Accounting for Carbon in Copenhagen | Morten Hojer

1. Accounting for Carbon in
Copenhagen
Energieffektivitet i byggeriet:
xxx
ICARB Conference, Edinburgh
September 5 2014
Morten Hojer
Climate Unit, City of Copenhagen

2. London School of Economics launched report on Copenhagen
as a ”green economy leader” in June 2014
Is there is an economic rationale for early action on ”green” growth in cities?
Source: LSE, Economics of Green Cities Programme (2011-2015). 2

3. The intellectual foundation of the LSE report spans across a
diversity of fields (1/3)
3
1990
1995
2001
From science… … to economics
2007
2013
The Stern Review (2006) argued that
the benefits of strong, early action on
climate change outweigh the costs:
• Without action, overall costs of
climate change are equvalent to
5%-20% of world GDP each year
• The impacts are irreversible and
unevenly distributed; poor people in
less developed countries are likely
to suffer most
• To avoid the worst effects of climate
change about 2% of world GDP
needs to be invested

4. The intellectual foundation of the LSE report spans across a
diversity of fields (2/3)
…to economics of urban agglomeration
“Cities are actually the healthiest,
greenest, and richest places to live. New
Yorkers, for instance, live longer than
other Americans; heart disease and
cancer rates are lower in Gotham than in
the nation as a whole. More than half of
America’s income is earned in twenty-two
metropolitan areas. And city dwellers
use, on average, 40 percent less energy
than suburbanites.”
New York Times Review of Books
2011 4

5. The intellectual foundation of the LSE report spans across a
diversity of fields (3/3)
5
… to a new ”industrial” revolution

6. The state of the debate
Neutral
Growth and
climate have
tradeoffs
Growth and
climate have
co-benefits
▪ Growth model too
fragile to take on
climate action now
▪ High energy costs will
kill growth and create
competitive
asymmetries
▪ Climate action puts
an unfair burden on
the developing world
▪ There are multiple
factors which affect
growth in the next 3-
5-10 years which are
more important than
climate action (which
is frankly second-order)
▪ Higher resource
efficiency can lead to
better short-term
growth/less volatility
▪ There are major co-benefits
(air quality)
▪ Cleantech is an
enormous innovation
driver that will
spillover positively to
the whole economy
Source: The Global Commission on the Economy and Climate, New Climate Economy project. 6

7. What is Copenhagen doing
about it?
Energieffektivitet i byggeriet:
xxx

8. Over the past 20 years, Copenhagen’s economy grew by 25%
while simultaneously reducing GHG emissions by 40%
8

9. Urban crisis and de-population followed by inner-city
densification
9

10. Despite a low average population density, housing and
employment areas have been planned with good accessibility
10

11. Low levels of vehicle ownership per capita
11

12. Low time costs of journey-to-work indicate a very effective
urban transport network
12

13. Copenhagen carbon neutral
by 2025
Energieffektivitet i byggeriet:
xxx

14. There are big challenges…
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• Carbon: From 20 pct to 100 pct reduction in 10 years
• Population: +20 pct increase in 2025
• Housing: +25.000 new units
• Office spaces: +2,8 mio. m2

15. … and opportunities
15

16. Potential emissions reductions of 1,2 mio. tons of CO2e have
been identified…
Energy
production
Energy
consumption
Green
mobility
Million tCO2e per year
City
administration
Total
Selected initiatives
▪ Biomass-based combined heat and power
▪ Land and offshore wind turbines
▪ Separation of plastics from waste
▪ Energy retrofitting of existing buildings
▪ Low-energy new build
▪ Solar PV
▪ City of Cyclists
▪ Alternative fuel vehicles (electric, hydrogen)
▪ Biogas and hybrid busses
▪ Intelligent traffic systems (ITS)
▪ Energy efficiency in own buildings
▪ New fuels in municipal vehicle fleet
▪ LED street lights
New initiatives
▪ New initiatives at EU-level (energy, renewables, transport)
▪ New initiatives at national level (energy, transport)
▪ New initiatives at city-level (construction, transport)
0,9
0,1
0,1
0,1
1,2
16

17. … that require massive investments in Copenhagen 2013-
2025
17
Public Investments
City of Copenhagen
0,4 bn€
Private Investments
Direct Investments
3,25 bn€
Private Investments
Energy and Climate Investments
32,8 bn€
9
85

18. On the day the ”green economy” finally arrives
18

19. Thank you for your attention
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MORTEN HOJER
Special Advisor on
Climate and Green Growth
(+45) 23 39 34 43
morten.hojer@tmf.kk.dk
www.kk.dk/climate and
www.kk.dk/english