On the 30th April 2020, with the Delibera di Consiglio n.29 del 30/04/2020 (PDF), the City Council approved the adhesion of the Municipality of Venic to the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, which is the mail global movement addressed to local administrations that spontaneously commit to face the compelling challenge caused by the climatic crisis.  

The first Covenant of Mayors  was launched in Europe in 2008, with the aim to unite the local governments spontaneously commited to reach and overcome the common goals for climate and energy.

The Municipality of Venice adhered to the "first" Covenant of Mayors in 2011 (download DC n. 91/2011 in PDF) and from 2012 it has an Action Plan for Sustainable Energy, which let our City diminish the emissions of greenhouse gas by 20% more than in 2005, by studying the consumption in the fields of building, public and private equipment and facilities (tertiary, residential, public lighting) and the public, private and commercial transport sector (excluding rail, sea/river, air transport).  

• Year 2005: 1.252.348 (ton co2 eq)
• Year 2016: 1.004.129 (ton co2 eq)

Visit the page of the Covenant of Mayors of 2011. 

In 2017, the Covenant of Mayors became global and changed its name into Covenent of Mayors for Climate and Energy, with the aim to spur cities to face the climatic crisis as a whole, with better measures and adding the actions of mitigation (aimed exclusively at the reduction of emissions) and of adjustment to climate change (aimed at making cities more resilient). Currently, more than 10.000 in over 60 countries in the world adhered to the Covenant. 

With the subscription of the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy, the Municipality of Venice welcomes the initiative by the European Commission, which puts together the two pillars of the fight against climate change, mitigation and adjustment, and it further consolidates the synergy with other policies and initiatives by the EU on this field;

With the subscription the committment is to: 

    • reducing CO2 emissions (and possibly other greenhouse gases) by at least 40% by 2030, in particular by means of improved energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy sources; 

    • increasing one's resilience by adapting to the effects of climate change;accrescere la propria resilienza adattandosi agli effetti del cambiamento climatico;

    • drawing up within two years a new Action Plan for Energy and Climate (SEAP) defning the actions for mitigation and adaptation put in place to achieve the aforementioned objectives, together with the deadlines and responsibilities assigned;

    • establishing a baseline emission inventory and an assessment of the risks and vulnerabilities induced by climate change;

    • submit a progress report, at least every two years, after the submission of the Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan for evaluation, monitoting and verification;

    • sharing one's vision, results, experiences and knw-how with other EU local and regional aouthorities and beyond, through direct cooperation and peer-reviewed exchange; 

The Sector of Strategic and Environmental Projects, eith the support of CORILA, started outlining a draft for a plan of climatic adjustment already in 2019, according to the program “Deadline 2020” subscribed with the network C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (another global network of big cities committed to face envirnmental risks created by climate changes) (altra rete globale di grandi città impegnate ad affrontare rischi ambientali causati dai cambiamenti climatici). The draft comprehends a risk and vlnerabilities evaluation evaluation of the mainland, lagoon and islands and  and abacus of adjustment meaures mainly aimed at facing the problems realted to rasing of the sea level, flooding and heat islands. 

On the side of mitigation, the "inventario emissivo del 2016" is currently being updated with the support of SOGESCA srl. The document is to be outlined following the GPC international standards, which comprehend the emissions related to rubbish, industry, primary sector and transports (roads, railways, airways and seaways), besides the sector of buildings and public and private systems, together with the drafting of new energy efficiency actions that lead to the reduction by 2030 of greenhouse gas emissions by 40% compared to the base inventory of 2005 as established by the pact. 

The Ficus will be on working in the field of environmental sustainability on various grounds, from mobility to energy efficiency, from the development of new cycle paths to the implementation of public green, which means to positively influence the planning of the Municipality, with an eye to curibing the effects of climate change in all its facets.   

To know more 

Check the webisite of the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy  and the Commitment Document (download PDF) pucblished by the European Union.