Forest of Dean bosses have signed off plans to transition council vehicles to predominantly electric or alternative fuels over the next six years.

They account for 89% of the authority's emissions with waste and recycling trucks producing around 850 tonnes of C02e each year.

New plans have now been signed off by Forest of Dean District Council to decarbonise its fleet which include waste, recycling and street cleaning vehicles, street warden vans and pool cars used to undertake site visits and inspections.

It will help the council achieve its aim of becoming a net zero carbon local authority by 2030.

Under the new plans, when petrol or diesel fuel vehicles reach the end of their lifespan they will be replaced with greener alternatives wherever feasible.

The district's waste and recycling services are currently carried out using 41 vehicles which in 2021-22 travelled more than half a million miles.

Eight recycling vehicles are expected to need replacement in 2024/25 and electric alternatives will be considered, providing they can carry out the operations with no reduction in performance and reliability.

Two fully electric Romaquip recycling vehicles have already been bought and are due to start making collections in August.

Performance data from them will help guide future vehicle purchasing decisions.

The EV HGV market is expected to evolve significantly over the next few years and in cases where a fully electric vehicle is not currently viable but may be in the future, short-term leasing of standard fuel vehicles will be chosen over investing in brand new ones. Alternative fuel options and converting existing vehicles will also form part of the route map.

Full management responsibility of the fleet is also being handed to council-owned company Ubico to enable greater operational efficiency and modest cost savings.

Cllr Andy Moore, deputy leader and cabinet member for finance, waste and recycling at the council, said trials with the new RQ-E Kerb-Sort Romaquip vehicles were "reassuringly positive".

He added: "Although the purchase cost is greater than a diesel lorry, they deliver significant savings over their lifetime and, most importantly, cut our greenhouse gas emissions, reduce air pollution and result in a healthier environment for our residents.

"Our vehicle fleet accounts for 89% of the council's emissions and this new route map to decarbonisation looks at all council vehicles, from the waste and recycling vehicles to grounds maintenance service vans and other cars used by staff, such as our environmental services and planning teams."