Ringkøbing-Skjern Kommune has set ambitious climate targets that reach far beyond what most Danish municipalities commit to. With the vision of being "Naturens Rige" also in the future, the municipality aims for a 70 percent CO2 reduction by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, and to become a 100 percent fossil-free area as early as 2040. The ultimate target is CO2 neutrality by 2050, which requires a fundamental transformation of all sectors in the municipality. What is particularly challenging about Ringkøbing-Skjern Kommune's climate work is the municipality's large geographic extent and dominant agricultural sector. Where many Danish municipalities primarily need to address emissions from transport and typical building energy consumption, this municipality faces the complex task of reducing agricultural emissions by 55-65 percent by 2030. This requires innovative solutions such as biogas production from 100 percent of the manure potential and application of biochar on 3,200 hectares of agricultural land by 2030. The municipality's geographic location on the North Sea provides both opportunities and challenges. On the one hand, the area has excellent potential for renewable energy from wind and solar, and the municipality plans to become more than 100 percent self-sufficient in renewable energy as early as 2024. On the other hand, climate change creates particular risks with water "from all sides" - from extreme rainfall, groundwater rise, and sea water impact along the coast. The most ambitious measures in the plan focus on afforestation and carbon sequestration. The municipality will increase the forest area by 2,600 hectares by 2030 and 5,600 hectares by 2050, while 5,700 hectares of lowland soils are to be retired and rewetted by 2030. In parallel, the transport sector is to be revolutionised with a target of 10,000 electric vehicles in the municipality by 2030 and complete phase-out of oil and gas boilers by the same year. The greatest challenge in the plan, however, is the lack of concrete calculations of how large CO2 reductions the individual measures will deliver, and how the municipality will precisely reach the 70 percent target. While the action plan is rich in concrete projects - from biogas plants to energy laboratories - it lacks detailed quantification of the overall climate effect. This makes it difficult to assess whether the planned measures are actually sufficient. To succeed with the green transition, the municipality is investing heavily in partnerships with local actors. The collaboration with Destination Vesterhavet is to ensure sustainable tourism, while partnerships with the Business Council and the Trade Council are to drive the business sector's fossil-free transition. Citizens are engaged through campaigns for climate-friendly lifestyles and support for "empowered communities" that can create local value alongside climate reductions. The municipality openly acknowledges that the targets can only be reached through close cooperation with all local stakeholders and the right national framework conditions.

Source: Klimapolitik (2023-2026)