Rali Ceredigion: Welsh race wins green acclaim from F1 bosses

More than 100 drivers are taking part in Rali Ceredigion, which begins on Saturday

A Welsh rally has been recognised for its environmental sustainability by the governing body of Formula 1.

About 130 cars will race 105 miles (169km) across two days in Rali Ceredigion, which begins on Saturday.

It is the only UK rally to receive Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) environmental accreditation, for both 2022 and 2023.

Race organisers said it is the first event of its kind to fully offset the emissions of all competing vehicles.

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Organiser Phil Pugh said the event was taking many steps to stay environmentally friendly, such as all competing cars using low emission fuels and offering a car share service for fans.

"You don't have an FIA two-star accreditation by doing nothing," he said. "You've got to reach those goals set by the FIA and they are very stringent."

Organisers claim the event will be one of the world's largest carbon offsetting programmes for a rally event

Organisers have said this year's event will offset more than 100 tonnes of carbon emissions, one of the world's largest carbon offsetting programmes for rally events and by far the largest in the UK.

Carbon Positive Motorsport, an offsetting company working with the race, said this figure was 25% more carbon than the event itself was estimated to produce.

What is carbon offsetting?

Carbon offsetting is a method in which organisations that produce CO2, a greenhouse gas, can pay another company to remove a certain amount from the atmosphere.

Carbon Positive Motorsport uses a natural offsetting method by planting trees in Scottish highlands around Loch Ness.

One industrial method is carbon capture and storage which involves using machinery to remove CO2 from the air and store it, often deep underground.

However, some experts have criticised offsetting as a "get out of jail free card" that can prevent large polluters from changing their behaviour.

Rali Ceredigion is the first rally to take place entirely on closed public roads in Wales, after a 2017 law change allowed such events to be held on public highways as opposed to only on private land.

The organisers anticipate thousands of supporters will visit mid Wales to follow the event over the weekend. They estimated that the economic impact of last year's rally was about £2m.

Evie Keyworth, who works at Baravin, a restaurant on Aberystwyth's seafront, said: "We've very excited for it - it means we're very busy, and we're fully booked at the moment which is very good for us.

"It gives us more exposure, gets a lot more tourists in and it's an exciting activity for our town to come together and enjoy the race as well."

Evie Keyworth says she is excited about the hustle and bustle of race weekend

Richard Griffiths, owner of the Richmond Hotel on Aberystwyth promenade, called the race an "extremely important event in the calendar of Aberystwyth", attracting thousands of people to the region.

"That helps the economy, and mid Wales is a rural area that needs a lot of support in different areas," he said.

Following a ceremonial start in Aberystwyth on Friday evening, drivers will race 14 stages on Saturday and Sunday through Borth, Cwmerfyn and Cwm Ystwyth, Llanafan and Nant y Moch.

Ahead of the ceremonial start a state of the art hybrid rally car, the M-Sport Ford Puma, will take to the streets of Aberystwyth on a demonstration run before the street stage of the rally there on Saturday evening.

M-Sport Ford Puma during Day Three of the FIA World Rally Championship Finland

This be the first time a hybrid rally car - powered by 100% fossil-free fuel - has been driven on an asphalt rally stage in the UK.

M-Sport boss Malcolm Wilson, who will be at the event said: "The feedback about Rali Ceredigion has been universally positive and it's fantastic to see an event that is still in its infancy attracting great interest."

The first Rali Ceredigion was won by Osian Pryce, from Machynlleth, who also came second last year and won the British Rally Championship in 2022.

"Hopefully we can pick up where we left off last year, as I enjoyed the stages and we're hoping for everything to click into place as it's been a difficult season so far," he said.

"It's great that the event has the support of the local community again, and is showcasing what Ceredigion has to offer."

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