Amsterdam and Rotterdam see green at conference

Yahoo News 11 Dec 07;

Two major Dutch cities presented plans to think globally and act locally to drastically reduce CO2 emissions in their cities by up to 50 percent over the next 17 years, compared to 1990 levels.

While international representatives met in Bali for the United Nations conference on climate change, Amsterdam held its own climate conference Tuesday, where it announced a planned 40 percent reduction in greenhouse gases by 2025.

The mini-summit brought together administrations, environmental organisations and businesses. Insisting on the need for public and private partnerships to work together, Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen said, "the experiences of Amsterdam may serve later for the rest of the world."

Amsterdam's deputy mayor in charge of environmental issues presented a slew of possible actions the city could take, from shuttling tourists around in hydrogen-fueled boats to promoting working from home.

From now until mid-2008 the most polluting sectors, mainly transportation and housing development, are to agree voluntarily on a number of measures that will later become binding.

Responsible for 25 percent of CO2 emissions in The Netherlands, Amsterdam announced that it would offer two low-consuming light bulbs to some 300,000 households.

The four-million-euro (5.9 million dollars) price tag for the light bulb operation is infinitely lower than the savings created for consumers: 26 million euros over six years, the average life span of one of these light bulbs, according to the mayor's office.

Rotterdam, which wants to reduce its CO2 emissions by 50 percent between now and 2025, also presented new energy-friendly initiatives for cars, trains and public transportation Monday, along with an sustainable energy generation plan for its metro system.

In addition, public transportation conductors will receive training on ecological driving to reduce pollution from their vehicles by 10 percent.