Integrating Clean Energy into City Life
By Maeve Brennan
Moving toward clean energy means reimagining and reinventing our cities, which have long centered production over people and fostered dependency on cars. Urban planning today must give new purpose to old infrastructure, create innovative ways to be sustainable, and integrate nature and the environment into city life. The task ahead may seem daunting, but four cities provide unique examples of how urban centers can plan for a new future.
Brussels’ new passive house look
In the early 2000s, Brussels realized their city needed to match the sustainable energy output of other European Union cities. This competitive outlook pushed the government to create a fund, the Batex program, to incentivize the construction of “passive housing,” or ultra-low energy buildings that require little energy for space heating and cooling. The program provided 100 euros per square meter to buildings that met a series of standards, including the use of environmentally friendly materials and water efficiency. The program also incentivized developers to reach as close to zero emissions as possible.
The result was a blooming of passive house construction, from personal homes to municipal buildings. New industries popped up as local manufacturers created passive house components, such as specialized windows, making construction even more financially viable.
Following the success of the program – and a little debate and pushback – the Brussels government passed a law requiring every new building in Brussels to be passive, helping the city save energy.
2. Cocody’s community push for a green city
Cocody, a city in Côte d’Ivoire, is making a communal effort to uplift individuals on their way to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. As the city grows, urbanization spreads, and energy needs shoot up, Cocody is hoping to build new clean energy infrastructure instead of trying to replace it a couple years down the line.
The city’s numbers are impressive – they have installed 5,000 solar lamp posts and 1,600 solar traffic lights and distributed 200,000 solar PV power kits, 300,000 efficient cook stoves, and 1,000 solar dryers, hoping to improve the resources at home as well as on the streets. In addition to their dedication to clean energy, Cocody has restored and replanted 2 million mangrove trees in an effort to create a carbon sink and protect the local climate.
3. Seoul’s targeting of climate poverty
With an eye towards possible energy shortages and issues in the future due to climate change, Seoul created the Energy Welfare Public-Private Partnership Program in an effort to lower the risk of energy poverty. The program is two-fold, offering both direct and indirect relief to low-income households in the city.
The direct relief program offers home efficiency upgrades to at-risk communities, as well as job opportunities in the energy sector. The program trains disadvantaged job seekers to become energy consultants, which in turn helps the program grow. Over 180 jobs have been created since 2015, and more than 1,600 solar power panels have been installed at public apartments and low-income housing.
Indirectly, the program created a power plant for municipal buildings and universities. When the organizations save electricity consumption during peak hours, they donate the profits back to the program in order to finance energy welfare.
4. Auckland’s partnership for emissions reduction
Low Carbon Auckland is a series of community programming and plans developed by youth organizations, the local government, NGOs, and the Maori community. Part of the plan target’s Auckland’s car-dependent transportation infrastructure. The city created an electric train line and is currently electrifying its electric bus fleet and bringing in electric ferries. The Low Carbon plan intersects with health initiatives and community building – the city is also expanding its cycling network and walk pathways in an effort to combat rates of inactivity, particularly among Maori children.