APEC picks Mandaue City as low carbon model town

MACTAN, Cebu, Philippines – Mandaue City has been named this year’s Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) low carbon model town (LCMT), implementing the blueprint to promote low-carbon technologies to manage growing energy consumption and mitigate the adverse effects of greenhouse gas emissions in the region.

The city emerged as the winner of the initiative out of three candidates for its “comprehensive plan involving land use, green building and transportation,” said Department of Energy OIC-Secretary Zenaida Monsada in a briefing following the conclusion of the 12th APEC Energy Ministers’ Meeting (EMM12) held here.

Other nominees for the LCMT project are Krasnoyarsk City in Russia and Subang Jaya in Malaysia.

“This entitles Mandaue City to a feasibility study grant that would determine policy program measures to realize its targets for green technology opportunities particularly in buildings, urban planning and transport sector,” added Monsada, the chair of APEC EMM12.

Funding and technical assistance for the feasibility study will be provided by the APEC Energy Working Group.

Monsada said funding and timeline for the feasibility study is still under discussion, which should be completed in a year and will be reported in the next EMM.

The local government of Mandaue City has laid down a clear target for reducing its CO2 emissions by crafting measures to establish a sustainable city to address air pollution and traffic congestion, earning the city the recognition from APEC.

The city’s proposed project consists of developing green growth areas which will be interconnected within Metro Cebu, while an ordinance is also proposed promoting disaster-resilient buildings in the city.

Launched in 2010, the LCMT project is part of the ‘Green Growth’ initiative for APEC 2011, which envisages addressing climate change by promoting climate-friendly, low-carbon and energy efficient technologies.

Results of the studies will then be disseminated as best practices among APEC member economies to meet goals in reducing CO2 and energy efficiency.

The Yujiapu financial district in Tianjin, China was initially chosen as the test case for the LCMT project.

Nomination started in 2013 where Samui Island in Thailand emerged as the winner due to its proposal to utilize solar, wind and small hydro power; reliance on electric vehicles and reforestation and protection of existing forests.