City-Level Decoupling-Case Studies

CITY-LEVEL DECOUPLING: URBAN RESOURCE FLOWS AND THE GOVERNANCE OF INFRASTRUCTURE TRANSITIONS

In order to keep track of emissions and reductions, the project relies on a monitoring system developed by SYKE that compares emissions to the baseline year of 2007. The monitoring of progress in the five participating municipalities is carried out by SYKE researchers and provides crucial and impartial information on the project’s effectiveness in terms of actual emissions reductions. The project also maintains an on-line description of measures on the project’s website (www. environment.fi/canemu), and the information on the costs of the measures is also being recorded. The project has been influential in helping municipal decision-makers to embrace low carbon thinking. All of the CANEMU municipalities prepare an emissions reduction action plan annually, and include this as part of the municipal budget. In addition, public opinion in the municipalities has become more climate-friendly. At present, improving energy efficiency in buildings is seen as an investment opportunity, and renewable energy and climate-friendly technologies are seen as new opportunities for employment.

The fact that the CANEMU pilot municipalities are advancing at varying speeds allows for an analysis of the factors that contribute to successful GHG emission reductions. These include:

• Committed municipal leadership, with a clear vision of carbon neutrality in creating business opportunities.

• Responsible and motivated project managers supported by the leadership.

• The integration of mitigative actions in all municipal activities and decisions.

• Support for businesses in promoting energy efficiency, decentralized energy production and the calculation of carbon footprints.

• Media coverage and public displays of the activities such as the public reporting of shared goals and successful measures undertaken.

• Face-to-face contacts to provide information on emissions reduction options and resulting benefits.

• Reliable assessment and monitoring of emissions and reduction effects.

• Inter-municipal co-operation: small municipalities can, for instance, hire an emissions reduction coordinator from a larger municipality to help identify energy efficiency improvements. The next phase of the project will extend the scope to engage a larger group of municipalities. It will also include indirect emissions through a new calculation method based on a full life-cycle approach, including emissions caused by the consumption of imported products and services in the municipalities. Overall, the CANEMU project can be seen as a pioneering attempt to facilitate concrete climate action in Finnish municipalities through tripartite co-operation of government, businesses and researchers. The observations of the project point to interdependent and compatible roles and resources of different actors, thus enabling them to jointly tackle the global climate challenge through local action.

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