The Rotterdam Climate Initiative is making an effort to reduce carbon emissions by 50% in 2025 (compared to 1990) and, in doing so, will combat climate change.
Mitigation: 50% carbon reduction in 2025
As an international port and city with strong industry, Rotterdam is currently responsible for about 16% of carbon emissions in the Netherlands. At the start of the RCI, Rotterdam's total carbon emissions amounted to around 29 megatons (MT), compared to 24 MT in 1990. If nothing is done to reduce carbon emissions, it is expected that the total carbon emissions of the Rotterdam area will be between 39 and 46 MT in 2025. This increase is due to the expected economic growth and the associated increase in industrial production, shipping traffic and road transport.
One of the main objectives of the Rotterdam Climate Initiative is to emit no more than 12 MT of carbon dioxide in 2025, which is 50% of the emission levels from 1990. In order to reduce carbon emissions by half, emission levels must have been reduced by 27 to 34 MT in 2025. Due to an increase in activities, the Second Maasvlakte being put into operation and the arrival of new power stations, there will first be a considerable increase in carbon emissions in the coming years. The effect of the measures will become clearly visible in a few years, when a number of large-scale and innovative projects will be realised.
