Monday he traveled to the Vatican to discuss climate change with the Pope and the leaders of the so-called C40 group. It consists of 75 cities who want to be a leader on climate action in the world, including Oslo.
– In a Norwegian context is Oslo a great city, and twice as large as the second largest municipality. Compared with cities that have been invited to this meeting, we as a quarter to rain, says Røsland.
He is very pleased that Oslo has managed to distinguish itself internationally with its mitigation.
– Not rocket science
Oslo has also cut a lot of emissions from the municipality’s own operations, and the so-called klimafotavtrykket been reduced over the past year. When counted both direct and indirect emissions of harmful greenhouse gases.
Climate Footprint does not rain Only direct emissions from combustion and transport, but also indirect emissions. That also counts with emissions to produce goods and services regardless of where it happens, for example, goods are produced in China.
A CO2 equivalent is a device used in carbon footprint and equivalent effect an amount of CO2 has on global warming over a given period, usually 100 years. There are several types of greenhouse gases, and emissions of these gases are converted into CO2 equivalents according to their warming potential.
Klimakost figures from Asplan Viak is based on municipalities’ financial reporting on procurement of goods and services.
Commissioner manager thinks all Norwegian municipalities can cut emissions from its operations.
– It is not rocket science. One must make sure that the buildings use less energy and to ensure that transport is a cleaner way. We are a big business, with a lot of internal traffic in the commune. Therefore, it has to replace gasoline vehicles with zero-emission vehicles, such as in the home, had great effect. But there are electric cars in rural areas and, says Røsland.
Yet Oslo far from best in class when it comes to emissions from municipal operations pr. capita.
– Municipalities must precede
– Norwegian municipalities make less than they could to cut their greenhouse gas emissions, says Professor Sjur Kasa at CICERO.
Public services had in 2013 a total climate footprint of 5.3 million tonnes of CO2, shows Asplan Viak latest survey.
That’s greenhouse gas emissions associated with municipal own activity – everything from operating nursing homes and town halls to school transport – continues to increase. Despite aspirations to the contrary.
– Should we reach the much-publicized two-degree target, should Norway overall begin to approach 4.3 tonnes of CO2 per capita consumption of everything, both the municipal, state and private. It goes without saying that municipal activities can not remain at the levels many are today, says Hogne N. Larsen, senior adviser at consultancy Asplan Viak, which is behind the survey.
Great potential for cuts
A detailed breakdown shows that municipal discharges varies from 0.57 CO2 equivalents per capita to 4.75. The national average is 1.29 CO2 equivalents per capita (see fact box).
The bulk of greenhouse gas emissions for municipalities comes from electricity, maintenance and other services that they often buy from private operators. That is why here it is most great.
– The real potential lies in setting environmental standards for municipal suppliers and use purchasing power to influence these. We see a continuous rise in the climate footprint. Municipalities have an important role in reversing this trend, says Larsen.
– Not always negative with large emissions
He stressed that a high carbon footprint of municipal services is not necessarily negative.
– Food to schools or kindergartens can such as increasing municipal emissions but lowers while private consumption. Increased investment in public transit also increases municipal emissions, but reduces hopefully private car, said senior adviser.
He also points out that municipalities with good economy often can offer more services to its citizens, which can also result in greater greenhouse gas emissions. In other words not only climate policy that determines who is in the top and bottom of the municipal statistics.
surprise mayors
Mountain municipality in Hordaland had very least emissions per. capita in 2013.
– No so nice, says Mayor Eli Årdal Berland bit surprised. Exactly what the county has done to make it so good at statistics, she can not say.
– We are thinking conscious environment when we build new stuff. So for example, we replaced the lighting in the municipality of our house, says Berland.
In addition, the island municipality with 24,427 residents started initiatives to replace car with bicycle in the workplace. In Bykle municipality in Aust-Agder live 950 inhabitants. Here, emissions per. capita the highest in the country.
– No, I was not aware of. But it is a cold municipality that has high current consumption during the winter, so it can probably explain part, said Mayor Jon Rolf Næss.
Naess says that most municipal buildings are less than 20 years old, thus there is little to save on replacing these. School meals and fruit are another scheme they have in Bykle that may help to explain the high consumption.
Getting money back if emissions are not going down
In Skien they have just used NOK 38 million in hopes of reducing municipal energy consumption. The municipality has identified measures that enable them to save the most energy, such as replacing windows and electrical systems in schools and kindergartens.
According to plan, the investment pay for itself because reduced energy consumption equivalent of seven million a year . But unless that happens, the contractor must take rain igen.
– It with guarantee was crucial that we should enter with so much money in such a project. Many municipalities rely on some help to get started, says Hans-Petter Heim Holt, energy efficiency coordinator in Skien.
Vague guidelines
In 2009, it adopted guidelines for climate and energy planning in municipalities. It should contribute to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing green energy conversion.
Most municipalities currently has such a climate plan, but not everyone follows it.– signals from the state is not particularly strong. There are both voluntarily making such plans and no sanctions against breaking them, says Sjur Kasa, a senior researcher at CICERO and professor at the University of Missouri.
CICERO has studied municipal monitoring of climate plans.
It shows that more than half of those surveyed municipalities had neither started or planned to revise climate their schedules, although the government planning guidelines state that municipal plans climate and energy issues to be assessed regularly.
Ten of the country’s municipalities have målfestet that the municipality should become climate neutral. Over half have agreed to cut emissions by more than 15 percent. But time spent varied.
The study showed that there was less difference between the actual cuts between very climate engaged municipalities and those who had not so big plans, than one might think.
– It’s not that municipalities will not. But they often have many statutory responsibilities and simultaneously urge economy. We need more carrots and stronger signals to get the start, mean kasa.
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