Climate and Energy Strategy Uppsala County 2011
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Climate and Energy Strategy Uppsala County 2011 1. Introduction The greenhouse effect is a natural process and a prerequisite for life on earth. Greenhouse gas emissions, such as water vapour and carbon dioxide, exist naturally in the atmosphere. Without the greenhouse effect, earth would be almost 35 degrees colder than it is today. Also, climate changes are natural in the history of earth. The problem is that emissions caused by man will now change the pace of these changes in a more rapid way, which threatens to cause serious global impacts (e.g. flooding, increased sea levels etc.). The levels of several greenhouse gases have increased, primarily as a result of our combustion of coal, oil and natural gas. Increased levels of greenhouse gases will cause an expansion of the greenhouse effect and, thus, a warming of the planet. There is a broad scientific coherence on the relationship between emissions of greenhouse gases and global warming. In Uppsala County, the dominating sectors of green house gas emissions are transports, energy and agriculture. The largest emissions come from the transport sector (39%), followed by the energy sector (32%). The third largest source of emissions in the county is agriculture (19%). Another sector where green house gas emissions are relatively high is work machinery (7%). In 2008, all county administrative boards in Sweden were given the assignment by the Government to elaborate regional climate and energy strategies. The climate and energy strategy of Uppsala County was drawn up with the purpose of reducing the climate change, promoting energy transition, increasing the share of renewable energy and promoting energy-efficiency and a more efficient transport system. The County Administrative Board assumed that the most important goal of the climate and energy strategy was to realise a fast and sustainable decrease of green house gas emissions. In the climate and energy strategy developed in 2008, the risks of climate change and the consequences thereof were not dealt with in a more profound and extensive way.1 During the course of work, the County Administrative Board of Uppsala County made deliberations with representative of regional bodies, municipalities, the business community and universities in the county. Companies and organisations in the affected sectors – transports, energy supply and agriculture and forestry – also contributed to the work of the strategy. The present strategy is a revised and shortened version of the climate and energy strategy developed in 2008. 1 In 2009, the Government assigned all county administrative boards to develop a climate adaptation policy. The County Administrative Board of Uppsala County thus undertook a separate work dealing with these issues called “Climate and Vulnerability Analysis for Uppsala County 2009 – Future Climate Change and its Consequences”. 2. Energy and climate goals To set goals is a difficult task. Part of the difficulty in setting targets for reduction of greenhouse gases is to define geographical limits and calculate emission sources. A great part of emissions that we in Sweden cause, perhaps as much as half, comes from goods that are produced in other countries. Depending on the size of the population, the existence of bigger industries and other significant sources of emissions, the conditions for setting goals for counties and municipalities vary. Also, calculations of emissions of greenhouse gases are based on statistics. The quality of statistics can have an effect on the result. Statistics of emissions should therefore be interpreted with a certain degree of caution. 2.1 Climate goals on a global level The international process to reduce greenhouse gas emissions was initiated on a global level by the UN at the beginning of the 1990s. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was adopted in 1992 and it has been ratified by 192 countries. The Kyoto Protocol from 1997 is the world’s first binding agreement to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from industrial countries. The agreement sets a goal to reduce global emissions of greenhouse gases by at least 5 percent annually for the period 2008-2012 compared to 1990. The Kyoto Protocol came into force in 2005. The use of flexible mechanisms, such as trade with emission permits, is allowed by the agreement. Except for trade with emissions permits, other flexible mechanisms are Clean Development Mechanisms (CDM) and Joint Implementations (JI). CDM means that a country that has commitments according to the Kyoto Protocol invests in a country which has not made commitments, where the investing country receives credit for the reduction of emissions. JI involves investments of a country committed to Kyoto in a country that has also made commitments, where the investing country receives credit for the reduction of emissions. Today, EU and Sweden are working to be able to achieve the goals of the Kyoto Protocol. The goals must, however, be interpreted in a complex global context. Different geographical conditions and activities, population density, import patterns and the use of flexible mechanisms also have an effect on how goals are set and how they can be reached. 2.2 Climate and energy policy and goals of the EU The Lisbon Treaty from 2007 stipulates that security of supply, competitiveness and sustainability should be central goals of EU’s common energy policy. In 2007, the European Council adopted energy and climate change objectives for 2020. To reach the goal of limiting the average increase of the temperature of the earth by 2 degrees, the European Council points out the necessity to have an integrated climate and energy policy. The Heads of States and Governments agreed on the following objectives for 2020 (in comparison to 1990): • to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20% (another 30% within the framework of a global climate agreement), • to increase the share of renewable energy to 20% - of which the share of renewable fuels should increase to 10%, • to make a 20% improvement in energy efficiency. The long-term commitment of the European Council is to reduce emissions by 80-95% by 2050. 2.3 Swedish climate and energy policy and goals The Swedish climate policy contains goals, national instruments and EU common instruments. Measures and instruments have been strengthened gradually since the beginning of the 1990s by decisions in energy, transport, environment and fiscal policies. The Government will now increase the pace of the energy transition work with the aim of Sweden becoming independent of fossil energy and thus contributing to a reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases to levels acceptable from a climate perspective. The basic goal of the Swedish climate policy is the environmental quality goal A limited climate impact. This goal is to limit the rise in temperature to no more than 2 degrees. In terms of concentration of greenhouse gas emission, the level should be limited to 400 parts per million carbon dioxide equivivalents. Sweden’s energy policy, which forms the basis of the climate policy, is built on the same three pillars as EU’s energy policy – sustainability, competitiveness and security of supply. The EU’s goals form the basis of Sweden’s energy and climate policy. However, the Swedish Government has decided on even higher targets with regard to emissions of green house gases and share of renewable energy. A new climate and energy policy was elaborated by the Swedish Government in 2008 and adopted by the Riksdag (The Swedish Parliament) in 2009. The Riksdag decided that the goal of Swedish emissions of greenhouse gases, from activities that are not part of EU’s trading system with permits, should be a reduction by 40% by 2020 in comparison to 1990. Also, the Riksdag decided that the share of renewable energy should reach 50% (it is now 44%) by 2020 in comparison to 1990. With regard to energy-efficiency, the Swedish goal is the same as for the EU, that is, 20% improvement of energy-efficiency by 2020. Also, the Swedish Government sets a goal for renewable energy in the transport sector of 10% by 2020, which coincides with the EU’s goal of 10% renewable fuels by 2020. The goals of Sweden are to be reached by three action plans; to realize a fossil independent transport sector, to encourage the development of renewable energy, to create condition for a further energy-efficiency A long-term priority of the new climate and energy policy is to have a vehicle fleet independent on fossil fuels by 2030. Another long-term priority is that the use of fossil fuels for heating purposes will be discontinued by 2020. Regarding electricity, the long-term priority is to pave the way for wind power, cogeneration and other forms of renewable power production. The vision of the new climate and energy policy is that Sweden should have no net emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. 2.4 Regional and municipal goals The work at the regional level is directed by the climate and energy goals set at the international level, at EU level and at the national level. The ambition of the Uppsala County within the climate and energy area should be high. As is the case on the international, European and national level, climate and energy goals are closely intertwined with other goals. This is clearly noticeable in a region such as Uppsala County, which is expanding. Apart from environmental goals, a regional climate and energy strategy should take into consideration goals related to growth of the region, nature and cultural preservation, development of the countryside, community planning, social issues, social protection and preparedness for crises. Of great importance in this context are the environmental goals of the region. The environmental goals for Uppsala County 2008-2010 include a reduction of climate impacting emissions by at least 4% as an average during the period 2008-2012 compared to 1990.