Odense Kommune has set one of Denmark's most ambitious climate targets: to be fully climate-neutral as early as 2030 - twenty years ahead of the national target. This goal was politically adopted in 2020 and is now supported by a comprehensive action plan intended to transform Denmark's third-largest city into a climate-neutral beacon for the rest of the country. The starting point for Odense's climate efforts is both challenging and promising. In 1990, the municipality emitted approximately 2.5 million tonnes of CO2, but this has already been halved to 903,000 tonnes in 2023 (p. 7). The energy sector continues to dominate the climate accounts with 61% of emissions, while transport accounts for 30%, agriculture for 5%, and waste/wastewater for 4% (p. 7). What is distinctive about Odense is the city's extraordinarily high connection rate to district heating at 95% - the highest in Denmark - which creates both opportunities and challenges in the green transition. Odense's climate profile differs markedly from other Danish cities in several areas. The city's tight coupling with Fjernvarme Fyn makes the energy transition both more concentrated and more complex than in municipalities with dispersed energy supply. At the same time, the municipality expects an increase in the number of passenger cars from 80,000 to 98,000 by 2030 (p. 31), creating particular pressure on the transport sector. Odense Fjord also constitutes a unique natural asset that must both be protected and can contribute to CO2 absorption through eelgrass projects. The most transformative measures in the climate plan focus on three fundamental changes. First, the establishment of CO2 capture at Fjernvarme Fyn, which alone is to capture 280,000 tonnes of CO2 annually and thereby become the plan's single largest measure (p. 20). Second, the implementation of a radical green mobility plan that, among other things, reduces speed limits to 30 km/h across the entire road network within Ring 2 and invests heavily in public transport to reduce transport emissions by 94,000 tonnes annually (p. 33). Third, a comprehensive nature-based strategy in which the municipality will double its forest and nature area from 2009 to 2030 through the establishment of 3,500 hectares of new forest and retirement of agricultural land (p. 50). The climate plan is honest about the significant challenges that still need to be resolved. Although the municipality has identified concrete reductions in the energy and transport areas, precise calculations of whether the planned measures will collectively bring Odense fully to climate neutrality are still lacking. The plan also acknowledges that many technologies such as CO2 capture are still under development, and that market conditions may change significantly by 2030. Moreover, many of the most far-reaching measures - such as extensive speed reductions and reorganisation of the city centre - will require considerable public support to succeed. To secure broad support, Odense Kommune has established the Odense Klimapartnerskab together with major local actors such as Syddansk Universitet, Universal Robots, and Fjernvarme Fyn (p. 76). At the same time, local citizen climate councils are being established throughout the municipality to ensure that the climate effort is anchored in local communities. The municipality also focuses on strategic collaboration with the children's and health sectors to demonstrate how climate measures can deliver multiple benefits simultaneously. With this combination of technological breakthroughs, regulatory changes, and citizen engagement, Odense hopes to demonstrate that climate neutrality by 2030 is not just a political vision but an achievable reality for a modern Danish city.

Source: Klimahandleplan 2025 (2025)