Ii is a municipality of approximately 10,000 inhabitants just north of Oulu in Northern Ostrobothnia. Ii has been a member of the HINKU Forum since 2011 and has had some interesting experiences in its journey to becoming a carbon-neutral municipality. Ii’s mission is to increase the use of renewable energy and to improve energy efficiency in its municipal operations, businesses and households. These goals have three key components: activating investment in renewable energy sources, decreasing dependence on oil and economic improvement through decreased CO2 emissions.
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A positive circle
Ii’s journey to carbon neutrality began with inquiries from the business community about the feasibility of installing wind turbines in the area. Ii is an ideal spot for wind-power production due to its favourable location near major infrastructure and the sea and its abundance of uninhabited areas. The municipality then got behind the initiative, considering renewable energy an ideal way to create jobs, cut costs and increase investment in the area.
Just start doing it!
Energy efficiency and local energy production are key to Ii achieving carbon neutrality. Concerning specific initiatives, Ii’s approach is to first pilot and measure, then to upscale and implement. Starting on a smaller scale encourages people to just start doing things and learn in the process, says Ii’s Mayor Ari Alatossava. In the beginning, attracting investment to support renewable energy and energy efficiency was somewhat challenging. However, now that the return on these investments has been firmly established, they have become part of everyday life in Ii. Innovative ways of improving energy efficiency have also been found. For example, devices that measure heat and lighting have been installed in schools. Students themselves can think of and implement ways of saving energy. When the school saves energy through these actions, half of the saved amount is given back to the school and can be used for things like class trips. This creates a positive incentive for further saving measures.
Spotlight on: Kuivaniemi heating centre and woodchip terminal
The aim of the Kuivaniemi heating centre and woodchip terminal is to increase wood usage in energy production. A project is under way to replace four district heating boilers with a bioenergy plant, which will be finalised during 2016. It is estimated that the terminal will create 30 new jobs in the logistics chain. Moreover, it is calculated that this initiative will reduce CO2 emissions by 1,926,900 kg per year and reduce the consumption of oil by over 10,000 MWh.
Regional dimension
Ii’s decision makers believe that concentrating on these tasks will not only cut the cost of municipal operations but will also create more jobs and therefore make Ii a more attractive municipality for new inhabitants and businesses. Focusing on energy efficiency in Ii has produced significant results. For example, it has been estimated that the local economy gains €300,000 per year just by replacing imported oil with local renewable energy. The municipality has also promoted a participatory approach as an important component in generating local green growth. Some wind turbine projects in Finland have failed as a result of public resistance. In Ii, wind turbine companies must first contact landowners and discuss the potential environmental, noise and landscape effects with them. Only if the landowners and the municipality come to an agreement is the planning process started. Co-operation is the key here – the municipality will not make decisions without consulting the residents first.
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