Vitoria-Gasteiz celebrates the decade after European Green Capital status with a book

Being a European Green Capital is only the beginning – the transition is still in full swing

This year, the Spanish city of Vitoria-Gasteiz celebrates its 10^th anniversary as European Green Capital and there is a special gift. The municipality of the Basque Country’s capital has published a book, which collects indicators, data and main conclusions of the transformation of the municipality in the decade since 2012.

The publication, which was presented yesterday by Mator Gorka Urtaran, has been designed fundamentally for dissemination and is aimed both at the people of Gasteiz and at any other person or agent who wants to learn first-hand about the sustainable city model that has been progressively taking shape in Vitoria-Gasteiz in the last decades.

The publication is also freely available in English (in addition to Spanish and Basque) on the municipal website for anyone curious and intrigued by an anthology of good environmental practices.

“The most important thing is that the city clearly understood that the European Green Capital status was above all a great opportunity to deepen the individual and collective commitment that sustainability represents and this has meant that in these 10 years new projects have been tackled in all the areas of sustainability”, emphasizes ​​Mayor Urtaran.

How has the city improved?

The book recalls strategies such as the development of an Urban Green Infrastructure, Sustainable Mobility and Public Space, the improvement in water management and the increase in its quality, the strategy of circularity in waste, the actions of energy efficiency (new sources of energy and residential rehabilitation), the agri-food strategy, information and citizen participation, the economic aspect and the model of inclusion and social development.

As a result of these actions, the main indicators show that Vitoria-Gasteiz has cleaner air (79.2% of days with good or very good air quality), is a less noisy city (87.4% below 65db), has more sustainable mobility (68% of trips in sustainable means), has a greater use of public transport (24.5 million trips per year), and has more bicycle lanes (70 more kilometres).

It also uses less water (38.7 litres less per inhabitant per day) and produces more renewable energy (28.8 GWh/year through solar panels). Vitorians recycle more (34.6% waste recycling), consume less energy (54 GWh/year less), enjoy are more trees (260,000 trees planted these 10 years) and give more space to organic farming (1,027,900 m2 more dedicated).

The city’s economy is greener (228 more companies are dedicated to the green and circular economy in the city). Public land has been recovered and improved (equivalent to 316 football pitches recovered) and social centres and resources have been improved and increased (to the tune of an additional 21.6 million euros).

Vitoria-Gasteiz's great commitment is to become a carbon-neutral city by 2030, two decades ahead of the target date of 2050 that has been established worldwide. Vitoria-Gasteiz has been chosen by the European Union from among the 100 cities that will participate in its “Intelligent and Climate Neutral Cities” Mission to achieve this objective in a coordinated and collaborative manner, and also for the “Adaptation to Climate Change” Mission.