THE Western Locomotive Association (WLA) has become the inaugural diesel locomotive group in the British Isles to offset its carbon emissions.
Based on the Severn Valley Railway (SVR), the WLA owns ‘Westerns’ No. D1062 Western Courier and No. D1013 Western Ranger – and it is now working with a specialist rewilding charity, which is planting trees in the Scottish Highlands to offset its carbon emissions.
The Talyllyn Railway became Britain’s first heritage line to offset its carbon emissions earlier this summer.
“One of our board members put it quite bluntly,” said the WLA’s press officer Paul Finch. “He said our engines are ‘60-year-old gas-guzzling machines’ – so we decided to take action now, to offset the carbon emissions they produce. “A Class 52 consumes one gallon of fuel per mile, and an average running day on the SVR is 64 miles. We plan to operate on 20 days per year. We know that each gallon of diesel fuel burnt produces 10.9kg of carbon dioxide, so if you crunch the numbers, we’ll produce around 15 tonnes per annum.”