Prince William, who has been an advocate of finding solutions to combat climate change, has irked the public after a new investigation uncovered shocking details about his private estate.
The Prince of Wales, who is currently in Cape Town, South Africa, for a four-day visit for his Earthshot Prize Award, has come under fire for not focusing on his own carbon footprint amid his advocacy.
One of the findings of the investigation by The Mirror and Channel 4’s Dispatches revealed that many of the rental properties on the Duchy of Cornwall had the lowest ratings for energy efficiency, which is not only a hazard to the environment, but also to the tenants.
MP Barry Gardiner shared that it was “very strange” that William’s duchy, which was previously owned by his lifelong environmental advocate father, King Charles, did not adopt “best practices” yet, “let alone legal minimum obligation”.
“Failing properties cause real health problems for those who have to live in them and take an enormous financial toll on families trying to heat a home that is leaking energy,” Gardiner added.
Meanwhile, technical director of an energy company, Andrew Parkin, told The Mirror that 20% of the UK’s carbon emissions come from heating our housing stock” and many of the properties on the duchy are “off-grid” which would be using “the worst emitting heating sources such as coal and wood fires, or older oil central heating systems.”
He explained that such circumstances “make them more complicated to decarbonise” but it is still “feasible” to improve the property, claiming it is a “vital” step in current scenario.
If Prince William were to follow the suggestions of energy assessors, who visited the duchy, the carbon emissions could be reduced by “69%”.
Meanwhile, a Duchy of Cornwall spokesperson said, “Environmental sustainability and supporting our tenants and communities is at the heart of all our decision making.”
The rep also added that when William became Duke of Cornwall in September 2022, he has “since then committed to an expansive transformation of the Duchy. This includes a significant investment to make the estate net zero by the end of 2032.”
According to EU Energy Label, F and G are the least efficient in the classes. With new labels (such as A+, A++, A+++) introduced in 2021, the Duchy of Cornwall tenants are still using resources of “F and G” ratings.
