A Climate Change Solution in Copenhagen: Nine New Islands

• January 11th 2019

by Nena Perry-Brown

Much of the narrative surrounding climate change in waterfront areas is about how rising sea levels could threaten the built environment. Now, a European capital is turning to the sea to fight climate change.

As reported by designboom, the mayors of Copenhagen and the Danish government have announced a plan to reclaim 3 million square feet of land in the Baltic Sea, 10 kilometers south of Copenhagen. This would be the largest land reclamation project in Scandanavia.

The project, helmed by Urban Power, would create nine islands, each with "a green belt of nature" and a landscape that encourages sports and recreational use. Each island will also have publicly-inaccessible areas to provide a haven for wildlife and encourage biodiversity.

Termed the "Holmene" project, the islands will also have a waste-to-energy plant, where bio- and water waste from 1.5 million local residents will be converted into bio-gas and clean water. Between this and other green technologies like wind turbines and heat storage, the islands will reduce at least 70,000 tons of CO2 annually while producing over 300,000 MWh of energy, which 25 percent of the Copenhagen City population consumes annually.

Construction on the "Holmene" will begin in 2022 and is anticipated to complete in 2040. 

This article originally published at https://dc.urbanturf.com/articles/blog/a-climate-change-solution-in-copenhagen-nine-new-islands/14876.