Barcelona plans to reduce emissions by 45% by 2030

Barcelona has begun plans to reduce emissions by 45% by 2030 in order to achieve objectives set at the Paris summit on global warming. This cutback on pollution is expected to be achieved by cutting down on the use of private vehicles by 20% as well as increasing the production of renewable energies in order to avoid exceeding a rise in temperature of 1.5 degrees in twelve years.

According to Janet Sanz, the city’s deputy mayor of urban ecology, the initiative will put the Catalan capital on an “international level” as, for the time being, only Paris and New York have projects with similarly ambitious goals. Sanz highlighted the importance of cities’ roles in the fight against climate change.

Drastic measures

Within the climate plan are 242 varying actions to be applied in different fields. One of them is to increase green areas in the city in order to ensure that trees reduce Barcelona’s temperature. A decrease of water consumption to 100 litres per inhabitant is also being considered. In 2016, the figure was already set at 107 litres per person.

Another planned action will be the installation of solar panels or urban gardens on the city’s rooftops, thus promoting the consumption of local and ecological food.

One of the more ground-breaking measures is the creation of a network of refuge spaces for when a heat wave takes place for people to go. The commissioner for sustainability, Frederic Ximeno, explained that these could be in libraries, parks, or sports facilities.

According to Sanz, heat waves could occur “once every four years to four in a year” in Barcelona if citizens do not do their bit to tackle climate change. The government has insisted that, despite having created this plan, it needs the help of citizens in order to complete. To reduce traffic, for example, Ximeno stated that it will be up to people to not use private vehicles and instead opt for public transport or bicycle.