Horsens Kommune has set an exceptionally ambitious goal: to become climate neutral as early as 2030 - a full 20 years ahead of the national deadline. This goal is not merely political rhetoric, but a concrete commitment from a city council that recognises the climate crisis demands action now. As the country's 12th largest municipality with approximately 93,000 inhabitants and an expected population growth of 50 percent towards 2030, Horsens faces the dual challenge of drastically reducing CO2 emissions while more citizens move to the municipality. In 2018, Horsens Kommune as a community emitted 786,000 tonnes of CO2, equivalent to approximately 9 tonnes per citizen (p. 15). This represents a 25 percent reduction since 1990, but is far from sufficient to reach the target. Emissions are distributed with 44 percent from energy, 28 percent from transport, and 24 percent from agriculture and land use (p. 7). This is a distribution that largely matches the national picture, but with some local characteristics that make Horsens' climate plan different from other municipalities'. Horsens' position as a logistics city along the E45 motorway creates both challenges and opportunities. The many logistics companies contribute significantly to transport emissions, but also give the municipality a unique opportunity to pioneer fossil-free freight transport. The geographic location as a low-lying fjord city with three watercourses running through it makes climate adaptation an existential necessity - estimated damage costs over 100 years amount to DKK 6.9 billion from flooding alone (p. 19). The most ambitious measures in the plan reflect the municipality's strengths. Fjernvarme Horsens has already more than doubled the number of customers in six years and is expected to reach 24,000 connections by 2030 (p. 11). In transport, the target is for 45 percent of all cars to be fossil-free by 2030, supported by a green logistics sector that will test new solutions and lead nationally (p. 41). In agriculture, the plan includes establishment of at least 530 hectares of new forest and 100 hectares of new wetlands, as well as retirement of 260 hectares of carbon-rich lowland soils (p. 43). However, the plan is honest about its limitations. With current measures, Horsens Kommune will in 2030 still need to reduce 362,000 tonnes of CO2 to reach the climate neutrality target (p. 17). This corresponds to nearly half of current emissions and underscores that significant additional reductions must be found. Particularly in transport, 182,000 tonnes of CO2 reduction remain unaccounted for, while agriculture is missing 136,000 tonnes (pp. 39, 43). The municipality builds on its strong tradition of collective effort and has already in the planning process engaged citizens, businesses, and associations through partnership groups and workshops. Going forward, climate partnerships will be established across eight strategic tracks, and a Panel for Climate Partnerships will be set up with participation from the business community, the mayor, and political committee chairs (p. 33). The ambition is clear: climate action should not be a task for the municipality alone, but a joint effort where the entire Horsens community contributes to the green transition.

Source: Klimaplan 2022-2026 (2022)