BEIJING AND ROTTERDAM ECO CITIES? USING 100 CRITERIA FOR A CLASSIFICATION OF ECOLOGICAL CITIES PAPER

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1 BEIJING AND ROTTERDAM ECO CITIES? USING 100 CRITERIA FOR A CLASSIFICATION OF ECOLOGICAL CITIES PAPER Meine Pieter van Dijk 1 1 Professor of urban management at ISS, the Economic Faculty and IHS of Erasmus University in Rotterdam and professor of water services management at UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education in Delft, The Netherlands m.vandijk@unesco-ihe.org Abstract Climate change forces cities to go for climate mitigation, or for adaptation activities. Cities aware of their environmental challenges have introduced policies and programs to deal with these issues. They want to become more ecological or eco cities. Many cities claim to be ecological cities, but there are no non-ambiguous definitions of ecological cities. In this paper criteria are suggested for defining ecological cities and an effort is made to operationalize these criteria. Earlier efforts to come up with definitions of an eco-city have been undertaken by Kenworthy (200), Bhatanagar (ed., 2010) and Van Dijk (200). Many initiatives have been taken to become more sustainable or to create ecological neighborhoods or cities. It would be useful to rate these efforts. It is suggested to use ten criteria to define ecological cities and to make an effort to operationalize these criteria. They range from the use of energy and water to how to deal with climate change issues in an integrated way. Subsequently these criteria will be used to determine to what extent European and Asian cities can be called ecological cities. 1. Introduction i A lot has been published on eco-cities, but it is not always clear what is really meant with such a concept. Bhatnagar (ed., 2010) gives an overview of visions of an eco city emphasizing criteria like: a city accessible for everyone, in balance with nature, reducing, Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

2 re-using and recycling waste, contributing to a closed water cycle and integrated into the surrounding region. More visions are possible, but it seems an effort should be made to list the most important criteria and then to classify which cities would score high on these criteria It is suggested to use ten criteria to define ecological cities and to make an effort to operationalize these definitions. This is an effort to study the metabolism of a city by finding the right indicators. Subsequently cities will be compared on these criteria do determine which one is more ecological. 2.1 Why more ecological cities? Not only higher energy prices and increased emissions of carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) force a reconsideration of the priorities for the future of cities in developing countries. Besides traditional urban environmental issues such as urban pollution, traffic congestion and inappropriate waste collection, the results of rapid urbanization and of climate change force cities to think more about their future. Water stress can be noted in many countries (Seckler et al. 199). A deteriorating environment accelerates the trend towards a gradual shortage of fresh water. While freshwater supplies are clearly limited, for most people water scarcity is caused by competition between water uses and by political, technological and financial barriers that limit their access to water (Falkenmark and Lundqvist 199). The Switch program intends to generate new efficiencies from an integration of actions across the urban water cycle in order to improve the quality of life in cities. Challenges like urbanization and environmental degradation can be tackled in a framework of urban management. Van Dijk (200) defines urban management as dealing with issues cities are facing, while managing at the same time the risks these cities are facing. Many initiatives have been taken at different levels of government, in different sectors, but these local initiatives are often not very well integrated in existing plans or coordinated with ongoing activities. Many cities claim to be ecological cities, but there are no non-ambiguous definitions of ecological cities. The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 2

3 Earlier efforts to come up with quantifiable definitions of an eco-city have been undertaken by Kenworthy (200) and Van Dijk (200). The latter suggests seven indicators which would require operationlization to measure urban sustainability: 1. Closing the water cycle, the link between the water resources, the use for drinking water and the eventual reuse of treated water 2. Stimulate energy management, reducing the greenhouse gases 3. Go for waste minimization and integrated waste management 4. Develop integrated transport policies. Formulate objectives concerning justice and equality and. Emphasize the need to involve all stakeholders. Try to achieve integration in framework of urban management Ten dimensions for sustainable city development in the Third World were developed by Kenworthy (200, pp. -). They provide a possible analytical framework to decide whether certain initiatives qualify for the ecological city label. His ten dimensions for sustainable city development in the Third World give a good impression of the issues at stake. A sustainable city is characterized by: 1. A compact, mixed urban form that protects the natural environment, biodiversity and food-producing areas 2. The natural environment permeates the city s spaces and embraces the city, while the city and its hinterland provide a major proportion of its food needs 3. Freeway and road infrastructure is deemphasized in favor of transit, walking and cycling infrastructure, with a special emphasis on rail. Car and motorcycle use are minimized 4. There is extensive use of environmental technologies for water, energy and waste management the city s life support systems become closed loop systems. The central city and sub-centers within the city are human centers that emphasize access and circulation by modes of transport other than the automobile, and absorb a high proportion of employment and residential growth. The city has a high quality public culture, community, equity and good governance. The public realm includes the entire transit system and all the environments associated with it Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

4 . The physical structure and urban design of the city, especially its public environments are highly legible, permeable, robust, varied, rich, visually appropriate and personalized for human needs. The economic performance of the city and employment creation is maximized through innovation, creativity and uniqueness of the local environment, culture and history, as well as the high environmental and social quality of the city s public environments. 9. Planning for the future of the city is a visionary debate and decision process, not a predict and provide computer-driven process 10. All decision making is sustainability-based, integrating social, economic, environmental and cultural considerations as well as compact, transit-oriented urban form principles. Such decision making processes are democratic, inclusive, empowering and engendering of hope 3. Possible criteria for eco cities In 2002, the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) and the Ministry of Construction in China jointly formulated a series of standards and rules on the construction and recognition of ecological cities, which are related to economic development, environmental protection and social progress. All detailed standards are published on the website of SEPA SEPA is the decision-maker to approve or disapprove cities applications. On June 2nd, 200, SEPA for the first time awarded the title of the ecological city to the following cities: ZhangJiaGang City, ChangShu City, Kunshan City and JiangYin City of Jiangsu Province. Shenzhen has set the target to become a SEPA recognized ecological city by the year Shenzhen s urban greening ratio has reached 1.1%, with 1.01 m² of green area per person, ranking top among other cities of the country. With 21 parks and,000 hectares of ecological scenic forests, Shenzhen takes the lead in both the area and quantity of greening compared to other cities. The City has been awarded titles including China s Best 10 Cities for Greening, National Garden City, Nations in Bloom, National Greening Pioneer. At present, Shenzhen has been on her way of thriving development with the aim of building Shenzhen into an ecological city with high tastes. ii The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 4

5 Based on a review of the relevant literature, we suggest the following ten criteria for defining eco cities: 1. How does the city deal with energy issues? 2. How does the city deal with solid waste issues? 3. How does the city deal with transport issues? 4. How does the city deal with pollution issues?. How does the city deal with water related issues?. How does the city deal with sanitation issues?. How does the city deal with climate change issues?. How does the city deal with housing issues? 9. How does the city deal with sustainable urban development issues? 10. Does the city follow an integrated approach? For each of these indicators a number of sub-indicators can be suggested based on the literature and efforts will be made to find a measurable indicator. The following ten tables deal with each criterion in turn 3.1 How does the city deal with energy issues? Energy use and the resulting CO 2 emissions are an important reason for climate change and the resulting negative effects for cities. We suggest ten possible sub-criteria to determine how cities deal with energy issues. Glaeser and Kahn (2010) focus on the actual CO 2 emissions in urban areas and the possibility to reduce it. Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29, 2010

6 Table 1 Criteria for dealing with energy issues? Criteria Measurement Source 1. Efforts to limit CO 2 emissions 2. Stimulate energy management at household level 3. Reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from transportation 4. Promoting energy saving in industry. Public transport on LNG. Promoting solar energy (sunboilers). Promoting the use of wind energy. Allowing generated energy to be ploughed back in the network 9. Promoting heating and cooling based on underground water 10. A relevant local initiative Comparison with previous period Policies with respect to energy management, f.ex. promote city heating based on industrial heat Policies with respect to greenhouse gas reduction and their results Policies with respect to energy saving & results Percentage of vehicles using clean LNG Policies with respect to solar energy & their results Policies with respect to wind energy & their results Policies with respect to reselling of electricity and their results Policies with respect to and their results, existence of temperature exchange projects Glaeser and Kahn (2010) Van Dijk (200) Glaeser and Kahn (2010) Glaeser and Kahn (2010) Scooters in India Examples in China Examples in Europe and China Common practice in the Netherlands Example Wuhan in Van Dijk (2009) The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU)

7 3.2 How does the city deal with solid waste issues? Solid waste is an important issue in cities and dealing with waste in a different way is required, for example because waste can also block drains, or cause health hazards (Schubeler et al., 199). What are cities doing to minimize waste, to collect it and to reuse or recycle useful elements? Table 2 Criteria for dealing with solid waste issues? Criteria Measurement Source 11. Efforts to limit the production of solid waste (reducing) households 12. Integrated waste management 13. Re-using 14. Recycling waste 1. Go for waste minimization in production in industry 1. Constructing waste collection points 1. Policies on hazardous waste 1. Policies on toxic chemicals 19. Involvement of the private sector in waste collection 20. A relevant local initiative Comparison with previous period Policy documents Quantities involved Quantities involved Quantities involved compared with previous periods Number of collection points Policy in place and quantities involved Policy in place and quantities involved Number of private operators and their role Van Dijk (200) Van Dijk and Kwarteng (200) Bhatnagar (ed., 2010) Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29, 2010

8 3.3 How does the city deal with transport issues? Transport is a crosscutting issue. It has to do with means of transportation and the fuel they use; it has to with physical planning and the design of a city. Transport can be an important source of pollution and cause a lot of noise. Finally, transportation is an important issue in physical planning, which can help to deal with the issue. Table 3 Criteria for dealing with transport issues? Criteria Measurement Source 21. Efforts to limit the use of cars 22. City accessible for everyone 23. Type of road infrastructure 24. Promoting the use of bicycles 2. Promoting modal split (transit) 2. Policies to limit congestion 2. Physical planning taking transport issues into account 2. Integrated urban design (Compact urban form) 29. Develop integrated transport policies 30. A relevant local initiative Policies and comparison with previous period Good public transportation system Role of high roads, local roads and bicycle lanes Cars deemphasized and surface for bikes compared to total space for roads Possibilities to change to another transport system activities to limit congestion Chapter on dealing with transport issues in an integrated way Policy of extending the city or going for densification and its impact Efforts to understand the relations between the issues Policy and its impact Kenworthy (200) Bhatnagar (ed., 2010) Kenworthy (200) 3.4 How does the city deal with pollution issues? The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU)

9 Pollution is the opposite of what you expect in an eco-city and hence policies to deal with different pollution issues are very important. We will distinguish between air, water and noise pollution and of the soil. Table 4 Criteria for dealing with pollution issues? Criteria Measurement Source 31. Efforts to limit air pollution from households 32. Efforts to limit water pollution 33. Efforts to limit soil pollution 34. Efforts to limit industrial pollution, (dealing with smog) 3. Efforts to limit noise pollution 3. Efforts to limit other types of pollution 3. Reducing intensive agriculture 3. Reduce the city s foot print 39. A livable city: quality of life index 40. A relevant local initiative Comparison with previous period Quality of water Quality of the soil Different indicators for quality of... Policy and its impact, number of decibels? For example smell Less fertilizers, pesticides or insecticides will be used Activities to limit environmental consequence An index developed for that purpose measuring quality of life Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

10 3. How does the city deal with water related issues? We focus on what changes in available water means for drinking water supply and sanitation, but drainage and flooding also need to be considered. What have cities done to deal with these issues? Table Criteria for dealing with water related issues? Criteria Measurement Source 41. Efforts to close the water cycle 42. Measures to deal with flooding 43. Separate drainage and sanitation 44. Integrated water resources management 4. City promotes water demand management 4. Promoting rain water harvesting 4. Using Sustainable urban drains (SUD) 4. Separate brown and grey water 49. Promoting urban agriculture 0. A relevant local initiative Integrated urban water management Comparison with previous period In place? Practiced? Actual policies and their effects Government policies Number of Suds? Installation in place Surface, number of crops and role in local economy Van Dijk (200) and Kenworthy (200) Rotterdam Climate proof More developed countries have this Urbano (ed., 2009) For example Beijing In Beijing in centre and in rural Beijing Liang and Van Dijk (2010) Switch project 3. How does the city deal with sanitation issues? The Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) deal with health issues, human rights and the number of slum dwellers. Halving the number of people with no access to save water is one of the goals, just like halving the number of people without access to safe sanitary The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 10

11 facilities. The first one may concern about one billion people, but there are almost 2 billion people in the world with no access to safe sanitation. Dealing with this issue in a Third world urban context is a real challenge. Table Criteria for dealing with sanitation issues? Criteria Measurement Source 1. Efforts to promote eco sanitation 2. Produce energy out of sewer (bio gas) 3. Promote decentralized waste water treatment 4. Use eco-friendly or environmental technologies for water treatment. Appropriate sanitation solutions. Developing sanitation value chain. Central treatment systems. Re-use of grey water on the spot 9. Collective facilities for communities 0. A relevant local initiative Comparison with previous period Quantity of gas produced Number of functional small decentralized treatment plants Use of wetlands for example Separate grey and brown water /non piped sanitation Promoting local production, maintenance and use of shit (compost, gas or energy) Number and their share Separate pipes and a functioning system Importance of this option Liang and Van Dijk (2009) Popular in China and Ghana Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

12 3. How does the city deal with climate change issues? Cities will have to change their policies because of climate change and increased pollution. Climate change has serious implications for cities and require climate mitigation and adaptation activities. Possibilities for cities, particularly those located in Deltas, to prepare themselves for climate change, need to be identified. Relevant questions are how can the projected changes in water supply result in adaptation policies in the concerned cities? Table Criteria for dealing with climate change issues? Criteria Measurement Source 1. Policy of climate mitigation 2. Policy of climate adaptation 3. Resources available 4. Fair governance structure. Available technology. Adaptive capacity. Leadership. Autonomy 9. Acting according to plan 0. A relevant local initiative Activities and effects Activities and effects Compared to earlier period Working in participatory way with stakeholders Use of adequate technologies Possibility to deal with issue Someone showing leadersh Possibility to take decisions Sticking to written down policies and activities Bierman (200) Gupta et al. (200) Gupta et al. (200) Gupta et al. (200) Gupta et al. (200) 3. How does the city deal with housing issues? Housing policies are not just concerning the numbers of units to be built. It also has to do with the location, the quality and the implications for transport, energy use and pollution abatement. The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 12

13 Table Criteria for dealing with housing issues? Criteria Measurement Source 1. Efforts to promote isolation 2. Reduction emissions from home heating 3. City has eco-houses & neighborhoods 4. Separating waste at household level. Reducing the greenhouse gas emissions from the construction industry. Using sustainable building materials. The natural environment permeates the city s spaces. Integrated housing systems approach 9. Space for recreational purposes 0. A relevant local initiative Subsidies? Comparison with previous period Examples Number of different products collected Comparison with previous period Comparison with previous period Houses built in a natural environment Relations between the issues is recognized Play grounds, sport facilities, etc. Van Dijk (2009) Glaeser and Kahn (2010) Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

14 3.9 How does the city deal with sustainability issues? Brundland (19) defines sustainable development as development that meets the needs of the present generation without compromising the needs of future generations. Since Brundland sustainable development is considered an integrated approach taking the economy, the environmental and the social system and their interactions into account. Achieving sustainable urban development also includes considering water and sanitation integral parts of urban infrastructure planning. The Switch projects emphasizes three unique aspects: 1. Thinking in terms of systems of interrelated components (system engineering) 2. Emphasis on a more ecological approach to sustainable urbanization and 3. Emphasis on a more integrated approach to different water related issues The first approach would mean developing indicators to monitor constantly the score of city with respect to the quality of the urban environment and to take corrective actions if certain variables reach threshold levels. Modeling the system and emphasizing decision support systems is inherent to this vision. A more ecological approach to sustainable urbanization implies moving from traditional environmental technologies to more ecosan options in the ecological city of the future. It will be necessary to focus more research on the topic of ecological cities, to study certain phases in the process of becoming more environmentally conscious as well as finding ways to interest some of the major urban actors in these issues. However the coordinating role of local governments and urban managers should not be underestimated. In fact it is their task to coordinate a multiplicity of actors. That is the essence of urban management: participatory, inclusive and with all actors concerned taking into consideration equality, the environment and economic development. Stating that it requires an integrated approach is not enough, because one could integrate the analysis of the issue (look at them in relation to each other), the approach chosen to deal with the issues and finally the activities undertaken to solve the problems. It needs to be clear what will be integrated, how and by whom? Integrated Urban Water Management (IUWM) can be achieved in each of the cities if we work towards a plan. A major assumption of this approach is that if we follow a holistic approach we will have better results. The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 14

15 Table 9 Criteria for dealing with sustainable urban development issues? Criteria Measurement Source 1. Efforts to promote sustainable urban development 2. Apply the Brundland definition of sustainability 3. Protecting the natural environment 4. City has good public culture & sense of community. Trying to change attitudes of actors. Promote ecological production. Use zoning policies. Reserve green areas: in balance with nature 9. Ecosystem rehabilitation activities 90. A relevant local initiative Policy documents and policy impact analysis Is current development at the expense of future generations? Tradable forest protection obligations Citizen's activities and stakeholder participation in sustainability activities Campaigns Government policies and incentives Reserved use of space Green space in M 2 as % of total space Roberts and Kanaley (eds, 200) Bhatnagar (ed., 2010) Brundland (19) Kenworthy (200) Kenworthy (200) Van Dijk (200) Physical planning Kenworthy (200) 3.10 Does the city follow an integrated approach? Integration could take place in the framework of urban management (Van Dijk, 200). Issues discussed are the integration of the different sectoral interests, the role of planning and management, the importance of economic, financial, social and environmental criteria (and how to combine them), who are the decision makers and how do we deal with the strict and the loose meaning of sustainable urbanization? The Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

16 Switch project also promotes urban agriculture projects, as part of the integrated approach to water use and reuse. Table 10 Criteria for an integrated approach to eco development Criteria Measurement Source 91. Policy document developing an integrated approach 92. City integrated into the surrounding region 93. Formulate objectives for justice and equality 94. Emphasize the need to involve all stakeholders 9. Planning for the future of the city is a visionary debate 9. Promoting biodiversity 9. Promoting wild life 9. Accountability towards stakeholders 99. Urban management philosophy Operationalisation of such a policy Collaboration and joint initiatives Eco city also for poor people & middle classes Urban management as involving relevant stakeholders to implement Discussion and participation is organized Policies & activities and their results Policies and their results Periodic reporting or consultation Integration is mentioned in policy documents Van Dijk (200) Bhatnagar (ed., 2010) Sen (2010) Van Dijk (200) Kenworthy (200) Van Dijk (200) 100. Relevant local initiatives The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 1

17 4. Applying these criteria We would like to use this list of characteristics to find out if certain initiatives in Asian and European cities qualify for the label ecological city or ecological neighborhood. It will be a problem to determine the score of different cities on these criteria and where to put the cut off point. The suggestion is to go for a 0 out of 100 system, where each criteria will be scored separately by a number of experts. Then the average score would be calculated by dividing by the number of indicators for which a score has been calculated. It should be above 0 to qualify for the label. Proposed scoring: Negative policy 3 No policy/no awareness of problem 4 Awareness, no policy Some policy Real effort Excellent Perfect 9 Initiatives in one Chinese and one European city were rated in follow-up research to illustrate how a more coordinated ecological city is currently developing, with a strong support from the government, but not necessarily always with the involvement of all other stakeholders. We will now present the scores of Beijing and Rotterdam (see table 11). The table was filled in using two experts from the Switch project.. Beijing In Beijing, the capital of China with more than 1 million inhabitants, there are about 30,000 ecological initiatives to make this city greener. To assess the ecological character of Beijing we use the criteria for ecological cities suggested above..1 How does this city deal with energy issues in general and CO 2 in particular? China did not want to commit itself, during the Copenhagen climate conference in 2009, to reduce its CO 2 emissions, but rather it suggested bringing down the quantity of energy per unit of gross domestic product (GDP). Households in China are asked through TV campaigns to bring back their electricity consumption and they are encouraged to use sun boilers for heating their water. Isolation of buildings is promoted by subsidies from Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

18 the national Ministry of Construction and in 2009 buying small cars was made more attractive as one of the ways to grow out of the worldwide economic crisis. For the industrial sector Beijing is stricter in asking certain polluting and energy (or water) intensive industries to relocate. This policy contributes to a reduction of energy use and environmental problems in Beijing it self, but does not solve any problem at the country level. It is difficult to estimate the effects of these policies. At the national level it is known that the electricity produced by the Three Gorges dam was supposed to supply percent of the national needs, but currently only serves half of that, given the increased demand for energy..2 How does the city deal with solid waste issues? Dealing in a proper way with solid waste is important because waste may block the water flows of the city or cause the spreading of all kinds of diseases. Solid waste is also a source of energy, or may be used to recuperate precious raw materials. Beijing has a system of government waste collection from collection points, while small private firms and individuals are also collecting valuable objects. The recycling and reuse is mainly done in the private sector and creates quite a number of jobs. In Beijing there is a special tax for solid waste, which helps financing the multiplicity of waste collection and processing activities..3 How does the city deal with transport issues? Transport issues are important to make a big city a good place to live. Beijing has substantially improved its public transportation system for the Olympics in 200 and is trying to reduce the number of new cars by making it more difficult to obtain a license plate for a new car. However, the economic upturn in 2010 has led to a tremendous increase in the number of cars and China certainly broke a record when it was announced that 100 kilometer of congested high roads in the direction of Beijing were finally dissolved after ten days (De Pers, ). Local officials were still cleaning up the debris of lorry drivers who had been camping for days on this high road to Beijing (from Tibet). In the city there are separate bicycle lanes, but bicycling is less popular nowadays, because of the risks involved given the increased number of cars, buses and lorries. Also distances have become bigger because Beijing has extended in all directions and the road infrastructure has been upgraded, in particular by adding more ring roads The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 1

19 around and high roads out of the city. Although the system is well planned and Beijing has invested heavily in infrastructure and transportation, the time spent on congested roads seem to increase over time..4 How does the city deal with pollution issues? The National government has introduced standards for pollution and Chinese provinces have to comply with these standards. The State level Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) looks after the implementation of environmental policies. Beijing as a city state is at the same administrative level as a Chinese province. Households have been weaned of using coal for heating purposes, while for factories stricter policies with respect to soil, air and water pollution apply. Noise pollution is not yet considered a big issue and only cars are discouraged to use their horns too much. More strict environmental rules also apply for housing and the quality of furniture, to avoid that people suffer from the chemicals used. Taken together Beijing is still considered by many a relatively dirty city, with dust storms from the northwest and a lot of smog because of all the automobiles and polluting industries.. How does Beijing deal with water related issues? A few years ago Beijing has reorganized its governance structure related to water supply, water management and sanitation. The Beijing Water Authority is the single agency involved, which makes it more efficient than the previous model of various ministries and agencies having responsibility for water related issues. Beijing is water scarce area and as such it would have interest in closing the water cycle, like Singapore has done (Ministry of Information of Singapore, 200). However, the main reason for not doing this is that lack of confidence of the public in the quality of the water coming from the large scale centralized waste water treatment plants. Flooding is not so much the problem, as well as a declining ground water level, pointing to over use of the aquifer below the city. Also rainwater harvesting is promoted, in the centre of town and in the rural areas of the city state. It turned out that at the current price of electricity and given there is no charge for pumping up ground water, it is cheaper to continue to use ground water than to invest in rain water harvesting in the rural areas of Beijing (Liang and Van Dijk, 2010). Beijing is unique in the world because it has legislation forcing all major new buildings to treat their grey water on the spot. The success of this policy is limited, however, since it Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

20 is cheaper to buy clean municipal water than to make the effort of cleaning grey water and then using it for flushing the toilets and irrigating the garden (Liang and Van Dijk, 2009).. How does the city deal with sanitation issues? In Beijing many public toilets have been built, which are cheap and sometimes free, but maybe not always 100 percent clean. They also do not always provide the privacy western tourists are used to. No eco sanitation technologies are used, but collective toilets do provide poor people access to safe sanitation. As mentioned decentralized waste water treatment is encouraged in Beijing for major new buildings, but currently this is not financially feasible for the investors, although it is economically feasible from a society point of view, if a cost benefit analysis is carried out (Liang and Van Dijk, 2009).. How does the city deal with climate change issues? China is aware of the dangers of climate change, although climate change is not linked so much to CO 2 emissions, as well as to water scarcity and the risks of desertification in the north west of China. For that reason Beijing invested in building a green wall to the north of the city, which should stop desertification and diminish the dust storms. The city is also experimenting with aquifer refill activities and rain water harvesting projects. Because the use of coal for heating is discouraged less CO 2 is currently is coming from that source. Also the relocation of polluting industries should have diminished CO 2 emissions in Beijing.. How does the city deal with housing issues? Many activities to promote eco cities are at the level of individual households, their house or neighborhood. China recognizes this by providing for example up to 30 percent subsidy of the construction cost of ecological housing projects. Such projects would have to save energy (through isolation for example), separate grey and brown water and use temperature exchange equipment, which makes use of the temperature of underground water to heat or cool a building. Van Dijk (2009) analyzes such a project in Wuhan, showing it is not successful in all respects. In particular more attention is given to isolating the building than to separating brown and grey water. The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 20

21 .9 How does the city deal with sustainable urban development issues? Sustainability does not seem to be the major principle used for developing Beijing. For the Olympic Games in 200 some efforts were made to give a greener impression of the city. On most of the criteria used to measure sustainable development Beijing scores low After cannibalizing natural resources such as land, water and clean air, Beijing now starts to realize that a greener approach to urban development is necessary. However, just moving polluting industries to other cities is not going to do the job. Even closing 2000 industries, as recently announced (Financial Times, ), is not enough. A number of these industries will open again in the interior of the country, in the underdeveloped western part. Also public campaigns on television are good, but certainly not enough to change attitudes of households and entrepreneurs, who have been lax as far as sustainable development is concerned..10 Does the city follow an integrated approach? One notes a large number of disparate initiatives in Beijing to move in the direction of becoming an eco city. However, the city scores low on the indicators for an integrated approach and is hindered by the hierarchical top-down approach of the Chinese administration, which does not stimulate enough initiatives from below.. Rotterdam Rotterdam is the major port of Europe located in the Netherlands and connected through the Rhine and Meuse rivers with Germany, France and Switzerland. It is also a city threatened by climate change, because there will be floods from the North Sea to the west, or too much water coming from the Rhine and the Meuse river from the east. Climate change in this case not only means more water, but also more volatility. Rotterdam is also an example of a city trying to become a more ecological. It takes part in the Clinton Climate initiative and is currently considering storing carbon dioxide in its port area. Rotterdam wants to become a climate proof city by 2020 (Rotterdam, 200)..1 How does the city deal with energy issues? Rotterdam has different policies to reduce energy use and to deal with CO 2 emissions. The website rotterdamclimateinitiative.nl provides the details. It explains that under the Rotterdam Climate Initiative the city intends to produce 2 percent less CO 2 and will try to store CO 2 under the ground. In 202 0% less CO 2 emissions should be produced. Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

22 The initiative also wants to promote Rotterdam as a centre of knowledge (on climate), a place to experiment and demonstrate The website contains also information about the use of cars driving on bio-ethanol and reports on some experiments with green roofs. Furthermore, households are actively advised through municipal staff members how they can reduce their electricity consumption. A speed limit on the ring road does not only limit the fuel consumption of the cars taking this busy road, but also brings the noise down to more acceptable levels for the people living next to the high road. The use of alternative sources of energy is still in an infancy stage. There is legislation at the national level allowing households and enterprises to feed the electricity they generate back into the national grid. Finally there are some experiments with using the temperature of the water of the river for heating or cooling purposes, by using a heat exchange system..2 How does the city deal with solid waste issues? Visiting the website Rotterdam.nl (only in Dutch), there are three subjects under living in Rotterdam relating to the environment. They are called: green, collecting solid waste, and water. All three will be discussed. Under collecting solid waste all kind of information is provided concerning this important urban service. In Dutch cities waste is separated at the source. It means most households do their own composting and the municipality collects separately used paper, glass, chemical products, plastic and waste from gardens. Large objects are also collected separately. This has considerably diminished the load to be collected for incineration, while opening the door for more recovery of raw materials. Rotterdam has an integrated policy of solid waste management. Most of the waste is separated at source and a private company is collecting the waste from the households or from common waste collection points. The city also sold its incinerator to a private company, but the electricity they generate is sold to the national grid..3 How does Rotterdam deal with transport issues? Rotterdam discourages the use of cars in the shopping area in its city centre. It is a compact city and has benefited from integrated urban and transport planning. The city has a good ring road and the metro and tramways system imply that it is not necessary to drive to the centre of the city. Parking is possible in big garages or along the major roads, but is quite costly. It is hoped people will use their bike or the excellent public The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 22

23 transportation system. In many parts of the city there are separate bicycle lanes and the Central railways station is currently rebuilt to allow a larger number of passengers to enter the city, but also to facilitate modal split. This change from one mode of transportation to another will become easier when coming by train. One can change to the metro system, the tramways, buses or park a car or a bicycle at the Central station. Even continuing on foot to the cultural and shopping centre is a realistic option..4 How does the city deal with pollution issues? On the website of Rotterdam one finds under green measures taken to make Rotterdam a green city and in particular activities to make the open spaces of schools more green. Rotterdam is quite advanced in its approach to urban pollution. Being a port city, with substantial chemical industries it had already an air quality monitoring system in place for a long time. At several occasions industries had to limit their production during the summer to avoid reaching critical environmental thresholds. Most industries have invested in cleaner technologies since, to avoid these kinds of interruptions.. How does the city deal with water related issues? Rotterdam's problem is too much water, coming either from the river crossing the city or from the North Sea. However, infrastructure for the latter is available in the form huge sluice doors which can close off the connection with the sea. An automated river water level and pollution monitoring system protects the city from too much river water. Also water storage areas have been designated to serve as areas to be flooded in case the river water would threaten downstream cities. Every city needs enough drinking water for its population and industries, and hence it needs water resources. Drinking water consumption is declining in Rotterdam, given meters are available in every house and water saving devices are being pushed by the water company and the municipality. However, a city also needs institutions that secure good use of the water. The current set-up in the Netherlands is complicated and the fragmentation of institutions makes integrated water management at the city level difficult. Given the need for a city like Rotterdam to deal with the risks involved in urban water management, we suggested alternative approaches (in Van den Berg and Otgaar, 200), like an integrated approach to water management, combining drinking water and surface-water management perspectives, which are currently institutionally separated in the Netherlands. Closing the water cycle would mean in the Dutch context a closer Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

24 cooperation between the water utilities and the water boards. It would also imply a different role for the municipalities.. How does the city deal with sanitation issues? Rotterdam has a piped sewer system, which implies large scale waste water treatment plants. The quality of the treated water is good enough to use it for a drinking water treatment plant, but this is not yet common practice in the Netherlands, given there is no shortage of water... How does the city deal with climate change issues? Rotterdam in the Netherlands tries to deal with climate issues in its plan Rotterdam Climate proof (Stadshavens Rotterdam, 200). The essence of the plan has already been presented in the introduction.. How does the city deal with housing issues? A lot of benefits can be achieved at the level of the house. Isolation is very common in the Netherlands, just like central heating systems for individual houses and apartment buildings. They are usually powered by natural gas, which produces very little CO 2 emissions. Promoting sustainable building material is now very common and experiments are carried out with green roofs and providing subsidies for environmentally friendly initiatives, such as the use of LED lights, which are energy saving. Recreational areas are created in the city or close to it to avoid traffic flows during the weekends and evenings. Within the city most activities can be reached on foot or by using a bicycle..9 How does the city deal with sustainable urban development issues? StadshavensRotterdam (200) describes a number of strategies for sustainable urban development. Sustainability has been a buzz word for the last 20 years and a number of initiatives can be mentioned. Strict zoning policies help to avoid that living, industrial and commercial areas get mixed up with recreational areas. Parks, dunes and forests are usually open to the public without payment, while primary schools pay a lot of attention to education about nature. The pupils are encouraged to enjoy the parks, dunes and lakes in a responsible way. Degraded ecosystems are usually rehabilitated. Rotterdam could become a more ecological city, where integrated water management would be part of a broader approach to the urban environment. The term ecological city The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 24

25 could be used for an approach to urban management that combines water with environmental management and focuses on long-term urban sustainability..10 Does the city follow an integrated approach? It is often claimed that an integrated urban management approach is necessary to deal with issues which are related to each other. This is certainly the case in Rotterdam, but the municipal planning institutions also try to involve as many stakeholders as possible. Participatory planning, an emphasis on equal access for everybody and stakeholder involvement are the key terms for this approach. Kenworthy (200) rightly notes that planning for the future of the city should be based on a visionary debate and requires motivated leaders, who are also accountable to their stakeholders.. Conclusions Ecological cities are more than ecologically managed closed urban water systems. Sustainable urban water management is just the beginning. Changes in the behavior of consumers will be required, just like a combination of better water management, better energy management, collection and treatment of solid waste and striving toward integration. Water demand management is a good start at the household level, just like separation at source and composting at home is a good start for ecologically friendly solid waste management. Closing the water cycle to deal with water in a more efficient way would be an option. It means not losing any of the scarce resource and controlling the quantity and quality constantly. Such an approach would favor integrating the management of the whole water cycle. Singapore has managed for example to close the water cycle and in principle, no water gets lost between resource and users. All of it is cleaned and made available for reuse. Most initiatives are taken at the level of the city, like the promotion of ecological neighborhoods and innovative housing schemes. Others come from the national level, for example subsidies (30 percent of the construction cost in the Chinese case). Finally, initiatives at the household level depend very much on the urgency of the issue and the level of awareness of the people concerned. What would the ecological city of the future look like? The eco city of the future is not just about dealing with environmental issues. Such a city will also need a sound economic basis, appropriate solutions for its transport systems, its urban services and amenities. There is more and more attention for this dimension of the quality of life in cities and the Knowledge Collaboration & Learning for Sustainable Innovation ERSCP-EMSU conference, Delft, The Netherlands, October 2-29,

26 presence of sufficient urban services and amenities is an important factor to make a city attractive. In the European Union this element is emphasized in its program of choosing every so many years a cultural capital of Europe. This is usually an opportunity for such a city to show what it has to offer and to make additional investments to increase its attractiveness. How can eco cities be promoted? Different instruments can be used: incentives, subsidies, demonstration projects and publicity campaigns. Urban development means forging new partnerships between parties that have often not worked together: government officials, non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private sector businessmen. This requires 'organizing capacity' (Van den Berg et al., 199) and the ability to develop an integrated approach to the key issues facing the city. This is the job of an urban manager. Ideas change over time and this affects the design of policies and projects to help the urban poor as well when improving the urban environment in which they live. We assume the ideas will change again, once the consensus thinking of the 1990s will start to fall apart because we will start to realize that countries, cities and neighborhoods differ from one part of the world to another, as anthropologists, nonwestern sociologists and geographers keep telling us. Research has not yet explained how people and communities best respond to the threats posed by environmental, economic and social developments. Sustainable development is a beginning, but not enough. Private developers are looking for new ideas, but they are mainly interested in cost savings and attractive alternative options for their projects. The challenge for urban managers is the integration of the different sectoral interests. Ecological cities imply integration of different approaches or sectors. However, one finds idealistic, sectoral or issue based definitions of ecological cities (values play role) and the improvements in eco-efficiency require institutions and the necessary technology and often a fundamental change in culture. Pollution, solid waste and wastewater problems, all aggravated by climate change require a different urban management approach to build the ecological city of the future! People in Beijing and people in Rotterdam followed a different approach to make their cities more environmentally friendly, but we can all learn from each other. The best experiences identified can be turned into climate mitigation or adaptation policies to be implemented elsewhere. Urban managers are crucial in tackling global problems and can only do that successfully if local communities are involved. In particular regulation at the local level reflecting local priorities is important just like taking into account The 14th European Roundtable on Sustainable Production and Consumption (ERSCP) The th Environmental Management for Sustainable Universities (EMSU) 2