The Sustainable Energy Path for Cities- Joshua D. Mosshart

The following is a set of check boxes to intergrate into your energy independence planning initiatives for sustainable cities. 

Reduce carbon emissions.

Reduce dependence on fossil fuels.

Introduce cleaner fuels.

Increase use of renewable energy.

Promote diversification of energy sources.

Support local and decentralized power supply.

Focus on energy efficiency and provide support and information to users.

Make efficient resource use the basis of economic development.

Ensure that citizens have appropriate access to energy services and information on best energy use practises to reduce poverty.

Plan for efficient spatial development.

Develop efficient and accessible public transport using cleaner fuels.

Create a sustainable and lowcarbon energy vision for the future.

Sustainable energy action planning

The aims of sustainable energy action planning are optimal energy efficiency, low- or no-carbon energy supply and accessible, equitable and good energy service provision to users. 

Planning is based on consideration of the broader concerns of the whole economy, environment (particularly carbon mitigation) and society, not just a ‘least financial cost’ focus. And, it is led by the demand for energy services.

These are the key characteristics of sustainable energy and climate action planning:

All energy sources and energy related activities are considered as a whole system;

Carbon mitigation is a key determinant in the development of the plan and choice of project options;

The demand for energy services, rather than what energy can be supplied, is the basis for planning;

Energy conservation, energy efficiency and demand-side management are considered prior to supply-side solutions;

Environmental and social costs are clearly considered;

Energy sector linkages with the economy are included;

The plan is flexible and can anticipate and respond to change.

Why a demand-led approach to energy planning is important:

Understanding the needs of the users

Good energy planning needs to be informed by the right kind of information. It is fairly easy to gather supply information (how much oil, electricity, gas etc. the city uses), but it is more difficult to gather information on who uses what energy sources, how they use these and why. 

This kind of energy information is very important for sustainable energy planning, because your focus needs to be on meeting energy users’ needs in the best way possible. 

There are very significant economic, social and environmental benefits which can be gained by planning according to people and industry needs: these therefore must determine a city or town’s energy plan.

The needs of energy supply industries and the energy sources which they supply often dominate energy planning. The supply industries are also often very powerful so they can push their needs over the needs of users. 

Sustainable energy and climate action planning requires a very different approach: first of all it must put the energy service needs (such as the need for a warm or a cool house, hot water, cooked food, transportation of goods, welding, public lighting etc) of the users and the city first. This is because energy service needs do not necessarily need to be met with a supply of energy.

Take for instance the need for a warm house in winter or a cool house in summer – this can be met by installing a ceiling and insulation or by overall energy efficient design for new build; the need for hot water can be met by installing solar water heaters. A supplyled regime would just assume that the household could use electricity for heating or make some other plan from the energy sources available. 

A demand-led approach would also plan at a much more local scale and try to create closed/no waste systems: for example the energy input required by an industry for production may be able to be supplied by the waste energy and waste products produced by that same industry or by an adjacent industry.

A good demand-side database is important in order to develop energy action strategies and evaluate implementation.

Malia Ventures Inc.-Cleantech Global Licensing Opportunities.

Cleantech Grants-Cleantech Grant Funding 

Joshua D. Mosshart-Cleantech Sustainablity Expert

Source: UNHABITAT-UNEP-ICLEI

Sustainable City Development-Joshua D. Mosshart MSFS, CHFC, CASL, CLU

Today, it is recognized that social, cultural, economic and environmental considerations are completely interconnected. In the city context, this means that sustainable urban development is not a choice but a necessity if cities are to meet the needs of their citizens. 

Urban centers must be socially equitable, culturally aligned, economically successful and environmentally sustainable if cities are indeed to be the home of humanity’s future.

Successful city development cannot operate efficiently in isolation from its environment. It must balance social, cultural, economic and environmental needs. A successful city must offer investors security, infrastructure and efficiency, and should also put the needs of its citizens at the forefront of all its planning activities. Poor urban planning and management can have grave results for the urban economy, the environment and society.

Poorly managed urban settlements will be unable to keep pace with urban expansion, and unserviced slums will proliferate, bringing with them poor health, poverty, social unrest and economic inefficiency. Environmental hazards are responsible for the most common causes of ill-health and mortality among the urban poor.

Local governments have an enormous influence on how urban-environment relationships develop, and on how their cities interact with their hinterlands and with the wider global community. Effective local governance can make cities more competitive, more efficient and more attractive to investors and workers by promoting the sustainable development of the urban environment.

Sustainable development is multi-dimensional. It requires an understanding ofcomplex and often conflicting relationships. These issues call for an integrated approach and an integration culture. A variety of strategic approaches to integrating the environment into the urban planning process exist. 

Environmental activities can be targeted at different levels.

No single recipe for managing change can be applied to all cities. Cities are affected by their location, their climate and natural features. Cities and urban settlements don’t operate in isolation—they are part of a national structure, subject to central government, strengthened or limited by regional and national infrastructure, budgetary policies, development priorities, decentralization policies.

Clean air is essential to a healthy environment.

Rivers and water bodies provide drinking water and act as natural pollution filters.

Biodiversity is essential for food, materials, medicine and improved quality of life, not just locally but also globally. Biospheres range far beyond the boundaries of a city, and urban activity in a single location can damage forests thousands of kilometres away, or disrupt migratory patterns. Biodiversity increases the resilience of ecosystems to environmental change.

Forests serve as watersheds, habitats, carbon sinks, leisure amenities and tourist destinations.

If managed sustainably, forests are also a source of energy and building materials.

Wetlands filter and process waste and act as a nursery for fisheries.

Sand dunes, coral reefs and mangroves protect cities from storm surges, prevent erosion and siltation, and in the case of the latter two act as nurseries for fisheries. Attractive coasts draw tourism.

Parks and greenbelts act as sinks for carbon dioxide (CO2) and counteract the heat island effect of large built-up areas. They also provide essential open space for urban residents, flora and fauna, counteract traffic noise and improve the general ‘liveability’ of a city.

The arguments for sustainable development are clear and universally accepted. For a city to grow and develop in the long term, it cannot disregard its environment. Theenvironment cuts across all sectors, income groups and management areas.

The foundation for Sustainable Urban Planning is building upon Clean Energy Technologies to stay on the sustainable energy path.

                                    Key Elements of a Sustainable System

Consistent: the short term actions are compatible with long-term goals and the viability of the system;

Renewable: the system depends on renewable resources and operates using environmentally clean technologies;

Diverse: the more diverse a system is, the more able it is to adapt to needed change;

Inclusive: all elements of the system are valued and used for the good of both the individual parts and the whole;

Interdependent: each element of the system is both dependent on and depended on by several other elements; the greater the interconnection, the stronger the system.

Source:UN-Habitat & ICLEI

Joshua D. Mosshart MSFS, CHFC, CLU, CASL