Isle of Man public asked for views on 2030 interim climate targets

Feedback from the consultation will inform a climate action plan due in March

Manx residents have been urged to choose interim targets to cut carbon emissions on the Isle of Man by 2030.

A public consultation has been launched asking for views on what steps could be taken to achieve either a 35% or 45% reduction.

Daphne Caine MHK said the level chosen would "indicate the island's ambition to help tackle the global threat of climate change".

Results will be fed back into a climate action plan due in March, she added.

The government has committed achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 under the Climate Change Act, which includes a legal requirement for an interim target to be set by April.

An increase in electric vehicle use would be part of measures to be encourage

An "ambitious" option to cut greenhouse emission by 45% on 2018 levels has been singled out in the consultation as the climate change transformation board's preferred choice.

The government body said this would include "rapid action" on switching to electric cars and air source heat pumps, funded through increased loans.

Ms Caine, who is the board's chairman, said purchase prices for the new technologies "will become more attractive as the global market for these products grows".

The alternative presented is a 35% reduction, which would see a more "steady" approach to the changes, while acknowledging "more action" would be needed in the following decades.

Construction of a new undersea interconnector to the UK by 2030 is included in both pathways as a way of cutting emissions by tapping into renewable electricity generated off-island.

Along with the creation of clean energy sources on the island, this is expected to cut fossil fuel use by about 30%.

The consultation is available online and is open until 21 February.