Forsiden > English > Sharing responsibility for the environment

Embedding environmental awareness and responsibility
In working for environmental sustainability, we all have to shoulder responsibility for solving environmental problems. Close cooperation between industry and residents is essential. The local authority’s public utilities user group and urban ecology centre, Agenda Centre Albertslund, are important partners in this respect.

We expect all local services and institutions to be environmentally certified in 2008. Our focus is on minimising resource use, changing people’s attitudes, developing environmental teaching methods and providing and disseminating information about the environment.

· We will promote local commitment and encourage all Albertslund residents to do their part through specific resource-saving projects.

· We will advise and encourage businesses to set more ambitious goals than required by environmental legislation.

· We expect local authority services and institutions to use environmental certification to ensure that environmental work continues to be an integral part of daily routine.

Working together towards sustainable development
In 2000 Albertslund took the first steps to launch Dogma 2000, a cooperative network of local authorities that pledged to work for the environment. The aim was to establish a close, binding cooperation between local authorities willing to go the extra mile to embed and expand the work of environmentally sustainable development. Dogma 2000 has had a great impact on all our environmental activities.

· We will continue complying with the Dogma requirements.

· We will strive to ensure that Dogma 2000 continues as a dynamic cooperative initiative with ambitious environmental goals.

KEY POLICY DOCUMENTS

1. Environmental policy: Goals for environmental leadership: the local authority as ambassador, integration of environmental considerations, minimum impact on nature and promotion of urban ecology. 2. Traffic plan: Plan for Albertslund’s traffic system and for minimising the problems caused by traffic.

PRINCIPLES			PLATFORM ISSUES
Urban quality			Children
Democracy			Culture
Diversity			Environment
CORNERSTONES
Housing	Commerce	Finance		Organisation	Communication

Reducing environmental impact
Environmental issues are global and know no borders. We have set ambitious goals for sustainable environmental development. In this section we focus on air, water, waste and traffic.

· We will work to protect the quality and volume of the water in our waterways.

· We will strive to ensure good quality drinking water and a balanced water cycle by reducing water consumption, widening the catchment area and promoting sustainable rainwater harvesting.

· We will limit the production of waste, ensure optimal reuse, and recycle waste resources to the extent possible.

· We will reduce the environmental impact of traffic by giving cycle and pedestrian traffic high priority and improving public transport.

· We will reduce the number of homes subjected to noise nuisance.

· We will reduce CO₂, SO₂ and NO_x emissions.

· We will curb the use and emission of substances that are dangerous to health and the environment.

AGENDA CENTRE ALBERTSLUND, ACA, promotes Agenda 21 work in residential areas. In partnership with Albertslund, ACA helps local people and residential areas adapt and develop their homes in a sustainable direction. Read more at www.agendacenter.dk (in Danish).

If you would like to know more about Albertslund’s environmental initiatives, you can read about the local authority’s green accounts, the annual Agenda 21 plan of action and other topics at www.albertslund.dk under ‘The Environment’.

DID YOU KNOW that Albertslund was awarded the 2007 Nordic Council Nature and Environment Prize for tireless efforts to involve local enterprises and residents in embedding environmental initiatives? DID YOU KNOW that Albertslund was the initiator of the Dogma cooperation? Current collaboration partners are the local authorities of Albertslund, Ballerup, Fredericia, Herning, Copenhagen and Kolding in Denmark and Malmoe in Sweden. Read more at www.dogma2000.dk.

EMISSIONS
Reduction targets relative to 1986
	Year: tons	%
CO2	2010: 170,000 2015*: 137,000 2080: 70,000	50% 60% 80%
SO2	244	75%
NOx	460	58%
WASTE
Target for 2012	Household waste	Industrial waste
Re-use	40%	73%
Incineration and special treatment	54%	22%
Disposal	6%	5%
WATER
Target for 2012	Total daily water consumption of 105 litres per resident in 2010 Total daily water consumption must be reduced to 100 litres per person in 2012

* The original Dogma target is a 25% reduction in CO₂ emissions relative to 2006, but the target has been converted to the 1986 level to allow comparison of the CO₂ targets.