What Happened?
Vaxjo, Sweden, is able to supply 90 percent of its heating fuel from biomass rather than fossil fuels, helping reduce the city’s carbon emissions significantly. The majority of the biomass being converted into energy consists of woodchips from commercial logging operations.
The Goal
Vaxjo started a fossil fuel-free project to develop sustainable practices that make better use of renewable energy resources while eliminating the environmentally-dangerous fuels in place. The program was first launched in 1996, and aims to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels by 55 percent per resident by 2015. In 2030, the city hopes to be completely free of fossil fuel use and dependency.
The United Nations Environmental Programme analyzed Vaxjo’s project in a series of case studies on the most efficient cities worldwide. The eco-friendly initiative has support from all political parties in the country, as well as industry and nongovernmental leaders. From the start, the project has involved partnerships with local companies and the nation’s forestry sector to combine biofuel advancements and combustion technology to find a renewable source of heating the city.
The regional Southeast Energy Office helped develop a woodchip co-generation plant to provide environmentally-conscious heating to the entire district. The majority of residents opt to work with the public energy source as the price is usually 50 percent lower than oil heating. About 20 percent of electricity supply is from renewable sources within the city, while the remaining needs are fulfilled from external hydropower and nuclear power resources. The city is also working with the national government to implement new strategies to keep energy consumption at a minimal through online tracking tools and advancements in the transportation sector.
Why It’s Working
Vaxjo was successful in securing buy-in for the project from political officials in each party. Because the initiatives spurred economic development and created new jobs, various industries quickly partnered with the projects to provide resources and funding. The city has also created an international network throughout Europe to provide monetary support that will likely prove beneficial in the long term to create sustainable solutions.
Linkoping
Elsewhere in Sweden, the city of Linkoping is also removing fossil fuels from the community after smog and soot created urban air quality problems over the past few decades. Linkoping has deployed 100 percent biogas-fuelled public transportation vehicles to create a sustainable solution to high carbon emission concerns. The locally-produced biogas is derived from wastewater treatment plants and landfills and will be slowly introduced to different sectors of the community as fossil fuels are eliminated.
Similar to Vaxjo, the effort in Linkoping received strong support from political officials. There was less consensus on how to proceed with the initiative among private sector partners. The biogas production expanded into a regional market which prevented smaller plants from being developed, which could have boosted local economic growth. Greater planning and partnership agreement will be needed for the strategy to meet its endpoints.
Energy Overhauls
Gov1 has followed energy initiatives that aim for self-sufficiency and sustainability at lower costs to residents.