Beyond Drax: A Real Green Future for Yorkshire and the Humber

This report was published and launched by Stop Burning Trees on 1st October 2024. It is the output of a collaborative project between Green House Think Tank and the Stop Burning Trees coalition and marks a continuation of our work on Climate Jobs.

The need for radical climate action is not in question: worldwide, millions of people are already suffering the impacts of killer heatwaves, droughts, floods and food shortages. But the necessary transition to a net zero carbon world can’t be done at the expense of workers and communities here in the UK and around the world. To cut emissions and decarbonise our economy, we need not fewer, but many more workers than are currently employed in polluting sectors. This report looks at the minimum jobs we consider to be needed in Yorkshire and the Humber to form the essential foundation of a low-carbon local economy. From renewable energy generation, to insulating our homes and growing our food we have quantified over 70,000 jobs needed in Yorkshire and the Humber over the next ten years. We have to look beyond Drax, beyond future promises of unproven technology and climate action dominated by profit-driven corporations, towards the real green future we need in this region that works for all. This report forms the basis for future campaigning towards the jobs we actually need.