Lessons from the greenest city

In 2007, the City of Växjö in Sweden was voted the greenest city in Europe. Over an 18-year period, greenhouse gas emissions per resident have been reduced by 41%. How has Växjö achieved this impressive result and are there any lessons that could be transferred to Australian cities? This paper describes research which compares Växjö with the Victorian City of Ballarat. The research shows that per capita emissions for Ballarat are 133% higher than those in Växjö. Upgrading the typical Ballarat home to a 6-star rating, and installing a gas-boosted solar water heater and 4.0 kW PV system on the roof could reduce per capita emissions to similar levels to those in Växjö.