renewable revolution: danish isle eyes fossil fuel-free future - solar traffic light system

SAMSO, Denmark (
Thomson Reuters Foundation-
The first thing tourists notice is the sea wind turbines near the Danish island of Samso, some of which rise from the rough waters and some of which rise high on the lush green space.
These 21 turbines have brought international environmental praise to Samso.
They not only meet all the local electricity needs, but also offset the electricity demand on Earth --
Warming emissions caused by transportation, farm equipment and the use of fossil fuel in buildings.
The remaining clean energy is exported to two major islands in Denmark, between which Samso is located.
Most families on the island use wood chips, straw and solar heating. just 28 km (17. 4 miles)
The number of residents is less than 4,000
It uses less clean energy than it produces, making its carbon emissions negative.
"If you take all of Denmark, we have. . .
Per capita carbon emissions are about six or seven tons.
At Samso, we have three negative ones, "said Soren Hermansen, director of the Samso Energy Academy.
11 years after showing the world how to fully meet electricity demand from renewable sources, the island has begun its next steps. Dubbed Samso 3.
0, its goal is to completely stop using fossil fuels by 2030, 20 years ago, set by the EU to achieve this goal.
Globally, climate scientists say the continued use of fossil fuels increases carbon dioxide emissions in 2017 and 2018, threatening targets to curb climate warming to prevent rising sea levels and catastrophic weather events“This (plan)
Very ambitious.
We know this, but we have done it before, "said Hermansen, architect of Samso's transformation from the agricultural community to the renewable energy revolutionary.
The mayor of Samso, Marcel Mayer, said it would require overhaul of the island's transportation system and change agricultural practices so that farms store more carbon than they emit.
On an island that has no roundabout and no traffic lights but has a second roundabout
In Denmark, the largest number of solar cells per resident, nearly 80% of local government vehicles are electric, and five charging stations are distributed around Samso.
It is also planned to build a biogas plant that converts organic waste and other biomass into transport fuels, including a state --
Now operated ferries powered by liquefied natural gas.
Other targets include reducing home heating needs and encouraging locals to switch to electric vehicles.
The challenge is huge, especially since the Danish government has been reducing its green ambitions, cutting targets and cutting investment.
The latest Climate Change Performance Index of the three research groups tracking the world's largest emitter's efforts to combat climate change ranked Denmark 15 out of 56 countries, lower than Malta and India.
Denmark has been at the top of the list for the past half a decade.
When Samso won government competition in 1997 for a local community eager to be completely self-satisfied
The island is facing a crisis due to sufficient renewable energy.
A slaughterhouse with about 100 jobs is about to close and people are leaving. The cost of importing energy is about 55 million Dan Macron ($8. 24 million)
"One year," he said.
At multiple meetings, he highlighted the savings of clean energy, sought advice from the community and received support, as well as the potential to build and maintain new jobs and skills such as wind farms and installation of solar panels.
Ole Klejs Hemmingsen, plumber and board member of the Samso Energy Academy, said this was the key to bringing locals in.
"People can save money when oil prices rise (with)
"New technology," he recalls.
"People like me want to do business.
I think that is driving this process because it involves money.
At the request of the government, many islanders have jointly invested 0. 4 billion Dan Macron (
Worth more than $84 million)
Eleven onshore turbines have transformed the image of Samso, once known for its potatoes.
Fruit farmer Mogens Mahler, one of the early investors, once owned one of three wind turbines on his own land.
"It was a very big sum of money at that time. . . we had to get (it)
Because no one here has that much money, "he said.
"I am the kind of person I want to do these things (renewables)
But it has to give money.
"His home and farm are now lit and heated mainly with green energy, and in about nine years he has withdrawn his investment.
But when the price of wind energy fell, he calculated that with services and insurance, it might no longer be profitable.
He sold his turbine to a big company in 2017.
Now, he regrets the decision as prices rebound.
He added that in addition to the economic gains, turning Samso into a "renewable energy island" gave the locals "a little bit of pride ".
It also attracts newcomers like Lea Hesseldal
Haines moved there from London in 2016 with her husband and three children to seek a better "job --
Balance of family life ".
Hesseldal said: "I want my children to grow up in an environment where they have the same faith as me . "
Haines is now working at the Energy Academy.
Every year, college, a lampfilled long-
The house outside the village of balun port welcomes about 5,000 tourists-
Scientists, politicians, journalists and tourists from all over the world want to know how to replicate the success of Samso.
Hermansen's advice is to focus on the community rather than technology.
"You have to boil it down to 'What is there for me? ’. . .
So people can see the actual reason, "he said.
Louis mondaka, professor at Lund University in Sweden, said the Samso example shows that public participation and participation are "key factors" that focus on low-income areas"
Carbon shift.
He added that government support and views on the fair and transparent process are also key.
Hermansen hopes that, so far, despite the huge obstacles, the experience of the island will help it achieve its latest vision
From policy and cost to market power.
The main component of the biogas plant, Samso 3.
He said that since the price of natural gas is low enough to make it competitive and discourage investors, it has not yet been built.
At the same time, he added that the Danish government is worried that it will be expensive to achieve green protection too soon, which makes the export cost of Danish products too high.
Board members of the energy Academy say many of Samso's wind turbines have been around for nearly 20 years and need to be replaced soon, at which point subsidies are decreasing.
And lifestyle choices.
Hermanson is driving an electric car, but he admits he can't cut all fossil fuels when his job needs international travel.
Still, he is optimistic that the island can abandon them.
When the clean energy project was launched in 1997, he was told it would never happen.
"But we did," he said . "