Copenhagen Aspires to be the First Carbon Neutral Capital in the World

On the 23rd of August, 2012, it is expected that a majority of votes at the Copenhagen City Council will pass the CPH 2025 Climate Plan with the ambition of carbon neutrality by 2025. Despite the meagre results of the international COP15 Climate Conference in Copenhagen a few years ago, the city has kept on focusing on the consequences of climate change and now wants to lead the way towards a carbon neutral future. The initiatives in the “CPH 2025 Climate Plan” include the conversion of the area’s two main power plants from coal to wood chips and straw, the construction of 100 large wind turbines at sea, a geothermal facility, recycling plastic from municipal waste, and increased production of biogas from organic waste. Moreover, in order to reduce energy consumption, buildings are to be retrofitted and 280,000 square metres – or 40 football pitches – of solar panels will be installed. These measures will not just strengthen energy security but are environmentally positive. The new wind-turbines alone should lead to a reduction in CO2 emissions of 650,000 tonnes in 2025, which accounted for one third of the city’s total emissions in 2011. Read the rest at the Moving Toward Sustainable Prosperity blog.