44 Limburg Mayors sign the Covenant of Mayors

Author: Mike DESMET, Bond Beter Liefmilieu, Belgium - Email / Meike LÖHR, come2CoM Project Coordinator (2011-2012), Beratungs- und Service-Gesellschaft Umwelt mbH, Germany - Email

44 new cities sign the Covenant of Mayors

In Belgium, all 44 Mayors of the province of Limburg commit themselves to a climate-neutral Limburg and have signed the Covenant of Mayors.

On November 30th 2011, all the mayors (or their representatives) of the municipalities of Limburg gathered to sign the Covenant of Mayors (CoM) and confirmed their commitment to cooperate on the provincial ambition of becoming climate-neutral. Hasselt and Genk had already led the way, having signed the Covenant of Mayors back in 2008.

Image: 44 mayors and representatives of the province of Limburg after signing the Covenant of Mayors.

Support for the cities and municipalities of Limburg

This success is the result of a long-term project. Indeed, thanks to the IEE funded project come2CoM, Bond Beter Leefmilieu (BBL) supports municipalities to sign the CoM and to elaborate baseline emission inventories and SEAP’s. BBL aimed for the province of Limburg because of its ‘favourable environment’.

In September 2010, the province of Limburg became a supporting structure of the Covenant of Mayors  - for the time being the only province in Belgium. Furthermore, they expressed their wish to become climate-neutral by 2020. For that purpose, the province of Limburg can count on an important network of partners to fulfil the support for the municipalities: Infrax (grid management company for gas, electricity and sewerage), Dubolimburg (supporting structure for sustainable building) and BBL.

What is next?

After signing the CoM, the next step for these municipalities is to realise Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAP). The Belgian partners did not wait until the municipalities had signed the CoM. Indeed, the baseline emission inventories were already carried out for all municipalities. Moreover, the partners drew up an overview per municipality. This includes e.g. the status of the buildings, the possibilities in the field of renewable energy etc. The partners encourage the municipalities to involve the citizens and different target groups in this process.

More information:  

• Mike Desmet, Bond Beter Leefmilieu, Tel: +32 2 282 17 35 - www.bblv.be
• Nele Vandenreyt, Province of Limburg, Directie Ruimte, Dienst Milieu en Natuur
  Tel: +32 11 23 83 53 - www.limburgklimaatneutraal.be