Malmö is the commercial centre of southern Sweden and an international city. This is expressed, not least, by the fact that Malmö has 265.000 residents who speak some 100 languages and belong to 164 different nationalities.
The City of Malmö is the holder of nearly 500 buildings or rather 1 400 000 m2 gross area.
The City of Malmö is very active in the field of sustainable development and have ambitious objectives to become a more environmentally friendly and sustainable city.
Actions implemented in the field of building performance:
A new Environmental Programme for 2003-2008 forms a platform and a tool for the environmental work in Malmö. One of the most important areas is the reduction of emissions of greenhouse gases. The objective is to reduce CO2-emissions by 25 % until 2008-2012 compared to 1990 levels. To fulfil this goal actions are taken to increase the share of renewable energy and the efficient use of energy.
Some examples of initiatives:
· Like in many other Swedish cities the district heating network is well developed. Approx. 90% of the building stock is connected to district heating. Continuous improvements of the system is done to increase the share of renewables and waste energy. At the moment the system is supplied by 50% renewable energy or waste energy.
· The city has the objective to reduce energy use in public buildings by 25%. This is mainly done by investments in more efficient installations, but also by information and campaigns to change the behaviour of the users. Major investments are planned to introduce more solar energy on public buildings.
· In the Western harbour of Malmö a new housing area of 1000 apartments is supplied with 100% renewable energy. The energy is produced locally from wind, sun and water. This successful demonstration project has been supported by EU, FP5 (Europe's Fifth Framework Programme). The City of Malmö received the Campaign for Take-Off, Grand Prize, for this innovative energy concept.
· Malmö is participating in a number of national and European projects and networks within the energy area. This is an important part of our strategy to be a driving force in the development of a more sustainable Europe.