Low-carbon development in global citiesPeter Erickson, Stockholm Environment Institute (U.S.)Cape Town, South AfricaApril 23, 2013
Global Context – Pathways for <2° C
Source: WBGU. 2009. “Solving the Climate Dilemma: The Budget Approach”. German Advisory Council on Global Change. http://www.wbgu.de/wbgu_sn2009_en.pdf.
Cities Are Important to Global Climate Change Mitigation• “C40 Cities have the potential to
reduce [greenhouse gas] emissions by one full gigaton” Bill Clinton, former President of the
United States, announcing SEI research for C40 Cities, Rio+20, June 2012
• “What the world needs is the same science based foundation for cities that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) provides for nations.” Cynthia Rosenzweig, NASA, “Cities
lead the way in climate change action”, Nature 467 (2010)
What are the most significant sources of urban GHG emissions?
• Depends on what you count and why: Production and / or consumption
Ability to influence Measurability…
Source: SEI-US. 2012. Greenhouse Gas Emissions in King County. Seattle, WA: http://www.sei-international.org/publications?pid=2026.
Where are the greatest (average) urban-scale GHG abatement opportunities?Sector Sample
Technologies2020
Abatement2050
AbatementLocal
Influence
Energy Supply
Low-carbon electricity
Buildings & infrastructure
Building retrofits, design
Transport “Avoid, shift, improve”
Industry & goods
Low-GHG goods
Ag & food Low-GHG diets
Forestry Avoided clearing
Waste RecyclingSource: Erickson et al. 2013 (Forthcoming). Technologies, practices, and measures for GHG abatement at the urban scale. Greenhouse Gas Measurement and Management. Work funded by C40 Cities. Note: dark circle means >5% of city GHGs. White circle <1%.
**
Transport sector analysisTechnology / practice
Policies and measures
2020 Abatement
2050 Abatement
Local Influence
Efficient vehiclesVehicle registration feesLow-GHG fuels
System efficiency (e.g., traffic mgmt.)
Traffic / demand mgmt
Mode shift Mass transit; road pricing
Trip avoidance Land use planning; road pricing
Source: Erickson et al. 2013 (Forthcoming). Technologies, practices, and measures for GHG abatement at the urban scale. Greenhouse Gas Measurement and Management. Work funded by C40 Cities. Note: dark circle means >5% of city GHGs. White circle <1%.
Example Policies and Measures• Energy Supply
Low-carbon electricity
• Building Energy Retrofit disclosure requirements and financing
• Transportation Vehicle charges & public transport Combined transport and land use planning
Putting it all together:Seattle example
Energy Supply –Examples• Seattle (USA) has a public
electricity utility, Seattle City Light Divested in coal in 2000 Committed to carbon neutral
electricity in future (but starts from >90% hydro)
• Cities tied to national / regional grids have it harder; common strategy is to focus on distributed local generation Sydney goal of capacity for
100% local electricity generation by 2030 with GHG reductions of 70%
London goal of 25% by 2025
Source: Seattle City Light. 2010. “2010 Integrated Resource Plan.”
Building Energy – Melbourne Example• Mandatory energy
disclosure - Building Energy Efficiency Disclosure Act 2010 (Australian Government)
• Low interest bank loans Secured by municipal charge
on the property (improvements and charges stay with the building); tenants contribute
Source: Mayes, David. 2013. The opportunities and lessons from the City of Melbourne’s implementation of building energy policies. City of Melbourne, Australia. Presentation to World Bank / CLC / C40 Workshop. April 2013.
Transportation – Singapore Example• Shift to rail-based transit
Following initial plan developed in early 1970s
Current 62% mode share for public transit during peak times; goal of 75% by 2030
Expanding rail; giving buses road priority
• Quotas on total car ownership
• Financial incentives for low-GHG vehicles
Source: Poon, Joe Fai. 2013. Transport: Opportunities and Lessons. Land Transport Authority, Singapore. Presentation to World Bank / CLC / C40 Workshop. Singapore. April 2013.
Transport / Land Use – Stockholm• Building towards the city centre;
using old industrial sites
• Integrating with transit
• Integrated planning; lots of stakeholder input
Source: Gustafsson, Thomas, 2013. Urban Planning and Climate from a Land Use Perspective. Presentation to World Bank / CLC / C40 Workshop. Singapore. April 2013.
Metrics for Tracking ProgressSector Driver Units Common local
data sources
Buildings Building energy intensity
MJ or kwh per m2 or employee
Utilities; surveys; city buildings departments
Transport Vehicle energy intensity
Liter / km or MJ / km
Vehicle registration departments
Share of public transit, non-motorized trips
% of trips by mode
Local vehicle /travel surveys
Avoided trips and/or reduced trip length
Pkm and tkm per resident
Local vehicle / travel surveys
Some international default data exist; e.g. UITP, ITDP, World Bank
Conclusions• Building energy, personal vehicle travel, and diet tend to have greatest GHG abatement potential, influence
• Interactions between government, stakeholders critical
• If data are available, simple metrics can help track progress, understand trends