Another climate conference has gone by. Now in its 20th year, the United Nations convention seeking international cooperation on keeping the planet’s temperature liveable has not had a smooth ride.

With one more meeting to go in Lima next year, the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change nations is staring our uncertain future in the face. After the collapse of the 2009 Copenhagen talks, a global agreement now has to be reached in 2015 and implemented over the following five years up to the 2020 target.

At last month’s meeting in Warsaw, Australia, Japan and Canada emerged as back-sliders. The conference, marked by tears of desperation, will be remembered for the Philippines delegate’s clear distress as he pleaded for world action after the devastating typhoon that had hit his country days earlier.

No one storm can be pinned to global warming. However, it is a fact that the ocean waters of the Philippines are the warmest of the world’s deep waters… and getting warmer. This creates even more instability in a weather pattern already known for its fierce storms. Meanwhile, carbon dioxide levels in the world’s atmosphere are going through the roof.

Local councils can lead by example

This year was not the first time that emotions ran high during the course of annual meetings. Conference leaders have wept while nations squabbled over the wording of the convention. In the Polish capital this year, the word ‘commitment’ was reduced to ‘contribution’ in a disappointing attempt by some countries to water down much-needed action on global warming.

The EU has been at the forefront of efforts to set a clear framework, steering energy and climate policies in the right direction. Meeting them will not only protect the environment but should also be the most cost-effective way to enhance the security of Europe’s energy supply.

A technical support initiative of the European Commission’s Intelligent Energy Europe (IEE) programme, Managenergy has been actively assisting the public sector towards using ‘intelligent energy’ through capacity building and networking events.

One such event was held by the Local Councils Association (LCA) last month to encourage councils to commit to their own energy plans.

Speaking on the current situation for Malta’s local councils and the implementation of energy action plans, LCA executive secretary Jimmy Magro referred to energy services contracting as a key to energy efficiency. This would usually involve taking control of large buildings to invest in alternative energy and recoup costs through savings made. The only Maltese example of this so far has been Tigné Point, which is in an agreement with Siemens to reduce its carbon emissions and its electricity bill. The project was viable because of the large number of units.

A public-private partnership to convert street lighting in Gozo to LED lights is in the offing after a study conducted by the Malta Intelligent Energy Management Agency. An application has been placed for the €7 million investment. The initiative would have been extended to cover all Malta had next June not been too tight a deadline to change street lamp bulbs on both islands.

The 2010 MIEMA report also found that the Church in Malta could make big savings and cut emissions if 20-watt halogen halide bulbs were replaced with single-watt LEDs. The Archdiocese calculates that each parish church uses an average of over five million units of electricity per annum.

A number of local councils signed up to the Covenant of Mayors and submitted their sustainable energy action plans (SEAPs). So far, eight localities have had their plans accepted and must now move on to putting words into action.

The energy policy division in the ministry is on the lookout for new initiatives and projects between government and the private sector. Addressing the conference, Charles Buttigieg pointed out that several routes to the 2020 energy targets are found in various EU directives, yet the energy efficiency directive remains central.

Local councils can lead by example, ensuring that their equipment has the lowest greenhouse gas emissions. Several have pledged to carry out energy audits on their offices, public gardens and recreational areas – and act on the findings.

An energy audit on five homes in each participating locality is envisaged as a pilot study due to start in January. A similar exercise for political, band and sports clubs in each accepted plan is planned for 2015.

Climate-conscious councils should identify locations to plant new trees to counteract emissions produced in the locality. Difficulty securing funds may be partly due to council aspirations being wide-ranging when a more cooperative approach could reap results.

For a community-wide approach to emissions inventories and action plans it is essential to know in detail where energy is consumed to identify problem areas and sectors.

The Meshartility project, co-funded by IEE, helps improve cooperation between municipalities (local councils) and utilities (Enemalta). Getting hold of data in a meaningful format is a challenge the project aims to address. Local governments are responsible to plan the community’s transition toward better energy saving and efficiency as well as use of renewable energy.

In a presentation on financing local sustainable energy management, Ian Turner of Energy Cities spoke on how even no-investment projects could save up to 10 per cent of energy costs. Savings from energy measures can be revolved back into a fund so that the money stays local and funding for further energy initiatives is bolstered.

Pooling for a joint public procurement process can bring down costs when local councils mutualise their needs. A joint project in France secured the rooftops of 80 municipal buildings rented to 25 investors for solar energy generation.

A focal point during the workshops was innovative financing schemes. Government should ease up the energy services contracting market by introducing the relevant legislation, regulations and measures, according to the LCA.

At an average cost of €4,000 per locality, the Maltese government should by now be contributing its help to councils to put their sustainable energy plans into action.

The LCA has also called on government to adjust the European Regional Development Fund budget for local councils to be able to invest in renewable energies and technologies for curbing emissions. The association recommended applying for the ELENA-KfWA funding facility for local councils.

www.miema.org
www.eumayors.eu
www.energy-cities.eu
www.meshartility.eu
www.managenergy.net

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