• Start year: 2014
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: In operation

The aim of Energy vision 2025 work is to provide a clearer vision on how local energy questions can be solved in optimal in the constantly changing and developing city environment. Key issue is to find optimal balance between the centralized CHP production and local renewable-based distributed energy solutions, and to find the most efficient ways to utilize local renewable energy sources in Lahti region. The vision work includes too concrete energy pilot projects. To get solutions, different actors in the city organisation, real estate owners, housing companies and local cleantech companies are involved in the vision work.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: In operation

The master plan is the comprehensive land use plan for the whole city. In Lahti, the master plan process is continuous. The master plan is implemented according to the action plan 2013-2016. At the same time, its revision for the next city council season 2017–2020 is under construction. The continuous master plan process makes it easier to time important development correctly and as sustainable way as possible.

• Start year: 2014
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status:

The sustainable procurement rules are developed not only at the concern level, as procurement programme, but also at unit level. Environmental programs are required from potential service providers of social and health services. The procurement criteria are improved and diversified to advance sustainable development in technical and environmental services. In addition, environmental goals will be included in every procurement process related to built environment.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Education/Awareness Raising
• Status: In operation

The city’s building inspection services provide to citizens and builders better guidance and training related to more energy-efficient and renewable energy solutions in building and renovation projects. The services strengthen the energy-efficiency expertise of the personnel working in the permission and inspection related duties. The building inspection services cover not only the geographical area of the city of Lahti, but also neighbouring municipalities Nastola and Kärkölä.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status: In operation

The measures include the evaluation of the correspondence between building stock and service network plan and the utilisation of the results in making premises use more efficient in the city's educational and cultural services, the comprehensive planning of premises related to social and health services, and the rise of the share of leased electric cars into 15 % in the social and health services. These measures are connected to the city strategy.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: In operation

Different zoning projects promote more sustainable solution in the city. There development projects related to the strengthening attractiveness of Lahti central area and focusing especially on the pedestrian zones. The zoning and planning areas such as Ranta-Kartano residential area, of Hennala area from army base brownfield to new residential area, and of Radanvarsi area along the railway tracks all have emphasis on sustainable mobility, housing and service solutions.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status: In operation

There are various measures related to more energy-wise and sustainable zoning and area development projects in the city's Technical and Environmental Services. The areas include e.g. the city centre and especially its pedestrian zone, Ranta-Kartano residential area, Hennala army base brownfield area and the Radanvarsi area along the railway tracks. New buildings in Ranta-Kartano, Niemi and the railway station planning area are low-energy and reach further zero-energy level by 2020.

• Start year: 2012
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: In operation

The aim of Lahti Premises Centre is that all new buildings of the city is at least low-energy level and reaches further zero-energy level by 2020. This includes the special demonstration construction project to advance sustainable energy use in Lahti area such as Jalkaranta and Liipola community centres in 2013–2016.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Fiscal / Financial mechanism
• Status: In operation

New solutions in vehicle technology and sustainable energy sources will be piloted in local public transportation. The actions and projects related to electric vehicles, charging infrastructure and technological development of electric traffic will be implemented in Lahti. Locally produced biowaste-based biogas is used as a motor vehicle fuel by utilsing PPP between LABIO Ltd (owned by Lahti Aqua Ltd. and Päijät-Häme Waste Disposal Ltd) and gas company Gasum Ltd.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: In operation

Lahti is in forefront of waste management. Päijät-Häme Waste Disposal Ltd provides waste management services for Lahti and 11 other municipalities in Päijät-Häme area. In biogas issues, the city-owned company aims to make its landfill gas collecting system more efficient in Kujala waste management centre. Furthermore, it will start to collect and utilise landfill gas emitted from the closed landfill areas. In Kujala area, there is also LABIO Ltd’s new biogas plant which starts to operate during autumn 2014.

• Start year: 2009
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: Completed

Kymijärvi II is the first gasification power plant in the world to efficiently generate electricity and district heat from Solid Recovered Fuel. Its commercial use started on May 2012.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: In operation

The city-owned Lahti Energy Ltd. plans to build new CHP plant would be able to burn a wide range of fuels, including biomass, coal, peat, RDF and natural gas. The plant could burn up to a million tonnes of biomass per year. It would replace the ageing Kymijärvi I power plant fired mostly on coal. This Bio2020 power plant plays the key role on Lahti’s path to its challenging GHG emission targets set into year 2025.

• Start year: 2011
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status:

The aim is that large part of the units of the city organisation will use WWF’s office environmental management system Green Office. The Green Office system will be further developed to wider eco-support activity network for the city organisation.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Fiscal / Financial mechanism
• Status: In operation

The framework for efficient and sustainable public transportation in Lahti is the new tendering system. The service-level in bus transportation is raised with the help of new service purchase agreements. There will be also different actions and measures to promote the use of public transportation in Lahti. A shared public transportation ticket system between Lahti region and Helsinki Region Transport will help modal shift in commuting between Lahti and Helsinki metropolitan area. The new long-distance terminal in the Lahti travel centre and the measures to promote sustainable multimodal solutions provided by the centre will also help the situation.

• Start year: 2014
• Type: Education/Awareness Raising
• Status:

The city’s building inspection services provide to citizens and builders better guidance and training related to more energy-efficient and renewable energy solutions in building and renovation projects. The services strengthen the energy-efficiency expertise of the personnel working in the permission and inspection related duties. The building inspection services cover not only the geographical area of the city of Lahti, but also neighbouring municipalities Nastola and Kärkölä.

• Start year: 2014
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: In operation

The development of material efficiency in the city of Lahti concern

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: In operation

The actions recommended in Lahti’s pedestrian and cycling transport development plan 2025 are implemented. In a shorter period from 2013 to 2016, especially the quality passageways for cycling and the main pedestrian and cycling passageways in the city centre are improved and in genral, other improvements in circumstances of pedestrian and cycling transport in Lahti will be implemented. Both action groups are connected to the city strategy.

• Start year: 2008
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status: In operation

The basis for Lahti’s energy-efficiency work is the Municipal Energy Efficiency Agreement signed with the Ministry of Employment and the Economy. The agreement relates to ESD directive and covers the buildings and facilities owned by the city and also the energy-efficiency improvements in public lighting and in wastewater treatment and drinking water management. The goal is to save energy 16 GWh during between 2008 and 2016. The residential buildings owned by the city are included in Rental Property Action Plan signed with the MEE. The new agreement period 2017-2010 is negotiated between the city and the ministry.

• Start year: 1999
• Type: Education/Awareness Raising
• Status: In operation

Lahti Region Environmental Services have consumer advice service on household energy issues and problems covering whole Päijät-Häme region. It provides general environmental guidance for sustainable choices to people living in Lahti Region by utilising for example Lahti’s info desk located in the largest shopping centre and environmental information vehicle Kaisla. Lahti Region Environmental also gives environmental education in local daycare centres and schools.

• Start year: 2009
• Type: Organizational / Governance
• Status: In operation

The city strategy states that by 2016 at least 40 % of purchased electricity in the city organisation must be produced with renewable energy sources.

• Start year: 2010
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: Completed

The City of Lahti has comprehensive storm water programme approved in 2012. Storm water handling is in key position when the local strategic issues in adaptation, i.e., preventing the most harmful effects of city floods and the reduction of the risk of eutrofication of lakes caused by increasing precipitation, are considered. The execution of the storm water programme is under way. For example storm water planning included in each detailed city plan since 2013.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: In operation

The city’s climate adaptation planning has continued in national project Climate Proof Cities. Target programme and action plan are implemented in 2013 and 2014. The local strategic issues in adaptation are to prevent the most harmful effects of city floods, to reduce the risk of eutrofication of lakes caused by increasing precipitation, and health risks related to heat waves. In near future, we has also to study more closely detailed risks caused by storms, risks caused by the rise of ground water levels, and positive effects of climate change and what kind of adaptation measures are needed with them.

• Start year: 2010
• Type: Technical/Infrastructure investment
• Status: In operation

The City-owned energy company Lahti Energy Ltd has a vision of storm proof electricity network, and it has also started to implement and investment to reach in 2020 this vision.

• Start year: 2013
• Type: Assessment/Research
• Status: In operation

The research about vulnerability to city floods in the Lahti city centre area

• Start year: 2012
• Type: Policy/Strategies/Action Plans
• Status: Completed

The start point to the city’s structured adaptation planning work was EU Cities Adapt project executed between 2012 and 2013. Lahti and 20 other European cities were partners in this EU funded project aiming to promote climate adaptation measures all over the Europe. In Lahti, the project work was done by multisectoral working group including member from many city organizations and also from University of Helsinki. The major future impacts and threats caused by climate change were analysed. The adaptation was included into new city strategy in 2013. The roadmap of the adaptation planning was accomplished in the project.