Initial Climate Change Impact Assessment (Form created August 2021)

The intention of this document is to help the council to gain an initial understanding of the impact of a project or decision on the environment. This document should be completed in consultation with the supporting guidance. Dependent on this initial assessment you may need to go on to complete a full Climate Change Impact Assessment. The final document will be published as part of the decision-making process.

If you have any additional queries, which are not covered by the guidance please email climatechange@northyorks.gov.uk

Title of proposal	Harrogate Convention Centre – Outcome of Soft Market Testing
Brief description of proposal	This report informs the executive about the results of the soft market testing carried out by 31Ten for the Harrogate Convention Centre. It provides a recommendation to redevelop studio 2 and to consider adopting a more commercial operating model.
Directorate	Community Development
Service area	Harrogate Convention Centre
Lead officer	Paula Lorimer
Names and roles of other people involved in carrying out the impact assessment	Hannah Nutsey (Climate change business partner)

The chart below contains the main environmental factors to consider in your initial assessment – choose the appropriate option from the drop-down list for each one.

Remember to think about the following;

· Travel

· Construction

· Data storage

· Use of buildings

· Change of land use

· Opportunities for recycling and reuse

Environmental factor to consider	For the council	For the county	Overall
Greenhouse gas emissions	Increases emissions	No Effect on emissions	No effect on emissions
Waste	Increases waste	No effect on waste	No effect on waste
Water use	No effect on water usage	No effect on water usage	No effect on water usage
Pollution (air, land, water, noise, light)	No effect on pollution	No effect on pollution	No effect on pollution
Resilience to adverse weather/climate events (flooding, drought etc)	No effect on resilience	No effect on resilience	No effect on resilience
Ecological effects (biodiversity, loss of habitat etc)	No effect on ecology	No effect on ecology	No effect on ecology
Heritage and landscape	No effect on heritage and landscape	No effect on heritage and landscape	No effect on heritage and landscape

If any of these factors are likely to result in a negative or positive environmental impact then a full climate change impact assessment will be required. It is important that we capture information about both positive and negative impacts to aid the council in calculating its carbon footprint and environmental impact.

Decision (Please tick one option)	Full CCIA not relevant or proportionate:	X	Continue to full CCIA:
Reason for decision	This report presents a recommendation to develop studio 2 and for HCC to operate on a more commercial operating approach. If approved, the report highlights that sustainability will be considered in future grants and possible funding. Similarly, it is noted that a long-term strategy to reduce carbon emissions should be considered and this development would be part of this approach. Greenhouse gas emissions and waste are likely to be increased for the council if the development is approved but this would be short term during construction. It is suggested that this development would support the contribution of HCC to the regional economy. At this stage, it is not proportionate to carry out a full CCIA because the details of the development of studio 2 are not yet known.
Signed (Assistant Director or equivalent)	Paula Lorimer Director of HCC
Date	09/12/2024