Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 1. Climate Change: Mitigation Refer to Section 2.1 of the Guidance Note 1A. Present Situation Please complete the following table: Table 1: Benchmarking Data - Climate Change: Mitigation Base Year Target Year % Reduction City reduction targets (add rows if needed for further commitments) 1990 2030 70% Where possible please use 2005 as the base year 1990 2050 carbon-free for listing city reduction targets CO2 emissions Units Year of Data Total CO2 emissions/capita 5.77 t CO2/capita 2017 Total transport CO2 emissions/capita 1.55 t CO2/capita 2017 Total (less transport) CO2 emissions/capita 4.22 t CO2/capita 2017 Total CO2 emissions per year 690 300 t CO2 2017 Total CO2 emissions per MWh electricity consumed 0.63 t CO2 2017 Describe the present situation in relation to CO2 emissions, including any relevant disadvantages or constraints resulting from historical, geographical and/or socio-economic factors which may have influenced this indicator. Give details of any Baseline Emission Inventory prepared by the city, mentioning the baseline year and the applied methodology (direct/indirect emissions, data collection process, monitoring system), as well as the competent department. Provide a breakdown of the main sources of emissions. Where available, information/data on the inventory and on the following indicators should be provided from previous (5-10) years to show trends, together with an explanation of the evolution. Scientific grounds should be provided for any claimed reduction in CO2 emissions. Describe how the inventory system and information is integrated in the design of policies and measures. Provide figures (in the table above), and comment on, the following specific indicators for the city: 1. Total CO2 emissions (tonnes) per year; 2. CO2 emissions per capita (tonnes) per year; 3. CO2 emissions per capita (tonnes) resulting from fuel use in transport; 4. CO2 emissions (tonnes) per MWh electricity consumed; 5. CO2 emissions reduction target(s) (e.g. 20% by 2020 compared to 1990). 1 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Please also state clearly what year the data provided relates to. Mention any target(s) adopted specifically for the municipal administration (e.g. carbon neutral municipality by 2020, adaptation measures set on municipal level). (max. 600 words and five graphics, images or tables) Lahti is located in a boreal climate zone. Building heating is the largest emission source. Over 80% of the buildings have district heating, of which most is produced in CHP plants [Fig.A1]. The energy source of these plants has the greatest impact on Lahti’s GHG-emissions. The second biggest challenge is the transport emissions, which the city is tackling by developing a personal carbon trading scheme [1]. The first baseline emission inventory was made by the Helsinki University of Technology, in 2000, using the national calculation model, Kasvener [2]. This production-based calculation covers all scope 1 and 2 emissions produced in the Lahti geographical area. Lahti is committed to cutting CO2 emissions by 70% by 2030 of the 1990 level [3, 4]. We are currently designing a new SECAP for 2030, which will likely tighten the climate change mitigation targets significantly, with a new short-term goal for year 2021 (suggestion: -70% from 1990 level) and carbon-neutrality by 2030, at the latest. In 2017, 690 300 tonnes of CO2e were produced altogether. By now, the CO2e reduction is 41.33% from the 1990 level (Fig.A1) and if calculated per capita, 46.9%. (Fig. A2) [5]. Emissions have decreased even though the population has increased from 100 080 (1990) to 119 573 (2017). In order to make the last few years progress visible, Lahti will organize a city-wide pilot on living in a carbon-neutral society for the EGCA year 2021. 2 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A1. Lahti greenhouse gas emissions in 2017 compared to 1990 level. Figure A2. CO2-e emissions per capita. The 2008 figure is from old Lahti municipality, before the merging of the municipalities. 1990 and 2017 are from same geographical area. City of Lahti has its own energy, climate and sustainability targets [4,6]. Other own targets are sustainable food in all activities, by 2030 and the use of biogas or e-cars in municipal operations by 2030 [4]. The WWF Green office EMS is in use in 11 city departments. EMS increases environmental knowledge of employees, energy efficiency of premises and the reporting quality [7]. Results show that the long-term perseverance is bearing fruit. The municipality’s own emissions have decreased from 26,080.7 tons of CO2-e in 2009, to 21,277.2 tons in 2017 (Figure A3). 3 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A3. Greenhouse gas emissions from city and city owned companies’ activities 2009 and 2017. Waste emissions were 909.95 tons of CO2-e in 2017. Consumption-separated waste fractions are presented in Figure A4. 4 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure A4. Closer look at Lahti’s annually reported emissions from waste in 2017 most resulting from energy waste, mixed waste and paper. In 2008, the City of Lahti signed the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment’s National Energy Efficiency Agreement 2008-2016 (KETS), which was drafted to implement the Energy Efficiency Directive. The aim was to achieve 9% of energy savings, over the 2008-2016 period (15.99 GWh) by increasing the energy efficiency of water and wastewater treatment of the city’s premises and street lightning. This goal was met and even exceeded and Lahti managed to save 18.87 GWh of energy. The City of Lahti signed a new Energy Efficiency Agreement 2017-2025, targeting a further 7,5% energy saving (10.57 GWh) [8,9]. Lahti has been a member of the EU Covenant of Mayors since 2012. Progress in climate change mitigation is reported annually in the Environmental Reviews, Environmental Balance Sheet, and every 2nd yea,r in the CoM SEAP report and City Strategy Follow-up. 1B. Past Performance Describe the measures implemented over the last five to ten years to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, including resources allocated to implement these measures. Comment on which measures have been most effective and how the implementation and impacts have been monitored. Make reference to: 5 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 1. An overall strategy for climate change or any other strategy or action plan to reduce emissions; 2. Mainstreaming of climate protection measures across municipal services and in key areas of action such as energy efficiency in residential and commercial buildings, public transport and waste management. Highlight any innovative schemes for the built environment such as low carbon zones; 3. Mechanisms used (e.g. local regulations, financing schemes, partnerships). Explain how the city works on emissions reduction with other governmental bodies, private sector service providers, enterprises and citizens. Mention relevant national legislation or programmes and participation in EU funded projects or networks. Provide details on the monitoring system (frequency, responsibility, outcomes) and how lessons learned have been used. (max. 1,200 words and five graphics, images or tables) Strategy for Climate Change For the the EGCA2021 we will build a model and demonstrate carbon-neutral living, on a city-wide scale, in Lahti. Our strategic target is to cut 70% of GHG emissions (from year 1990 level) by 2030 [3]. Environmental Programme [4] was accepted in 2018 with a shorter term target to reach 70% sustainable fuels in energy used in Lahti area by 2021 (excluding transport). Long-term target is to be a carbon-negative city by 2050. However, we are currently designing the SECAP for 2030, which will likely result in increasingly ambitious mitigation targets. Climate work has a long history in Lahti. Local commitment to climate work was established right after the Rio Summit 1992, when a Citizen Forum on Environment was established. An Aalborg Commitment baseline review was performed in 2009 and the city’s sustainability programme was established in 2011. Lahti joined the EU Covenant of Mayors in 2012. The CoM Sustainable Energy Action Plan was launched 2013 [5], with more ambitious strategic goals required by the EU. Lahti SEAP is an ongoing process with 44 actions (Fig. B1), monitored every other year. In the SEAP 2013-2020 the estimated energy savings are 141736.2 MWh [6]. Renewable energy production (without the bio thermal plant Kyvo3 [10]) will be 360871 MWh and CO2 reduction 94456.53 tons of CO2. Lahti will give up on coal after opening the Kyvo3 in 2020. Currently, the most effective actions are the Energy Efficiency Agreements [8], the biogas plant and the collecting of landfill gas. It is challenging to calculate the CO2 reduction of many of the SEAP actions, such as land-use planning and the energy advisory. The shares of different actions are shown Fig.B1 and their status in Fig.B2. 6 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure B1. Sustainable Energy Action Plan 2013-2020: shares of different actions (total of 44). 7 Application Form for the European Green Capital Award 2021 Figure B2. Current status of SEAP 2013-2020 actions (in total 44). City-owned Lahti Energy Ltd. set an ambitious strategic goal, to reduce CO2 emissions with 80% by 2020 from 1990, in all its activities. Lahti Energy has invested in sustainable district heating, which is the heating source for over 90% of the population. Over 95% is produced energy efficiently at the Kymijärvi I-II CHP plants. Kymijärvi power plant II started operating in 2012. It is a unique gasification power plant that uses solid recovered fuel (SRF) [11].