On Monday 23 January 2017, Luxembourg's Ministry of Sustainable Development and Infrastructures in collaboration with myenergy, the national initiative for the promotion of a sustainable energy transition, awarded Climate Pact certifications to 22 municipalities throughout the Grand Duchy during a ceremony that took place at the Trifolion in Echternach.

Audited since June 2016, these municipalities received their awards from Camille Gira, Secretary of State for Sustainable Development and Infrastructures.

Minicipal efforts rewarded at two different levels

Currently 104 communes out of 105 are involved in the Climate Pact. Since its introduction in January 2013, this quality management and certification programme aims to orient the Luxembourg municipalities towards a sustainable policy in the fields of energy efficiency and the fight against climate change. Through a catalogue of 79 measures, municipalities are effectively oriented towards a more sustainable policy.

Of the 22 newly certified municipalities, five municipalities have achieved level 1 certification which represents a minimum of 40% of the total points. They are Bourscheid, Dippach, Reisdorf, Schengen and Strassen.

The municipalities of Betzdorf, Bertrange, Bissen, Bous, Colmar-Berg, Consdorf, Dalheim, Echternach, Erpeldange-sur-Sûre, Flaxweiler, Goesdorf, Larochette, Mondorf-les-Bains, Schieren, Steinfort, Waldbillig and Wormeldange all obtained Level 2 certification and were therefore able to achieve at least the 50% threshold.

Air quality highlighted in 2017

Beginning in 2017, new measures to improve air quality in municipalities have been added to the Climate Pact certification programme. Derivatives of the national air quality programme, these new measures focus on the reduction of emissions of nitrogen oxides and particulates.

An emission calculator, a practical tool developed in collaboration with the Environment Administration, allows the assessment of atmospheric emissions from vehicles.

A web application for energy accounting

Under the Climate Pact, municipalities must establish energy accounts for their buildings and equipment. This accounting is based on the consumption of heat and electricity, in order to determine the amount of CO2 emissions. It also allows the water consumption of communal buildings to be referenced and monitored. The EnerCoach programme, an energy accounting software provided by myenergy, assists them in data retrieval and data capture, with the objective of monitoring and analysing the evolution of energy consumption. EnerCoach has recently been integrated into the GESCOM suite of SIGI (Syndicat Intercommunal de Gestion Informatique). This on-line software supports the Luxembourg municipal administrations and aims to simplify their administrative work.

Accompany municipalities towards a sustainable energy transition

As project manager and technical support structure, myenergy acts as the main point of contact. It handles the development of the project, provides municipalities with tools and information related to the various Climate Pact themes, takes over most of the steps taken by the signatory municipalities and ensures the communication of the Climate Compact. In addition, the Economic Interest Group oversees and trains climate advisors, and coordinates audits.

Photo by Studion Photography © myenergy