wigan is ranked 82nd in a UK net zero readiness study by Karas Plating with a total score of 68. 57, placing the town in the lower half of the national table. The research combines measures of environmental pressure and decarbonisation capacity to compare different urban areas across the UK. The position reflects a mix of relatively low emissions density alongside limited green infrastructure and gaps in resource-use data.
Wigan performance in detail
Karas Plating builds a composite index that normalises and weights indicators to produce a final net zero readiness score out of 100. The index assesses emissions density, electric vehicle charging provision, solar adoption, household waste, energy consumption, and the share of employment in carbon-intensive industries. In that framework, wigan records an emissions density of 6. 3 kt CO2e per km² and a share of employment in carbon-intensive sectors at 354. 86. On infrastructure and uptake, the town shows 8. 6 electric vehicle charging devices per 100, 000 people and a solar panel installation rate of 51. 64. Annual energy consumption is listed at 1, 010. 1 GWh per dwelling in the dataset, while there is no recorded figure for collected household waste per person for wigan in this release, limiting direct comparison on circular economy performance.
Immediate reactions and implications
Karas Plating’s methodology highlights how differences in industrial structure and infrastructure affect rankings: areas with higher emissions density or larger energy demand sit lower on readiness even when EV charging or renewables are present at scale. The study notes that large metropolitan systems and some industrial centres show significantly weaker readiness scores; London is cited as an example with a low overall score of 39. 52, very high household energy consumption of 34, 800. 4 GWh-equivalent and an EV charging provision of 48. 9 per 100, 000 people. For wigan, the mix of moderate carbon-intensive employment and early-stage green infrastructure points to where local action could be focused.
What’s next for Wigan
The Karas Plating results position wigan where incremental improvements in clean energy adoption and EV infrastructure could make a meaningful difference in future rankings. Targeted increases in electric vehicle charging devices and higher rates of solar installation, alongside filling gaps in household waste data and energy-efficiency measures, are the practical levers signalled by the dataset. Observers using the index can track whether changes in those indicators shift wigan’s standing in subsequent updates of the study.
