CPD is a global non-profit organization that maintains a global climate action reporting system for companies, regions and cities. In 2019 Lahti was included in the A-list of cities and in 2020 Lahti shares the A-score along with 87 other cities. To Score on A, a city must disclose publicly and have a city-wide emissions inventory, have set an emission reduction target, published a climate action plan. It must also complete a climate risk and vulnerability assessment and have completed a climate adaptation plan to demonstrate how it will tackle climate hazards.
The 2020 review praised Lahti for its best practice standards in both adaptation and mitigation actions. Lahti has set ambitious but realistic targets and progressed in meeting them. Lahti’s Environmental director Elina Ojala welcomes the results.
– Lahti has strategic, holistic plans that enable meeting the carbon neutrality target and reduce the vulnerability of citizens, business and organisations, says Ojala.
Lahti is the Green Capital of Europe and aims to reach carbon neutrality by 2025, significantly ahead of targets set at national and international levels. Lahti’s Sustainable Energy and Climate adaptation Plan to 2030 (SECAP), with over 97 action points serves as a roadmap to meet this goal. The listed actions and progress in them are presented for citizens and other interested in Lahti’s environmental watch www.lahdenymparistovahti.fi (in Finnish only).
– A major step towards carbon neutrality was taken in 2019 when the city abandoned charcoal burning. Further actions in reducing emissions are now taken especially in transport sector as well as by shifting to sustainable heating also in domestic households and improving energy efficiency of buildings, tells environmental coordinator Aino Kulonen.
View CDP list of A-score cities here