Truro Cathedral to switch off floodlights

The lights will be switched off to reduce the cathedral's carbon emissions

Truro Cathedral's floodlights will be switched off to help the environment, it has been announced.

Canon Elly Sheard said in a blog the decision was "a worthwhile start on the cathedral's journey towards reducing its carbon footprint to zero".

She added the move from the end of January was not based on costs, but welcomed the financial saving.

Cannon Sheard said they were looking to "phase out energy use in whatever ways we can" at the cathedral.

"Although the system has not worked fully for some time, the decision to cease floodlighting the cathedral has been taken more on environmental grounds than on the grounds of the costs of either repairs or continued use," she said.

Canon Sheard was installed as the first canon for creation care in March 2021 to head a school of creation care at the cathedral, working closely with the environment board which oversees the new environment strategy across the Diocese of Truro.

"Like all churches and cathedrals, Truro Cathedral has been challenged by the Church of England nationally to reduce our carbon footprint to zero by the year 2030," Canon Sheard said.

"According to my rough calculations, the cathedral floodlights as currently used, emit roughly 2 tonnes of CO2e per year.

"For comparison, this is roughly half the amount of carbon emitted by the average car as used by most people in the UK."

She added the cathedral needed to "start as we mean to go on" and "phase out energy use in whatever ways we can".

"Turning off the floodlights will, of course, also save us money which will be welcome as energy prices rise in the near future and will serve us well elsewhere in our operations."