Zaragoza – a frontrunner in the fair, green and digital transition
Zaragoza ranks among the First European Cities to Receive the EU Mission Label for their commitment to reach Climate Neutrality by 2030.
To meet the objectives of the European Green Deal, Europe needs to sustain concrete urban actions and commitment. Last October, the European Commission awarded ten European cities with the Mission Label for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Label, recognising their plans to achieve climate neutrality by 2030.
Zaragoza is one of the awarded cities. “This award represents further recognition of Zaragoza's trajectory in the European Net Zero Cities Mission, and the quality and viability of its commitments and projects in this area” said Blanca Solans, the Councillor for Finance and European Funds.
Zaragoza’s action plan has been formally included in a Climate City Contract (CCC), developed by the City Council in collaboration with CIRCE Foundation, with the active engagement of the citizens and local entities, including large companies, financial institutions, universities, clusters, and associations.
Ambitious tragets of decarbonization
With its CCC, Zaragoza plans to reduce 80% of its GHG emissions, which means an annual average reduction of 1,474 Mtonnes of CO2 until 2030. The initial investment is estimated to amount to almost €4,000 billion between 2020 and 2030, with an additional annual investment of €42 million required by the City Council.
The plan includes measures to electrify public transport, compliance with European directives on decarbonisation, and promotion of energy rehabilitation of homes.
In this respect, Zaragoza is also participating in the NEUTRALPATH EU-funded project, aiming to develop positive and clean energy districts (PCEDs) and co-design efficient, climate-friendly solutions to speed up urban energy transition.
Zaragoza's leading role in the Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities Mission not only contributes to the city's sustainability but also sets an inspiring example for the broader European community and the other cities involved in the NEUTRALPATH project and the Cities Mission.
The EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities
Cities play a central role in climate mitigation, accounting for over 70% of global CO2 emissions and over 65% of world energy consumption.
In April 2022, 112 cities across Europe were selected to embark on the EU Cities Mission: becoming climate-neutral by 2030, testing innovative cross-sectoral approaches, including citizen engagement, stakeholder management and internal governance.
The 12 October 2023 represented an important milestone in this journey: ten cities taking part in the mission were awarded the Label of the EU Mission for Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities.
The Label recognises the cities' plans to achieve climate neutrality by 2030 and facilitates access to public and private funding towards that objective. Each action plan has been formalised in a Climate City Contract (CCC), that shows in detail how cities intend to reach their 2030 climate neutrality target.
Besides Zaragoza, the other cities that have received the label are Sønderborg (Denmark), Mannheim (Germany), Klagenfurt (Austria), Cluj-Napoca (Romania) and Stockholm (Sweden), Madrid, Valencia, Valladolid and Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain).