ECO-METROPOLIS OUR VISION FOR COPENHAGEN 2015

IN 2015 COPENHAGEN WILL BE RIGHTLY KNOWN AS THE CAPITAL CITY IN THE WORLD WITH THE BEST URBAN ENVIRONMENT. COPENHAGEN WILL HAVE BECOME THE ECO-METROPOLIS OF THE WORLD, THUS DEMONSTRATING THAT ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN ADDS AN EXTRA DYNAMIC TO URBAN DEVELOPMENT. COPENHAGENERS AND VISITING GUESTS WILL BE ABLE TO SEE AND APPRECIATE THE IMPROVEMENTS, WHILE AT THE SAME TIME THE CITY WILL BE SHARING ACTIVE RESPONSIBILITY FOR GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL DEVELOPMENT.

OUR VISION
n 2007, Copenhagen has already defined itself as the environmental capital of Europe. With this environmental initiative, Copenhagen will show global leadership in the environmental field. This is an imperative for good quality of life, for future generations and for the survival of the animal kingdom. And also because Copenhagen can create a global difference by paving the way. We are setting a long-term goal for development until 2015 because we would like Copenhagen to be an inspirational example. Copenhagen will demonstrate to other capitals how a greener urban environment can enhance the quality of life in practical terms. This will be to the advantage of the citizens both of our city and the world. This will also be to the advantage of current and future generations. Copenhagen will be at the forefront of all major cities in terms of environmental initiatives in all areas. More than ever before, the environment will be pivotal for Copenhagens culture, urban life and identity. Copenhagen will be a major city which lives and breathes because of its concern for the environment, not in spite of it. The City will lead the way and its citizens will contribute actively to improving the environment through their daily activities.

The visions and goals of the Eco-metropolis will be included and specified in the Citys other work, e.g. the Municipal Plan and the Agenda 21 Plan. Copenhageners will be proud to live in their city because they value a good environment in Copenhagen and globally, and because they can see that they and their city are both contributing to it. Everyone can contribute, on a large scale or a small one. Everyone who makes a difference will be recognised for it. Copenhagen will be a capital city which attracts business life because companies and their staff will be keen to be par t of an environmental success in a growth area. The world will come to Copenhagen to see how to create modern environmental policies in the 21st century. Copenhagen will become a capital where visitors to the city experience a green and safe urban environment, returning home with an understanding of how environmental concerns can, in practice, suppor t a dynamic urban development. We will rethink environmental policy, make Copenhagen an even better place to live and place Eco-metropolis Copenhagen on the world map. That is our vision. City of Copenhagen, 2007

WE HAVE SET NEW AMBITIOUS AND BINDING GOALS FOR 2015; WE WILL SUPPORT OUR WORDS WITH ACTIONS; WE WILL ACHIEVE THOSE GOALS THROUGH CONCRETE AND VISIBLE INITIATIVES.

ACTION
isions require actions to become reality. Copenhagen has already demonstrated its capacity to back up its words with actions. Copenhagen is a city at a very positive developmental stage. Economic growth has been followed by local urban renewal in cer tain localities and even the creation of whole new districts. At the same time, Copenhagen is a leading city in the environmental field: Copenhageners are among the most environmentally conscious citizens in the whole world. Development and the environment go hand in hand. Copenhagen is well-known for the windturbines on Middelgrund, an area just outside the harbour of Copenhagen. We have one of the biggest district heating systems in the world: 97 % of households are connected to it. Surplus heat produced when generating electricity is reused for heating instead of being ejected into the sea. Energy is thus used twice and CO2 emissions are reduced. Since the 1990s we have had one of the worlds best waste management systems. Today, we reuse about 90 % of all building waste and incinerate about 75 % of household waste. The energy from burning waste material is used for electricity and district heating. This system is now being worldwide copied. In spite of strong economic growth, we have succeeded in keeping water and energy consumption at a constant level. We protect our drinking water and buy increasing

quantities of organic food stuffs. If anbody had said ten years ago that it would be possible today to swim or fish for cod in Copenhagen Harbour, most people would have shaken their head in disbelief! Ambitious visions demand ambitious actions; but we have an excellent star ting point. This is not the first time Copenhagen has taken the lead but we must now advance with even more determination for the benefit of both the population and the environment. Before 2010, the City of Copenhagen will have taken decisions about at least ten Star Initiatives. By this we mean highly visible, pivotal and concrete improvements affecting the environment of Copenhagen. Large-scale environmental initiatives are not new in Copenhagen. For example, we have recently decided to allocate DKK 185 million over a four-year period to improve conditions for cyclists. Some years ago, we opened the first swimming pool in the harbour. The new aspect of this is that we will significantly intensify our effor ts for more and better environmental initiatives. The Star Initiatives will at the same time be suppor ted by a broad spectrum of concrete and effective down-toear th projects, including in the for thcoming Agenda 21 plan for the period 2008-2012.

OUR VISION HAS FOUR THEMES FOR ECO-METROPOLIS COPENHAGEN:

WORLDS BEST CITY FOR CYCLES CLIMATE CAPITAL A GREEN AND BLUE CAPITAL CITY A CLEAN AND HEALTHY BIG CITY

The work in the coming years will be both measurable and goal-oriented. The City of Copenhagen will lead the way but without active input from the citizens and business sector, it will be impossible to achieve our vision. For this reason, we will involve the citizens and business sector in our environmental policy and focus on educating people about environmental and climate matters in such a way as to make it easier and more attractive to engage with the environment on a daily basis. We will look beyond our municipal borders. Copenhagen will increasingly influence national and international agendas. We will work to ensure that challenges and barriers the City cannot overcome alone will be debated in the Danish Parliament, EU, UN and other national and international fora. This is necessary not only for the environment in Copenhagen but also for the global environment. Copenhagen will also ensure that experience gained during the municipalitys ambitious environmental work will be shared both nationally and internationally. Similarly, Copenhagen will cooperate in a more goal-oriented way with other municipalities, major cities and regions than has been the case in the past. The more major cities striving to achieve something extraordinary for the environment, the better.

THE WORLDS BEST CITY FOR CYCLES

COPENHAGEN WILL BECOME THE WORLDS BEST CITY FOR CYCLES. NOT ONLY WILL PEOPLE BE ABLE TO CYCLE QUICKLY TO THEIR DESTINATION BUT ABOVE ALL SAFELY.
Dur ing recent year s, we have built a new br idge over the harbour for cyclists and pedestr ians. A similar one is under constr uction over gade . Many new cycle-par king stands have been set up and sever al campaigns have contr ibuted to better and safer cycle-tr affic . The initiative will continue and will be intensified. Conditions for cyclists will improve fur ther, so that even more people will choose to tr ansfor m the jour ney to their place of wor k or education into a bike r ide in Eco-metropolis Copenhagen. Cyclists already contr ibute to holding down CO 2 emisisions from tr affic compared to other major cities. When we achieve our goal of 50 % of Copenhagener s cycling to wor k, we will reduce CO 2 emisisions by a fur ther 80,000 tonnes per year in the tr affic of Copenhagen. We would like the new cyclists to be car dr iver s discover ing the many advantages of cycling: no time wasted in tr affic jams, better health, less CO 2 emissions and cheaper tr anspor t. The best alter native to cycling will be public tr anspor t, which must also be improved. Investments in ease of tr avel by metro, bus and so on will ensure that public tr anspor t is the prefer red alter native to cycling, r ather than the car.

ur rently, cyclists in Copenhagen are biking more than 1.1million km ever y day! 36 % of Copenhagener s choose to go by bike to their place of wor k or educational institution. This amazing number of cycles is presumably a wor ld record and constitutes an impor tant par t of Copenhagens identity. Our cycle culture has evolved and developed over many year s, helped by ongoing investments in cycle tr acks, cycle routes and so on. Many Copenhagener s want more and broader cycle tr acks, more green cycle routes free from car tr affic , green waves between tr affic lights and better cycle-par king facilities, also at their wor kplaces.

It is also impor tant to feel safe and secure when you take your bike , especially for young cyclists and their parents. Dur ing the last few year s the number of accidents has fallen but near ly half the ser ious tr affic injur ies, for example concussion or broken bones, are cyclists. Something must be done about this. As a minimum, we must halve the number of ser iously injured cyclists. Copenhagen takes the yellow jersey and the worlds capitals can draw inspiration from the worlds best city of cyclists!

GOALS FOR 2015

IN COPENHAGEN AT LEAST 50 % OF PEOPLE WILL GO TO THEIR WORK PLACE OR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION BY BIKE THE NUMBER OF SERIOUSLY INJURED CYCLISTS WILL DROP BY MORE THAN HALF COMPARED TO TODAY AT LEAST 80 % OF COPENHAGEN CYCLISTS WILL FEEL SAFE AND SECURE IN TRAFFIC

COPENHAGEN WILL ASSUME A GLOBAL RESPONSIBILITY BY TAKING THE LEAD IN REDUCING CO 2 EMISSIONS. WE WILL SHOW THE WORLD AND ESPECIALLY OTHER BIG CITIES THAT CO 2 EMISSIONS CAN BE REDUCED EFFECTIVELY WITHOUT ADVERSELY AFFECTING ECONOMIC GROWTH.

CLIMATE CAPITAL

hen Copenhagen hosts the UNs climate conference in 2009, the world will be thirsty for a success story. As host city, we must make a significant effor t to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

remarkable growth in the city. The fall is primarily due to connecting the district heating system and generating stations to cleaner fuels, especially the change from coal and oil to natural gas. We can and must however, improve fur ther. Vehicular CO2 emissions are increasing. Coal is still used too much to provide energy in Denmark. An intelligent climate policy will not stop the wheels turning; on the contrary. Society and citizens can make considerable savings by acting in a climate friendly way. So, we dare to set an ambitious new

Climate Capital Copenhagen has already taken giant steps in reducing CO2 emissions. Every citizen has reduced his input to global warming by 2.1 tonnes compared to the 1990 figures, from 7 tonnes to 4.9 tonnes. This corresponds to a reduction in CO2 emissions of 25 % for every Copenhagener over 15 years of age. This has occured despite

goal of reducing CO2 emissions by a fur ther 20 % by 2015 compared to today (2005 figures). This means that by 2015 we will have reduced emissions by 40 % compared to 1990. In 2015, no Copenhagener will emit more than 3.7 tons of CO2 on average. The climate must become a matter of natural concern. This will give much better results than wagging a parental finger in admonition. An extra effor t will therefore be made in the run up to the summit in Copenhagen in December 2009, to highlight what the individual citizen in Copenhagen can do to reduce CO2 emissions. The City of Copenhagen will lead the way. For example, all new municipal buildings will be environmentally friendly. The considerable potential for energy-saving already existing in the Citys own buildings will be exploited by environmentally sensible restoration and renewal. In order to reduce the amount of car traffic, we will focus on green transpor t and congestion charging as well as measures to promote public transpor t.

The City will go first with its Star Initiatives and its daily practice. The wider use of sustainable energy through the use of solar cells, geothermal energy and wind power for example, must be strongly promoted. Companies in Copenhagen must also play a more active role. They must work in harmony with leaders in the field of energy, setting goals to reduce energy use. Many new office blocks for example, use a lot of energy for cooling purposes. We will invite companies to cooperate in ensuring the correct solutions for the future. Well before the UN Conference on Climate change, the City of Copenhagen will present a coordinated climate strategy for Climate Capital Copenhagen up to the year 2015. Through action, Copenhagen will be a dynamo and inspiration in the fight against climate change!

GOAL FOR 2015

THE CITYS CO 2 EMISSIONS WILL BE REDUCED BY AT LEAST 20 % COMPARED TO 2005.

A GREEN AND BLUE CAPITAL CITY

IN COPENHAGEN THERE MUST BE EASY, FIRST-CLASS ACCESS TO BLUE AND GREEN RECREATIONAL AREAS OF THE HIGHEST QUALITY.

openhageners are crazy about blue and green areas. Flledparken (a historic central park in Copenhagen) alone is used by 11 million people each year three times as many as Tivoli, the world-famous amusement park. After just one summer season, Amager Beachpark, located 3 km away from the city centre on an island linked to the south of Copenhagen, has attracted thousands of visitors. Sea bathing has for many years been the subject of stories amongst Copenhageners and the world in general. How many capital cities can boast of having clean water in its harbour?

The citys popular parks, beaches and sea swimming-pools are visible proof that a good environment enhances peoples daily well-being. They send out strong messages to us city-dwellers. They offer us the chance for physical activity and development, peace and relaxation as well as the chance to experience birds and animals. Research has shown that in this way, green and blue areas can contribute decisively to city-dwellers health and wellbeing. Copenhageners simply feel better by visiting the park, the beach or a sea swimming-pool on a regular basis. A sustainable city is also a city in harmony with nature. The clean water in the harbour tells us that we are on the right track to develop a sustainable water system. The citys trees, parks and natural areas combine to purify the air and create shelter. The citys parks and natural areas contain an environment for a rich plant and animal life, thereby contributing to the citys biological diversity. There must be a place for both animals and people in Eco-metropolis Copenhagen. We know that busy city-dwellers do not have much spare time in their daily lives. Today, every Copenhagener spends on average one hour in a park every other day. Today, 60 % of Copenhageners live within 15 minutes walk of green or blue areas. This is good but it can be improved. And it will be!

The initiative will cover the creation of new parks, beaches and sea swimming-pools as well as good, safe, green connections through town so it will easier to reach the blue and the green areas. We are not necessarily talking about large areas. Even small parks of about 2,000 square meters, about a fifth the size of a football pitch, are large enough for many activities and experiences. Within the most tightly packed par ts of the city, where there is little room for new green areas, it is a question of improving the existing parks. The green and blue areas will bind the city together, creating good experiences for the citys inhabitants and visitors!

GOALS FOR 2015

90 % OF COPENHAGENERS MUST BE ABLE TO WALK TO A PARK, A BEACH OR A SEA SWIMMING-POOL IN LESS THAN 15 MINUTES. COPENHAGENERS WILL VISIT THE CITYS PARKS, NATURAL AREAS, SEA SWIMMING-POOLS AND BEACHES TWICE AS OFTEN AS THEY DO TODAY.

A CLEAN AND HEALTHY BIG CITY

COPENHAGEN WILL OFFER EVERYONE ONE OF THE WORLDS CLEANEST AND MOST HEALTHY BIG CITY ENVIRONMENTS.
rial in the air which can be damaging to our health. The planned environment zone will contribute positively and mean fewer premature deaths. The City, however, wants to go fur ther than the law currently allows. The environmental zone scheme must be made dynamic and it must become possible to tighten limits covering vehicles exhaust emissions on an ongoing basis. Congestion charging and environmentally friendly vehicles must be introduced in the City. National and international limits ensuring improved air quality should be tightened. The City will work actively to achieve these goals not least by securing suppor t for the necessary means for achieving them. Noise must be combatted. Noise influences our childrens ability to learn as well as everybodys health, especially if we do not get a good nights sleep. Despite an effor t to reduce noise in residential areas, the number of dwellings subject to noise has not decreased. We do not have the figures for such affliction at night but we do know that there are 40,000 dwellings in Copenhagen which are affected by excessive traffic noise on a round-the-clock basis. Of these, 5,000 dwellings are affected by a noise level which is damaging to health (over 70dB). The trend must be broken and the number of Copenhagen citizens who are most affected by noise (over 70dB) must first have this nuisance reduced. Recent research shows that noise reduces childrens learning ability. We will therefore work to ensure that the Citys schools and institutions are not subject to more than a low noise level (55dB). Many initiatives must be taken to achieve the goal, for example, reducing the speed limit,

n even cleaner and healthier capital needs an extraordinarily broad effor t. Compared to many other big cities, Copenhagen already provides a clean and healthy urban environment. The improvement of the air quality in Copenhagen is the ultimate success story. Since the 1960s, the air quality has quite simply improved continuosly. This is an excellent example of how economic growth and environmental improvement go hand in hand. Today, car traffic is by far the greatest cause of air pollution in Copenhagen.

The air can and must be even cleaner than it is now. The goal is clear. People should be able to move around in Eco-metropolis Copenhagen and breathe the air without risk to their health. Like the majority of big European cities, Copenhagen has difficulty in living up to the air quality requirments for nitrous dioxide (NO2) and large par ticles (PM10). By 2015 at the latest, we must be able to meet all the national and international limits for harmful mate-

regulating the traffic, laying new road surfaces and insulating dwellings and institutions. Ecology in itself benefits the environment and the health of Copenhageners. Today, about 45 % of food consumption in municipal institutions is organic. This is probably unmatched in any other capital in the world. We want to be twice as good: by 2015 we will have doubled this figure to 90 %. At the same time, we are working to increase the percentage of organic food eaten throughout the capital from a current national figure of about 7 % to at least 20 %. This will be a world record. We are also working on increasing the nutritiousness of the food as well as its taste. Copenhagen will also become one of the cleanest capitals in the world. Benches, playgrounds and street equipment must not be worn or out of repair. The streets must not be pot-holed. A run-down city gives an untidy impression and tends to lead to more vandalism and garbage on the streets. This creates a feeling of insecurity among its users. The City will make effor ts to prevent people leaving rubbish in public spaces. All groups of citizens, of any age, should feel embarassed if they just throw rubbish in public spaces. Ongoing opinion polls are being held and massive effor ts will be made to change peoples attitudes. Such effor ts will be directed especially towards children and young people. Copenhagen will be a clean and healthy big city!

GOALS FOR 2015

COPENHAGENERS WILL BE ABLE TO SLEEP IN PEACE, FREE FROM NOISE HARMFUL TO HEALTH FROM STREET TRAFFIC . ALL SCHOOLS AND INSTITUTIONS WILL BE SUBJECT TO LOW NOISE LEVELS FROM STREET TRAFFIC DURING THE DAYTIME. AIR CLEANLINESS WILL BE SO HIGH THAT COPENHAGENERS HEALTH WILL NOT SUFFER. THERE WILL BE AT LEAST 20 % ORGANIC FOOD IN THE CITYS FOOD CONSUMPTION, WITH THE CITY TAKING THE LEAD WITH AT LEAST 90 % ORGANIC FOOD IN MUNICIPAL INSTITUTIONS COPENHAGEN WILL BE EUROPES CLEANEST CAPITAL AND ONE OF THE CLEANEST CAPITALS IN THE WORLD. RUBBISH ON PUBLIC STREETS WILL BE REMOVED WITHIN EIGHT HOURS.

2015. COPENHAGEN WILL BE GREEN ACCOUNTABLE

t is not by chance that the vision points forward to 2015. In 2000, at a UN summit, the world set eight goals for sustainable development in the Millenium Declaration. The goals run until 2015. The best way for Copenhagen to suppor t the global envirommental initiative is by showing that we can create results and demonstrate leadership and continue our dynamic urban development. We are not just star ting. For a long time, Copenhagen has been focusing on the environment and every day Copenhageners are reaping the benefits of this focus. We are building on a solid foundation, but over the next eight years we will raise the stakes to a unique, new level. 2015 is the year which puts us under maximum time pressure, while still believing that we can achieve our goal of becoming the worlds leading Eco-metropolis. The goal can be achieved but only if there is broad political will and popular suppor t to act now. For this reason, ongoing measurements will be taken until 2015 to ensure that we are working fast enough. We will

document the real environmental improvements occuring in all areas of activity. At the same time, we will compare our achievements with our goals for 2015. Copenhagens annual green accounts will be the background for evaluating how close to our goals we are. Is it realistic to imagine we can achieve our targets with the current improvements or shall we implement new initiatives? Which other green capital cities are we competing against to raise our environmental effor ts? It is a dynamic process, where we must relate to a world in change. The input which will be impor tant in 2012, will presumably be different from what is needed today. So we must be prepared and able to adjust not the goal, but the means we use to reach the goal. The ten Star Initiatives up to 2009 will be followed by equally ambitious initiatives up to 2015. We must, however, have a good head of steam as the train leaves the platform!

IN 2015
AT LEAST 50 % OF PEOPLE WILL GO TO THEIR WORK PLACE OR EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION IN COPENHAGEN BY BIKE. THE NUMBER OF SERIOUSLY INJURED CYCLISTS IN COPENHAGEN TO BE HALVED COMPARED TO TODAY. AT LEAST 80 % OF CYCLISTS IN COPENHAGEN TO FEEL SAFE AND SECURE IN TRAFFIC . A REDUCTION OF COPENHAGENS CO 2 EMISSIONS OF AT LEAST 20 % COMPARED TO TODAY.

WHERE ARE WE TODAY?

36 %

118 CYCLISTS A YEAR

58 %

COPENHAGEN EMITS A COMBINED TOTAL OF 2.4M TONNES (2005 FIGURES) = 4.9 TONNES PER INHABITANT

90 % OF COPENHAGENERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO WALK TO A PARK, A BEACH, A NATURAL AREA OR SEA SWIMMING-POOL IN LESS THAN 15 MINUTES. COPENHAGENERS WILL BE VISITING THE CITYS PARKS, NATURAL AREAS, SEA SWIMMING-POOLS AND BEACHES TWICE AS OFTEN AS TODAY.

ABOUT 60 %

TODAY, COPENHAGENERS VISIT THE CITYS PARKS, NATURAL AREAS, SEA SWIMMING-POOLS AND BEACHES EVERY OTHER DAY, AND STAY THERE ONE HOUR ON AVERAGE.

COPENHAGENERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO SLEEP PEACEFULLY, FREE FROM NOISE HARMFUL TO HEALTH FROM STREET TRAFFIC . ALL SCHOOLS AND INSTITUTIONS SHOULD BE SUBJECT TO ONLY LOW

THERE ARE NO CURRENT MEASUREMENTS TAKEN OF TRAFFIC-NOISE LEVELS AT NIGHT. MEASURED ON A ROUND-THE-CLOCK BASIS, ABOUT 40,000 DWELLINGS ARE SUBJECT TO EXCESSIVE NOISE LEVELS. TODAY, ABOUT 10 SCHOOLS AND 20 INSTITUTIONS ARE SUBJECT TO NOISE FROM STREET TRAFFIC . EVEN MORE, HOWEVER, ARE ESTIMATED TO BE SUBJECT TO MORE THAN A LOW NOISE LEVEL, THAT IS TO SAY MORE THAN 55DB.

CITY OF COPENHAGEN Technical and Environmental Administration Tlf. +45 3366 3500 Fax +45 3366 7080 Email: [email protected] www.kk.dk/ecometropolis ISBN 978-87-7072-000-7 Design: phonowerk Print: Rek.Ar t Offset ApS Photo: Tine Harden

TRAFFIC-NOISE LEVELS.

THE AIR SHOULD BE SO CLEAN THAT COPENHAGENERS HEALTH WILL NOT BE DAMAGED.

LIKE THE VAST MAJORITY OF BIG EUROPEAN CITIES, COPENHAGEN ALSO FINDS IT DIFFICULT TO LIVE UP TO THE AIR QUALITY SPECIFICATIONS FOR NITROUS DIOXIDE (NO2) AND LARGE PARTICLES (PM10)

THERE SHOULD BE AT LEAST 20 % ORGANIC FOOD IN THE CITYS FOOD CONSUMPTION. THE CITY TO LEAD THE WAY WITH AT LEAST 90 % ORGANIC FOOD IN ITS INSTITUTIONS. COPENHAGEN SHOULD BE EUROPES CLEANEST CAPITAL AND ONE OF THE CLEANEST CAPITALS IN THE WORLD. RUBBISH SHOULD BE CLEARED FROM PUBLIC STREETS WITHIN EIGHT HOURS.

ABOUT 7 % NATIONWIDE

45 %

COPENHAGEN IS RECKONED TO BE AMONGST THE TOP THIRD OF THE CLEANEST CAPITALS IN EUROPE. TODAY, IN THE INNER CITY, 36 HOURS ELAPSE IN SOME PLACES BEFORE THE STREETS ARE CLEANED.

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