Archive for General
In 2004, the regional West division of the Swedish Road Administration started up a co-operation project called “KUSTOM” – Municipal co-operation for safety and environment. The project aims at providing inhabitants of the municipality, companies, decision makers, employees of the municipality, organizations etc within a number of municipalities with facts and understanding of traffic safety and the environmental impacts of transportation.
The intention is to increase the awareness level about traffic safety and through this achieves a safer and more environmentally sound society. Activities carried out are e.g. activities towards employees of the municipal organisation focused on work place seminars where issues related to the environment and safety within transport has been discussed. Analyses of the present transport situation has been done in several municipalities which shows there is a potential to save both money and environment through efficiency actions such as use of car pools, clean vehicles, establishment of transport and purchase policies etc. Through the work of “KUSTOM” traffic safety and environment have been put on the agenda and a channel for information has been created between the Swedish Road Administration and the municipalities. Political decision makers have been very positive to the project, the work methodology and the use of working structurally in this way.
RES PUBLICA Project [UE Project]
Posted by: | CommentsThe RES PUBLICA project was initiated from the need for a local sustainable process towards a more effective use of energy Renewable Energy Source (RES) and a rational use of energy Rational Use of Energy (RUE). The main idea is to create synergies at the local level between policy makers, citizens and market actors through the implementation of Local Agenda 21. Therefore, the project contributes to produce bottom-up intelligent-energy strategies at the local level in different EU countries and to create a network at the EU level for the exchange of best practices. The partnership is made of strong public administrations from 4 different countries (Italy, Germany, Hungary and Spain) with experience in the field and relevant contacts in their territories. The main activities consist of the creation in each partner’s area, of a local Energy Forum that will involve all relevant stakeholders and lead to the production of a local Sustainable Energy programme focused on RES and RUE and including suggestions for the updating of local planning tools (such as mobility plans, building codes etc.).
In 2005, the Pilot Project “Green Light Graz I” (modernizing street lighting along the main traffic route Wienerstraße – Gürtel and other main streets) was started. 718 lamps in main streets were renewed and provided with state-of-the art technologies and control engineering. The Graz Energy Agency has taken over the whole project handling for contract management as an overall package by order of the City of Graz. As for technical implementation and financing, the Graz Energy Agency co-operates with Energy Graz. Together these two organizations guarantee the calculated energy savings! The costs are amortized by the savings. No additional investment costs accrue to the City of Graz. On April 26, 2006, the City of Graz was presented with the Green Light Award 2006 in Frankfurt for its programme.
European project RESET (Renewable Energy Strategies for European Towns)
Posted by: | CommentsRESETnet is a network of cities’ officials, institutions and experts in the field of energy and sustainability in cities. The network’s Main Office is based at RESET g.e.i.e. Seven Local Offices were established, corresponding to the other seven countries participating in RESETnet.
Since 1994, RESET has been addressing and assessing the feasibility of the penetration of renewable energies in four European metropolitan areas, namely A.M.Barcelona (ES), Glasgow (UK), Grand Lyon (FR) and Turin (IT). In addition, St. Petersburg (RUS) participated as an observer city to learn from the network. These large European cities joined together for the purpose to launch an EC-funded initiative, looking for less conventional renewable-source solutions, which could contribute towards a new urban quality.
From this co-operation of cities, a building targeted demonstration project was started in 1996, grouping the cities of A.M.Barcelona, Glasgow, Grand Lyon and Turin together with Rotterdam (NL), Copenhagen (DK), Porto (P), South Dublin (IR). The RESTART project is promoted under the framework of the THERMIE Integrated Quality Targeted Project. Its aim was to provide a few “Exemplary Urban Projects” concerning innovative energy-environmental integration on city scale to the public authorities, institutions and professionals of these industrial European Cities.
Essentially RESETnet is a virtual net, which provides useful information on the demonstration projects in the participating cities.
Step2Save – Energy Advise for tenants in the City of Amsterdam
Posted by: | CommentsStep2Save is a joint project from the City of Amsterdam, energy company NUON, housing corporation Far-West and Ymere and is sponsored by Philips. It consists on providing energy advice and an energy box to more to more than 10.000 social households in the City of Amsterdam. At the same time, this project aims to offer job experience as energy advisers to young unemployed people without basic qualifications.
As a result, the Step2Save reduces CO2 emissions, helps social housing households to reduce energy use and money and finally gives an opportunity to young unemployed to receive education and have a job for at least one year, facilitating their introduction to the job market.
Street lighting
Posted by: | CommentsWith regards to the energy side of waste cycles, a recycling system has been implemented concerning the lamps of all the municipal buildings and the municipal network of lighting. Our city is currently carrying out a study for recording the energy consumed of the entire municipal network of lighting with the aim of upgrading the system with the addition of applying energy efficient measures such as the gradual replacement of sodium lamps of the municipal lighting network with those that use low energy.
Platform of communication using portal, contest, guidelines in Czestochowa
Posted by: | CommentsThe idea of the project was to build communication platform, which would provide information on energy and environmental issues for the Częstochowa region. The platform is aimed for use by the local residents. It is designed to be a communication tool between local authorities (decision makers) and citizens (all stakeholders). On the portal, there is interesting information on energy planning, as well as best practise guidelines. Along with advice and instructions for energy efficiency to be used at home environment. Additionally, there is a forum, where anybody can ask questions and share their own problems.
As a part of the project, there was a “Mini-audit of my school” contest introduced students in the city of Częstochowa.
Staff Travel Plan
Posted by: | CommentsThe Council introduced a staff Travel Plan. A travel plan is a means of encouraging staff to use alternatives to single occupancy car-use, and it offers real benefits to the organisation, its employees and to the community at large. The plan aims to improve the local environment by reducing the levels of traffic in the borough. This helps reduce the level of air pollution and also helps reduce congestion. Under the support of the Travel Plan, many programs have been introduced, including a car sharing scheme, and incentives for cycling to work. There have been many successes, including an 11% decrease in cars being used for business travel.
Hello world!
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