Aspects of Helsinki’s Local Agenda 21 and sustainability indicators and monitoring

Kari Silfverberg, June 2008

Contents: • The Local Agenda (LA21) process of the City of

Helsinki 1998-2002 • The sustainability Action Plan (LA21 Programme) and

Programme for Ecological Sustainability (HEKO) • Follow-up of SD Action Plan implementation and core

indicators for sustainability • Main sustainability challenges and achievements • International city-based co-operation on

environmental and SD indicators • Selected data on some significant SD topics

Helsinki’s LA21 process

• A long-term participatory process, based on the principles outlined in the UNCED Agenda 21 Document 1992 and Aalborg Charter of 1994 (Charter of European Cities towards Sustainability), which was signed by the City Board in February 1995

• City Council decision about starting Helsinki’s LA21 process and overall targets of the SD Action Plan in March 1997

• LA21 Steering Committee chaired by Lord Mayor Eva-Riitta Siitonen nominated in fall 1997

• LA21 Project (co-ordinating unit) established in January 1998 in connection with the Environment Centre

• First citizens LA21 Forum in Finlandia Hall in April 1998

Helsinki’s LA21 process, cont. (2)

• 18 open LA21 thematic working groups established during the first LA21 forum in April 1998

• Draft report on proposals by the thematic working groups discussed on second citizens LA21 Forum in September 1998, report published in January 1999

• Proposals of the thematic working groups studied by all municipal departments during January–May 1999

• Third citizens LA21 Forum in June 1999 • Detailed SD Action Plan formulation work within the

whole municipal administration during 1999-2001

Helsinki’s LA21 process, cont. (3)

• First draft SD Action Plan distributed for an official commenting round to all municipal political committees in May 2001

• Second draft Action Plan distributed for comments to all partner organisations and stakeholder groups (neighbourhood associations, environmental organisations and citizens LA21 working groups, scientific and professional organisations, social welfare organisations etc.) in February 2002

• Finalization of SD Action Plan during spring 2002 and approval by City Council in June 2002. Implementation period 2002-2010.

Actors involved in Helsinki’s LA21 process

• Within the municipal administration: - LA21 Steering Committee, LA21 Project + network

of LA21 contact persons from all municipal departments

• 18 open thematic working groups and altogether four large citizens LA21 forum events at Finlandia Hall

• About 20 neighbourhood-level LA21 working groups • About 160 citizen-initiated small-scale LA21 projects

implemented during 1998-2003 with financial support from the municipality

• Altogether more than 4000 citizens participated actively in Helsinki’s LA21 work

Helsinki’s Sustainability Action Plan 2002 - 2010

Helsinki was the first European capital with a completed comprehensive Sustainability Action Plan (Local Agenda 21 Programme). It was adopted by the City Council in June 2002.

Formulation of the SD Action Plan was carried out simultaneously with the drafting Helsinki’s new Master Plan 2002 for land use and transport system.

City of Helsinki Sustainability Action Plan 2002-2010

The SD Action Plan is a long-term strategic programme, prepared in accordance with the principles of the Aalborg Charter – the Charter of European Cities and towns towards sustainability.

The plan covers all four aspects of sustainability: ecological, economic, social and cultural. It provides guidance for the long-term action planning and programming of all municipal departments and utilities.

The plan includes seven overall targets and 21 thematic sections with altogether 70 decision paragraphs.

Overall targets of Helsinki’s SD Action Plan

1. Reducing greenhouse gas emisssions 2. Protecting and fostering biodiversity 3. Strengthening the city’s competitiveness and industrial

structure in order to safeguard stable economic development 4. Including life cycle thinking in the city’s physical planning,

purchasing practices and construction 5. Increasing interaction and citizens participation and

strengthening partnership 6. Preventing exclusion and social segregation 7. Fostering cultural diversity and the built-up environment

The tools for environmental protection are presented inHelsinki’s Ecological Sustainability Programme 2005 – 2008 (HEKO), which is based on the SD Action Plan and further elaboration of ecological sustainability issues. It replaces the former Environmental Protection programme (1999-2002). The overall themes of the HEKO programme are:

1 Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions2 Enhancement of urban nature and biodiversity 3 Sustainability of land use and transport system 4 Ecological sustainability in construction5 City procurements6 Environmental management and environmental education

Mid-term review of the implementation of Helsinki’s SD Action Plan during 2002-2006

• The mid-term review was carried out during January-November 2006 and presented to the City Council in March 2007.

• The review was based on a detailed guestionnaire presented to all municipal political committees. All municipal departments and utilities were asked to describe their actions to implement the 70 City Council decisions included in the action plan.

• The review showed that there was a rather big variation in the commitment and performance between the various municipal organisations. Strengthening of efforts is needed during the remaining plan implementation period (-2010).

SD Action Plan implementation follow-up and sustainability assessment, cont.

The main instruments for follow-up and assessment of Helsinki’s progress and achievements towards sustainability are:

• The follow-up report 2002-2006 (mid-term review of SD

Action Plan implementation) • Helsinki’s report on Core Indicators for Sustainability. The first

report was published in year 2000 and the second, updated version, in 2006.

• A follow-up report on actions to improve citizens participation and interaction between the municipal administration and citizens and stakeholder groups, published in 2006.

• Helsinki’s annual Environmental Report

These reports have all been presented to the City Council in 2006-2007

Helsinki’s core Indicators for Sustainability

• The system of Helsinki’s SD core indicators was developed during the LA21 process, and the first report was published in January 2000.

• The SD indicator report was updated during 2004-2006 by the Environment Centre and Helsinki Urban Facts (Research and Statistics Department).

• The indicator report includes 25 indicator themes, which cover five overall sustainability aspects: 1) Global level sustainability aspect, 2) State of the local environment and environmental loads, 3) Sosio-economic SD aspects, 4) Service delivery and satisfaction with the living environment and 5) Citizens participation and responsibility

SD core indicators, Cont.

• Helsinki’s report on SD core indicators tries to present municipal planners and decision makers as well as stakeholder groups, partner organisations and interested citizens with a broad picture of development trends whithin the city from the point of view of sustainability targets and challenges. It complements the mid-term review of the implementation of Helsinki’s SD Action Plan.

• The SD core indicator report is updated with a 4-year cycle and presented to the City Council. Some of the themes are also presented annually in the environmental report.

Main sustainability challenges for Helsinki in 2008

Helsinki’s recent sustainability monitoring and assessment studies (mid-term review of SD Action Plan implementation, SD core indicators report and annual environmental reports etc.) have identified the following important sustainability challenges for Helsinki and the Metropolitan Area:

• Need for considerable reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and increase of the share of renewable energy sources in production of district heating and electricity

• Need to extend the regional public rail transport network (particularly metrolines) and improve public transport services

• Need to improve eco-efficiency in construction and service delivery and decrease waste production

• Need to strengthen environmental awareness and responsible consumption practices

Helsinki’s main strengths and achievements concerning SD and environmental protection

Recent monitoring and assessment studies and international comparisons have identified following significant strengths and achievements:

• High share of public transport in the urban transport system • High energy efficiency in combined heat and power production

and development of district cooling system • Diverse and easily accessible urban nature and archipelago • Good quality water supply and effective wastewater treatment • Comparatively strong social integration - social stratification,

exclusion and segregation have not become major issues of inequality

• Efficient education and public health services • Increasing environmental awareness among citizens and

municipal organisations

International co-operation in environmental and sustainability assessment and reporting

• Helsinki participated during 1999-2002 in the European Common Indicators (ECIP) project, which was coordinated by the European Sustainable Cities Campaign (ESCC) and Ambiente Italia.

• In 2005 Helsinki joined the EU-financed Urban Matrix research project (2005-2010), which aims to develop methods of sustainability assessment and dissemination of good practices for bigger European cities.

• Helsinki has been working on developing joint environmental indicators with seven major Nordic cities since 2002. The project includes 11 joint indicator themes, and 2-3 themes are elaborated annually.

International Co-operation, cont.

• Helsinki has also carried out co-operation with the network of six bigger Finnish cities on development and harmonisation of environmental and SD reporting.

• Bilateral city-twinning co-operation between Helsinki and the cities of Riga and St. Petersburg on SD assessment and indicators has been carried out already during many years. The projects have received financial support from the Finnish Ministry of Environment.

The whole municipality

Sustainability Action Plan (Local Agenda 21)

Environmental and Sustainability plans and programmes of departments

Environmental Report of the City

Environmental ReportsAnnual reports

Aud

iting

and

Dev

elop

ing

Sustainable Development Indicators

Budget guidelines

- Helsinki’s Ecological Sustainability Programme- Environmental Policy

City departments

Environmental management systems (EMAS and ISO 14001)

Consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions

Keke-tavoite 2010

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

1990 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

1000

tons

CO

2-eq

uiva

lent

Electricity Industry and machinery

Traffic Waste management

Heating of buildingsThe target for the Helsinki sustainability programme 2010

Consumption-based greenhouse gas emissions per resident

HILMA-tavoite 2030

0,0

1,0

2,0

3,0

4,0

5,0

6,0

7,0

8,0

1990 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Tons

CO

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/ re

side

ntt

Electricity Industry and machineryTraffic Waste managementHeating of buildings

The target for the Metropolitan Strategy 2030

Comparison of greenhouse gas emissions in major Nordic cities in 2005

Wastewater nitrogen emissions to the sea from Helsinki Water

0

500

1000

1500

2000

2500

3000

1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Tons/yeariTarget 2006

AIR QUALITY: Cases of exceeding the daily limit value (50 ug/m3) for thoracic particles (PM10)

32

21

9

19

9

4

11 1310

2 4 2

10

44

32

49

3741

59

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

Num

ber o

f exc

eedi

ngs

Töölö Vallila Kallio Runebergink Mannerheimintie Hämeentie Töölöntulli

EU limit value for air quality

Number of passengers on public transport in Helsinki (excluding regional buses and local trains)

0

50

100

150

200

250

2002 2003 2004 2005 2006

MillionsTrams and ferry Buses Metro

Comparison of annual fuel consumption rates in transportation

Thank’s for Your attention!

Further information can be obtained from the websites of the City of Helsinki Environment Centre (www.hel.fi/ymk) and other municipal departments (www.hel.fi) or the speaker:

Kari Silfverberg, LA21 Coordinator E-mail: kari.silfverberg@hel.fi Tel: +358-9-310 31 582 Fax: +358-9-310 31 563