TY - JOUR
T1 - Towards an Integrated Approach to Urban Decarbonisation in Practice
T2 - The Case of Vitoria-Gasteiz
AU - Urrutia-Azcona, Koldo
AU - Molina-Costa, Patricia
AU - Muñoz, Iñigo
AU - Maya-Drysdale, David
AU - Garcia-Madruga, Carolina
AU - Flores-Abascal, Iván
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was funded by European Commission, grant number 691883.
Funding Information:
Acknowledgments: Deep thanks to the European Commission for funding SmartEnCity project, the frame of this research, and to the Basque Government for its significant support to the Basque research and innovation paradigm.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
PY - 2021/8/2
Y1 - 2021/8/2
N2 - How can local authorities effectively approach the decarbonisation of urban environments? Recent efforts to redirect cities into a less energy-intensive model have been mostly approached from a sectoral perspective, with specific energy policies and plans being issued without deeply considering their ties with other urban aspects. In this sense, well-established urban planning procedures have not been part of those, with the consequence of barriers in the implementation phase of those energy plans. The Cities4ZERO methodology was developed to guide effective integration between urban planning and energy policies, plans, and practices. It provides a holistic approach to strategic municipal processes for urban decarbonisation in the mid-long term, which includes key local stakeholders’ engagement into integrated energy planning processes, as well as tools for effective energy decarbonisation modelling. This paper analyses the application of the Cities4ZERO decarbonisation methodology on its strategic stage in the development of Vitoria-Gasteiz’s Action Plan for an Integrated Energy Transition 2030 (APIET 2030). It suggests that in order to accelerate urban decarbonisation, it is critical to: (a) foster interdepartmental collaboration; (b) allow for flexibility on the land-use planning regulations; (c) back decisions with detailed urban-energy models; and (d) truly engage key local stakeholders in the planning and implementation processes.
AB - How can local authorities effectively approach the decarbonisation of urban environments? Recent efforts to redirect cities into a less energy-intensive model have been mostly approached from a sectoral perspective, with specific energy policies and plans being issued without deeply considering their ties with other urban aspects. In this sense, well-established urban planning procedures have not been part of those, with the consequence of barriers in the implementation phase of those energy plans. The Cities4ZERO methodology was developed to guide effective integration between urban planning and energy policies, plans, and practices. It provides a holistic approach to strategic municipal processes for urban decarbonisation in the mid-long term, which includes key local stakeholders’ engagement into integrated energy planning processes, as well as tools for effective energy decarbonisation modelling. This paper analyses the application of the Cities4ZERO decarbonisation methodology on its strategic stage in the development of Vitoria-Gasteiz’s Action Plan for an Integrated Energy Transition 2030 (APIET 2030). It suggests that in order to accelerate urban decarbonisation, it is critical to: (a) foster interdepartmental collaboration; (b) allow for flexibility on the land-use planning regulations; (c) back decisions with detailed urban-energy models; and (d) truly engage key local stakeholders in the planning and implementation processes.
KW - Climate change mitigation
KW - Decarbonisation
KW - Energy transition
KW - Foresight
KW - Integrated planning
KW - Smart cities
KW - Smart zero-carbon city
KW - Urban transformation
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85112321554&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3390/su13168836
DO - 10.3390/su13168836
M3 - Journal article
AN - SCOPUS:85112321554
SN - 2071-1050
VL - 13
JO - Sustainability (Switzerland)
JF - Sustainability (Switzerland)
IS - 16
M1 - 8836
ER -