Brittany
| Population: | 3,043,500 (2005) |
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| GHG Emissions: | 16.5 MtCO2(2005) |
Targets and Goals
- Reduce CO2 emissions by at least 20% by 2020; to cut CO2 emissions 80% by 2050.
- Produce 20% of energy from renewable resources by 2020 (currently at 7%).
Top Actions
Energy Efficiency
- From 2005 on, the Eco-Faur programme has supported 250 housing and equipment projects for Euro20 million (US$27 million). The grant is only awarded if the local communities (small and medium-sized) take substantial steps to design buildings in an environmentally-friendly way (e.g. low energy consumption, renewable fuels for heating etc.). The idea of Eco-Faur is to convince small community leaders (60% of the projects were built in towns and villages of less than 2000 inhabitants) that energy efficiency is as much a rewarding matter for small communities in terms of lowered pollution levels and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as for large and rich urban ones.
Renewable Energy
- The Regional Council of Brittany pushes for the development of
a wide diversity of renewable energy sources applied to all
possible fields of production. For example:
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Land-based wind farms will produce 1,000MW by 2010. By early 2007, 200MW were already operating and 500MW are at various stages of development.
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Sea-based wind farms will be developed in order to reach an operational capacity of 500MW by 2015, half of the actual capacity at the European level.
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Biomass from wood production will increase from 120MW to 220MW in 2013.
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25 local methanisation equipments on farms will be operational by 2009 to produce biogas. The expected biogas production prospect, using only 20 to 25% of the region potential is 160MW for electricity and 210MW for heat production.
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- Brittany has taken complementary actions to extract renewable energy from maritime sources with the aim of providing 10% of the region's electricity consumption by 2020 and involving both the public and private sector:
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- A prototype of tidal turbine has been put in operation in March 2008. The first tidal turbine farm (3 to 6 units) will be operational on the North Coast in 2011.
- Two off-shore wind farms are planned off the Northern and Southern coast.
- Brittany, together with six other French regions and state agencies, has agreed on the IPANEMA (National Partnership Programme on Renewable Marine Energies) to test a wide range of technologies for energy extraction from the sea: tide, surf, off-shore wind farms, thermal energy, pressure osmosis from salinity, etc. This project was signed in October 2008 and will be progressively implemented in the coming months.
Clean Transport
- Brittany has successfully developed train transportation by renovating stations and by renewing 85% of the engines and the carriages for Euro142 million (US$200 million). As a result train transportation has increased by 50%, up from 17,000 users per day in 2001 to 26,000 in 2008. This means less car traffic and less use of non-renewable energies.
- This achievement was fulfilled thanks to an articulate policy working on all aspects of rail transportation:
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- regularity: late trains are the exception and consumers' satisfaction is a top priority of the regional train policy,
- speed: new equipment has reduced transport time by 15-25%,
- comfort: comfort standards on regional trains are based on the TGVs (French high-speed train) standards,
- increased access facility with special fares for young people and unemployed.
Sustainable Land Use
- With 95% of its population living less than 60km from the shore, Brittany has set a unique integrated coastal management scheme gathering 150 local governments and interest groups: The Charter for Coastal Spaces (Charte des Espaces Côtiers). This tool identifies how coastal land can be managed in a sustainable way, taking into consideration ecology and the local economy. The charter provides guidelines for long term management of the coastline and is an excellent basis for a climate change adaptation policy.
Contact Information
Policymaker
Christian Guyonvarch, Vice-President in Charge of International & European Affairs, Co-Chair of nrg4sd
Policy Advisor
Renaud Layadi, International Networks Project Manager
renaud.layadi@region-bretagne.fr
Tel: + 33 675 129089 (mobile)
Sustainable Energy Officer
Ferdinand Costes
Tel: +33 299 271463