Forerunners needed in combating the climate change

by Stefan Windh & Eva Hjdlmered and Guldbrand Skjonberg & Bjorn Gronholm, UBC Energy Commission and UBC Commission on Environment

There is an ever increasing number of news reporting on extraordinary weather conditions, dangerous situations and other upcoming problems and challenges related to the climate change. It has become one of the biggest threats to our society and we obviously stand at a crossroad when taking strategic decisions for the future. Based on research evidence all of us will in one way or another be influenced or already have been influenced by climate change.

Many cities are already facing problems and increasing expenses due to the climate change related phenomenons. We easily focus on long term effects of them, like huge rise of the level of the Baltic Sea and much warmer climate but forget short term and usually often hidden phenomenona of extreme weather conditions. It is predicted that several cities in the Baltic Sea Region are likely to be severely affected by the climate change effects like flooding, storms, problems in infrastructure and water supply and many other challenges.

Future of the Baltic Sea

What will happen in the future with the state of our Baltic Sea? We can foresee less salt in the water and warmer water directly influencing fish stocks and biodiversity of the sea. Constantly reoccurring question is "Do we really take this challenge seriously"? We also know that many countries and cities have expressed concerns of having the capacity to combat the climate change related effects efficiently or even being able to reach national or EU level goals.

The European Union has proceeded from years of planning into taking actions against combating cimate change. The goals of the European Union on reducing the greenhouse gas emissions 20% by 2020 are tough and will clearly challenge a clear majority of our cities and local societies, as many of these changes need to be taken at the local level in order to reach these goals. According to the European Commission emphasis will be put on energy efficiency and renewable energy, clean technology, solidarity and the energy market to name some of the planned focuses for combating climate change and solving the huge challenges for our societies. On the other hand, the European Commission is also aiming to allocate different additional resources on research, piloting actions and development work. Never before has the EU been so favourable towards energy efficiency and renewable resources.

Climate Change highlighted at IX UBC General Conference

During the IX UBC General Conference in Parnu, Estonia, in September 2007 the Climate Change was approached in three ways. First, all participants of the conference were approached by door pool questions concerning awareness and attitudes about the climate change. A clear majority of the poll respondents stated that they were ready to act and take real actions for reducing climate change effects.

Secondly, the UBC Commissions on Environment and Energy arranged a workshop about Cities' response to the climate change. The workshop had a broad participation which confirms the fact that the issue is a huge concern for many cities. What is known and became evident is that the UBC cities will be affected by climate change in many different ways. It is not only environmental problems and challenges that will occur but also social and in particular economic influence and challenges for UBC cities. At the workshop a series of speakers addressed challenges of the climate change. Thirdly, the UBC Climate Change Resolution was adopted, where cities were urged to become frontrunners in combating the climate change.

At the workshop on climate change the Deputy Mayor of Parnu, Simmo Saar, presented the situation and challenges Parnu has already faced. The City of Parnu has suffered from many storms and the effects of these storms have usually been unexpected by both the local authorities and citizens. According to forecasts the Bay of Parnu is predicted to rise 1 meter in the future. Therefore, local and regional planners in Parnu are advised to keep the rise of the Baltic in mind in town planning. Other actions taken by Parnu so far are heavy storm warning system and communication between parties involved in the process of solving crisis situations.

The importance of taking long term strategic decisions and in particular emphasized already existing new and efficient technologies for achieving savings of energy and resources were stressed too. Energy production in cities is strongly developed and energy producers contribute to improved cleaner energy production and consumption habits. Transport is causing a lot of greenhouse emissions and a huge and challenging task for our cities. Some of these challenges are congestion, air pollution, dependency on oil, urban sprawl, obesity, unattractive cities, noise pollution and unsafe environment. Transport causes 26% of the global CO2 emissions, and these emissions are unfortunately growing. Technical solutions alone will not be able to solve the problems, soft measures are also needed. Therefore, pressure on policy makers is growing. The Baltic Sea Region is full of good examples and motivation and experiences for innovative solutions and decisions.

The climate change challenges do not only address mitigation related actions, but also how cities and municipalities around the Baltic Sea Region will manage changes needed. Some cities have already developed adaptation plans, and more are needed. The importance of using the resources and experience we have available within the UBC were stressed at the conference. We must therefore act together and develop common projects concerning improved adaptation plans for UBC cities.

UBC Resolution calls for action

A UBC Resolution on Climate Change was accepted at the IX UBC General Conference in Parnu 2007. This resolution recognizes the importance of cities and local authorities as key players in the Baltic Sea Region in planning and implementing relevant actions to reduce harm and unwished effects of climate change.

Voting onthe UBC Resolutionon ClimateChange.
Full text is available at www.ubc.net.

It is a firm position of the UBC that it is possible to combine welfare for our citizens and economic progress for our local companies with better energy efficiency and reduced emissions. Progress and welfare are not in contradiction to each other. Actions taken by cities and local authorities are based on international agreements, as well as prioritized goals for the local society, such as welfare of inhabitants and cultural heritage, security of supply, attraction of businesses, sustainable development, healthy environment etc. All these are important elements for cities to account for in an increasingly globalised and competitive world.

We UBC cities realize the need and possibilities of cooperation and playing a pro-active and concrete role in facing the challenges of Climate Change. In addition to this we need the take radical actions! We should not wait any more! We must rely on our knowledge and abilities to solve existing and upcoming challenges and problems. We must utilize our combined potential - the technology, experiences and solutions that already exist in our city network!

We UBC cities must perform and maintain our own responsibilities and duties like public organizations and our duties as a forerunner for enterprises, organizations and citizens. We must inform and educate our citizens about our own responsibilities and how to act in order to reduce the impact on the future climate.

We foresee responsibility, a courageous city leadership with a clear message, strong will and desire to be a frontrunner with concrete actions for combating Climate Change. We need a Climate Change related forerunner for the Baltic Sea Region! Who is ready to take on this role?