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What net zero looks like around the world

Cities are key enablers of the energy transition. But each city in every area of the world will have a different set of priorities and ideas of how to achieve net-zero by 2050. FORESIGHT examines a city from each continent—and a research station—to show what this global action looks like from seven different perspectives

Over the past two years, national governments and businesses have adopted net-zero emissions targets, aligning themselves with the goal to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, as agreed at the 2015 UN climate change meeting in Paris and, crucially, with what the scientific community says is required to avert catastrophic climate change. Cities are also stepping up their ambition. Even though it is often the national leaders that make the headlines, cities are an important part of the energy transition. City governments and local administrations better understand the needs of their citizens, and the local resources available to fulfill them. More than 700 urban areas have signed up to the Cities Race to Zero campaign, led by non-profit C40, ICLEI—​​a global network of more than 2500 local and regional governments committed to sustainable urban development—the Global Covenant of Mayors, CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project), United Cities and Local Governments, World Resources Institute and WWF. Signatories to the initiative commit to halving their emissions by 2030 and reaching net-zero by 2050. Cities play a critical role in delivering a healthy, resilient, zero-carbon recovery,” said Nigel Topping, UK High Level Climate Champion for COP26, when new signatories were announced in April 2021 in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. Increasing climate ambitions from cities and subnational governments should give countries the impetus to pursue mid- and long-term emissions reductions, and ultimately deliver the promise of the Paris Agreement.”

Balance of old and newEurope — Edinburgh, Scotland

Steeped in history, the Scottish capital of Edinburgh is staking a leadership claim on climate action. In 2019, the city’s council declared a climate emergency and then pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030, some 15 years before the national target for all of Scotland. We know that a changing climate is the single biggest threat to human health,” says Charlotte Otter from the council. We also recognise that, as a local authority, we have a responsibility to act now to protect and improve Edinburgh for generations to come.” She adds that the transition will bring economic benefits to the city, through new and skilled jobs, as well as improved air quality and overall health. In June 2021, the council opened a three-month consultation on its draft 2030 climate strategy. The proposal lays out action to be taken on transportation, green construction, heat and energy. It also addresses nature and biodiversity loss, a crucial area for many cities. The council’s emissions are already down 60% compared to 2005-2006 levels, exceeding the interim goal for a 42% cut by 2021, attributed to new waste reprocessing facilities becoming operational in 2019 and diverting more than 107,000 tonnes of waste from landfill to become an energy source. A key challenge ahead, however, is addressing the emissions from the city’s Old and New Town, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. We face the question of how these buildings, along with the 48% of Edinburgh homes which were built pre-1945, can be upgraded to become more energy efficient and resilient to future climate change in a way which protects their heritage and value to the city,” Otter says. Residents are already feeling the impacts of climate change as ageing water management systems are unable to handle the increased rainfall, leading to accelerated decay in buildings. The council is partnering with Edinburgh World Heritage and Historic Scotland—both preservation societies—to develop a way to retrofit such buildings without comprising historic features. As for new builds, 3500 net-zero homes with built-in energy efficiency measures are being constructed as part of a regeneration of a waterfront district in the city. The high-density, mixed-use development is intended to also offer jobs for local residents, reducing the need for commutes. By building in energy efficiency across the lifecycle of the new homes, we’ll create a low-carbon community which will reduce fuel bills and running costs,” says Otter. We estimate that households will save £12 million over 30 years by reducing fuel bills—as well as helping improve people’s health and wellbeing.”

Political barriers remainNorth America — Ottawa, Canada

Ottawa’s net-zero pledge in January 2020 was the third climate goal passed by the Canadian capital’s council, following an earlier plan to set an emissions reduction goal and a 2016 goal to cut emissions to 80% below 2012 levels by 2050. When we approved that one [in 2016]… it meant nothing, it was a target with nothing attached to it,” says City Councillor Scott Moffatt, adding he did not vote for it due to this lack of substance. Moffatt chairs the council’s Standing Committee on Environmental Protection, Water and Waste Management, and oversees the design of the city’s Climate Change Master Plan, which sets net-zero target and interim goals. The city’s targets are split into community and the city’s operations—including buildings, residential waste management and vehicles. Using the baseline year of 2012, the community emission reduction goals are 43% by 2025, 68% by 2030, 96% by 2040, and 100% by 2050. Emissions from the council’s operations, meanwhile, will be cut by 30% by 2025, 50% by 2030, and 100% by 2040. As a corporate entity, [we] are responsible for some emissions,” Moffatt says. Climate change considerations are embedded in all committees and all council decisions factor in the climate impact, he says. In autumn 2020, the council unanimously adopted the C$52 billion Energy Evolution plan, which details how the city will meet its goals. It’s the piece of the puzzle that shows how you get [to net zero],” says Moffatt. That was a big hurdle, to have everyone from all sides, approve it.” Modelling for the plan concluded that five actions would have the greatest impact on emissions: personal vehicle electrification; retrofitting existing residential buildings; retrofitting existing commercial buildings; diverting organic waste from landfill to create renewable natural gas; transitioning commercial vehicle fleets to zero-emissions. Already, 20 projects have been identified for the next five years in these priority areas but funding is a hurdle. We have some money and we [will] leverage that… but at some point, the council is going to have to put some more money into climate change initiatives,” Moffatt says. The city has a plan, it’s costed—all we need is funding.” The city received a C$400 million grant from the federal government to electrify its bus fleet and a pilot project is underway. Winter is a concern, however, Moffatt says. The worry is whether there will be sufficient hydroelectricity generation to meet the increased demand that transportation electrification will bring, given Canada’s increasingly harsh winters. The city also needs to ensure there is charging infrastructure to support the broader uptake of electric vehicles—especially with a population, which surpassed one million in 2019. All of this stuff is easier said than done,” Moffatt says. As for the future, Moffatt is also worried that successors on the council may seek to alter the path the city is on. Politics will be a big hurdle to keep us on track,” he says. [But] these are tangible plans that will save money,” he adds. Financial analysis found that investments made to 2050—estimated at C$57.4 billion (C$31.8 billion in 2020 values) could yield a community-wide net return of C$87.7 billion (C$12.4 billion in 2020 dollars).

Early adopterSouth America — Buenos Aires, Argentina

Buenos Aires has embedded climate action in its work since 2003. It joined C40 as a member in 2017 and was among the first cities in the world to commit to net-zero. The magnitude of the climate crisis shows that the transformation is only possible with the involvement of every sector and area,” says Renzo Morosi, president of the city’s environmental protection agency APRA​​. In this context, the role of cities is key, since they are the scenario where the impacts of climate change take place,” he adds. The city of three million has an interim emissions reduction target of 53% by 2030, against a 2015 baseline of 13 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e). In 2020, backed by C40s, Buenos Aires’ lawmakers drew up a Climate Action Plan (PAC 2050), complete with a list of priorities. In the post-Covid-19 recovery process, it is necessary to consolidate new urban models for healthy cities, in articulation with the climate agenda, as an effective means to deal with both climate and health crises,” Morosi says. Buenos Aires’ Climate Action Plan was elaborated in 2020, during the pandemic, therefore it reflects solutions in that sense, focusing on the new spatiality and sustainable mobility, as well as nature-based solutions,” he adds. Efforts include promoting the cycle network and bike-sharing systems, new pedestrian, recreational and outdoor dining areas, and green spaces and tree planting. Further interim targets for 2030 in the PAC includes converting half of its bus fleet to zero-emission vehicles, producing 15% of residential power supply from solar PV and for 80% of green waste to be composted. One significant challenge facing cities is their reliance on the national electricity system, which in Argentina is not expected to be zero emissions by 2050. In the analysis for the PAC 2050, Buenos Aires’ ambitious scenario would take its emissions to just two million tCO2e—still 15.6% shy of the city’s zero-emissions goal. Of this shortfall, 10% can be attributed to the national grid. The city will compensate for these emissions by increasing forested areas, both in and outside the city’s limits, and seeking clean energy procurement for public buildings. Enhanced cooperation across government is key to success, says Morosi, with more than 30 government areas involved in drafting the PAC. Previous coordination with provincial authorities and the municipalities that make up the broader Buenos Aires metropolitan area on public transport, watershed and waste management could lend itself to coordinated climate action and reinforce the PACs implementation, he adds. The bigger challenge ahead, again, is funding. Increasing ambition implies the deployment of measures and resources; therefore, in the future, funding opportunities and the creation of mechanisms to facilitate the transition will be needed,” Morosi says. It is important to work in a coordinated and articulated manner between different governmental levels, with the private sector and the international level to ensure the means of implementation needed.”

On the front lineAfrica — Accra, Ghana

Ghana’s coastal capital Accra has been one of the leading cities in achieving net-zero globally. Along with Buenos Aires, it was among the first 25 cities to commit to net-zero emissions by 2050 and its mayor, Mohammed Adjei Sowah, has been on the board of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy since 2019. The direct link that we, mayors, have with our citizens and the impact cities can have on people’s daily life make it one of the most relevant levels of action to fight climate change,” Sowah said at the time. In late 2020, the city became only the second in Africa to publish a Climate Action Plan (CAP), prepared with support from C40, covering 2020-2025. Accra’s CAP notes that the average temperature of the West African nation has already increased by more than 1°C since 1960 and heat-related deaths are expected to increase five-fold by 2080. Annual rainfall has decreased 2.4% per decade since 1960 and the city also has a history of flooding—exacerbated by the dumping of waste into rivers and water bodies. Accra as a low-lying area would suffer the loss of coastline up to 150 metres inland if we experience a sea-level rise of just 20 centimetres, according to Ghana’s Third National Communication, published in 2015,” Sowah said when the CAP was released. The harsher droughts experienced in the north of Ghana and its attendant out-migration by our brothers and sisters are concerns that we must be aware of.” Greenhouse gas emissions data collected by the city found that its footprint was 2.4 million tCO2e in 2015 with annual per capita emissions of 12 tCO2e. Modelling estimated the city’s emissions would treble by 2050 if it did not act. Instead, it is targeting a reduction of 27% below business-as-usual by 2030, 46% by 2040 and 73% by 2050. The remaining emissions—from stationary energy and waste—highlight opportunities to increase ambition, the CAP states. The plan also says that the targets will only be reached if there is action by stakeholders within and outside the city of two million, including the national government and the private sector. Waste accounts for the highest proportion of emissions in Accra and is one of the five areas of focus in the five-year plan. Priority action items include separation of wet and dry waste at source, diversion of organic material from landfill and the introduction of landfill gas capture technology, with the potential to use it for energy generation. However, the greatest impact on emissions reductions could come from getting residents to use public transport—a shift which could save half a million tCO2e annually by 2030—although the development of a bus rapid transit and arterial bus network falls under the purview of the national government. The municipality is however moving to convert its bus fleet to either electric or compressed natural gas. Wastewater treatment meanwhile would lead to a cut of around 100,000 tCO2e per year and landfill gas capture just under 50,000 tCO2e.

Going greenAsia — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Malaysia’s glittering capital, Kuala Lumpur, joined C40s Deadline 2020 programme in 2017 committing the city to develop an ambitious climate plan. This culminated with the publication of the Kuala Lumpur Climate Action Plan 2050 in July 2021. Climate change has certainly impacted Kuala Lumpur, we can clearly see it in the increased incidences of flash floods, storms and landslides,” Mayor Mahadi Che Ngah states. Heat and droughts also pose major risks to the city’s 1.8 million residents. While the city’s governing body will lead and funding will come from both the municipality’s budget and the national government, private sector funding and donor support are also envisioned. Given the climate risks facing Kuala Lumpur, its three key strategies are: to decrease urban heat to help cool the city; improve flood protections; and increase water security. Measures include promotion of water use efficiency, improving the city’s water storage capability, draft a flood vulnerability map and a flood management and response plan. Another key measure is to increase green areas, with the city aiming to plant five million trees by 2050. The larger impact of green spaces within the city is the adaptive capacity it can provide to changes from climate,” the plan says. The function of green spaces can significantly contribute towards permeability of surfaces which is key in mitigating flash floods due to the torrential rainfall that Kuala Lumpur experiences regularly.” It can also help lower the city’s overall heat levels. Transport accounts for more than half of Kuala Lumpur’s emissions and efforts in conjunction with the national government could see this sector’s emissions drop by 65% by 2030, primarily through the provision of electric vehicle incentives. Shifting to public transport or so-called active mobility”, such as walking and cycling, and fuel efficiency improvements are also needed. Other initiatives needed include decarbonising the electricity grid and encouraging local renewable generation and energy efficiency upgrades.

People put firstOceania — Wellington, New Zealand

Dubbed the coolest little capital in the world” by Lonely Planet guidebooks, Wellington, New Zealand, declared a climate and ecological emergency in 2019 and set its 2050 net-zero goal the same year. We are a capital city that believes in justice and our thriving natural environment makes us one of the greenest cities in the world,” says city councillor Tamatha Paul. This is the nature of our city that our communities value so committing to going net-zero is a no-brainer.” The plan, Te Atakura – First to Zero”, targets four areas: transport, building energy and urban form, advocacy, and the council. It also reinforces the city’s interim targets of a 43% cut in emissions by 2030 and 68% by 2040, measured against 2001 emissions of 1.1 million tCO2e. As with many cities, at 53% transport accounts for the largest share of Wellington’s emissions. Te Atakura notes that a fifth of the sector’s footprint comes from aviation and marine travel, with limited options to cut this output at present. Instead, it flags a pressing need to move away from fossil fuel-powered vehicles by 2030. Wellington City is famously and justifiably a walkable city,” says fellow councillor Iona Pannett. The city’s proposed new District Plan, which is out for consultation ahead of adoption in 2022, and investment via the Let’s Get Welly Moving” initiative in mass rapid transit, and a new bike plan aims to make active modes and public transport the dominant modes of transport,” she adds. Electricity consumption accounts for the second-highest share of Wellington’s emissions—despite New Zealand’s renewables-dominant grid. Improving energy efficiency via the Home Energy Saver Programme, incentivising new builds to be green” and smarter growth planning to minimise the use of personal vehicles all have a role to play. Cities should provide choices to their people that give them a really good lifestyle,” says Paul. That means lots of housing in dense suburbs located along key transport routes, great active and public transport options, lots of urban forests and shared urban space designed for people. All of these things are not only climate-safe, but they [also] have the co-benefits of increasing people’s social, cultural and economic health and wellbeing.” Wellington’s plan, like other cities, emphasises the need to engage with the community as it moves on climate action. Paul flags the focus on engagement with the local Maori tribes, or iwi, and the respect for the land. It also means our city is thriving with indigenous species and habitat, and our indigenous culture is celebrated throughout the city,” she says. The council is also pursuing a zero-emissions goal for its own operations. Measures taken include investing in energy efficiency improvements in council-owned buildings and facilities, planting trees, and replacing street lights with LED lighting. It is working on reducing landfill waste by a third by 2026, including via a household food waste collection programme. Pannett cites data showing that the city’s overall net emissions have fallen by 7% despite a 26% growth in population over the past 20 years, saying it is, A step in the right direction. However, we know there is a long way to go before we get to net-zero,” she adds.

Collaboration in the coldAntarctica — Princess Elisabeth Research Station

The design for Antarctica’s first zero-emissions research station, Princess Elisabeth, began in 2003. The team behind it wondered how far technologies at the time could go towards meeting the objectives of the Madrid Protocol to the Antarctic Treaty, which binds signatories to reduce the environmental impact to a minimum, says Nighat Amin, head of International Relations at the International Polar Foundation. A quick survey of existing stations on the Antarctic continent showed that few had adopted any technologies which would lead to a significant reduction in environmental impact,” she says. Some countries had attempted to deploy solar panels or wind turbines but the experiment had not been successful for the most part.” The final design for the Princess Elisabeth station minimises energy and material loss due to its nine-layer shell and use of ventilation systems to transfer heat and makes the most of the strong winds and constant summer daylight. It was built to withstand the force of the Antarctic winds and ensure the dominant winds would keep snow from accumulating on it. The project to build a zero-emissions station was fortunate in the partners it attracted, who all rose to the challenge to design a special microgrid for the station, and this became a lifesize laboratory for energy efficiency,” says Amin. The partners had to overcome the challenge of transporting large components, such as wind turbines, to the site 220 kilometres inland and up to an altitude of 1400 metres. Amin believes the innovation and collaboration demonstrated at Princess Elisabeth can inspire other urban areas around the world. If cities can function on the basis of sub-systems like communities that adopt consumer behaviour favourable to reducing environmental impact jointly, then the positive effect can be multiplied and deliver a rapid result from this organic response,” says Amin. The solutions to big problems come from countless small initiatives coalescing.” •


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Katie Kouchakji

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© International Polar Foundation - René Robert