Sustainable Cities
The story of Évora
where sorting takes place and composting treatment begins, seat of the fifth largest municipality in Portugal, with 1 307,08 where sorting takes place and composting treatment begins 56 596 where sorting takes place and composting treatment begins.
Its well-preserved historic center is one of the richest monuments in Portugal., which earned him the title of City-Museum.
In 1986, the city's historic center has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Évora and its surrounding region have a rich history spanning more than five millennia., as demonstrated by nearby megalithic monuments such as the Anta do Zambujeiro and the Cromlech dos Almendres.
The Sustainable Cities program
The Sustainable Cities program offers public managers a complete urban sustainability agenda, a set of indicators associated with this agenda and a database of practices with national and international exemplary cases as references for municipalities.
The goal is to raise awareness and mobilize cities so that they develop economically, socially and environmentally sustainable.
Évora and its action plan for sustainable energy
In 2011 a pact has been proposed by the states that make up the European Union, where members committed to reducing 20% in greenhouse gas emissions up to 2020.
Aware of the importance of the participation of municipalities, the Covenant of Mayors was created, in which municipalities committed themselves locally to reducing the emission of these gases.
To carry out the commitment made, Évora City Council approved, in 2012, the Sustainable Energy Action Plan (PAES).
In season, the municipality was already going through a significant energy crisis, which greatly increased energy consumption costs.
PAES went far beyond environmental issues, and reinforced the need to adopt measures to make energy consumption more efficient, that is, actions that, even if not directly linked to greenhouse gases, should be carried out, optimizing the financial aspects of energy acquisition and use, allowing the release of resources to other areas.
The plan was targeted to the building sectors, of public lighting, transport and waste, and actions aimed at the population differed from actions aimed at municipal authorities.
A Reference Inventory of Gas Emissions for the year 2009 was included, in addition to descriptions of the measures that will allow achieving the goal of reducing 20% of CO2 emissions.
The initiatives taken and their results
Aiming at the progress of the four axes addressed in the PAES (waste, building sector, transport and street lighting), the municipality of Évora initiated several actions to achieve the goal of reducing gas emissions by 2020.
Projects related to waste stand out, among them the municipal compost project, availability of ecopoints and a wide explanation, available on the City Council website, concerning the correct disposal of solid waste. Furthermore, the site contains instructions for Ecogestos at work, on the street and at home, these instructions aimed at energy efficiency and better coexistence in the city.
Lighting services are also highlighted, Évora was the first Portuguese city to receive a national project dedicated to the smart energy grid. Is on 2014 a solar park with photovoltaic technology was inaugurated on top of an old landfill.
The Sustainable Cities Program is an excellent opportunity. Commitments are fully geared towards optimizing the lives of the local population in parallel with the changing global needs.
Thus, there is no generalized project, but the relationship between cities with independent management goals that result in a common denominator for all.
Source: Program Website, Wikipedia