisis. Jump to this in video.

Panel discussion - Delivering the net zero trajectory – How do the National Parks respond to the challenging timescales and targets for action?  Jump to this in video.