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Our aim is sustainable developmentEnergy and climate issues affect many different spheres and involve many people and activities. Here in Jämtland both the private and the public sectors collaborate with the local population on environmental issues. Our goal is to become a fossil-fuel-free region.

We also endeavour to position ourselves at the cutting edge of research and development and to take an active role in developing new technology and the innovations needed to achieve a global energy shift. We can al-ready demonstrate a number of good examples of climate-smart transport, renewable energy sources and efficiency measures that give both environ-mental and economic benefits.

Welcome to Jämtland!

Britt Bohlin county governor of jämtland

Robert Uittochairman of the boardof the county council of jämtland

COunty: JämtlandArEA: 50,000 square kilometresInhAbItAnts In JämtlAnd: 127,000InhAbItAnts In ÖstErsund: 58,600rEgIstErEd COmpAnIEs In JämtlAnd: 7,000

JämtlAnd Is A spArsEly populated county with more trees than inhabitants. In fact half of its area is forested while only one percent is built-up. However, we also have an abundance of ski slopes, golf courses and lakes. Jämtland is the home of approx. 45,000 reindeer, 40,000 elk and 1,000 bears, although they usually stay deep in the forest or above the tree line. We can also boast of Jämtland’s many creative entrepreneurs. Nearly all of the 7,000 companies in the county are small or medium sized with less than 50 employees.

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Gäddede

strömsund

Östersund

Åre

Bräcke

Funäsdalen

sveg

green highway,an environmental route from coast to coast.

In JämtlAnd we are committed to working for environmental sustain-ability. This has resulted in a major reduction in the emission of green-house gases. Biofuels are increasingly popular, and sales of eco-cars have now surpassed SUV sales.

thE lOCAl EnVIrOnmEnt reflects this commitment to sustainable de-velopment. Over 95 percent of the water in our lakes and rivers can be drunk without requiring purification, and 50 percent of our arable land is farmed organically. A key factor behind these achievements has been well-developed collaboration between the public and private sectors.

FOr mAny yEArs we have focused on sustainable development in gen-eral and environmental management in particular. Today half of the em-ployees in this region work for companies or organisations that have intro-duced environmental management systems.

EnVIrOnmEntAl mAnAgEmEnt systems have played an important role in industrial development. Swedish environmental legislation, strict en-vironmental demands in the procurement process, and a generally high level of environmental awareness have resulted in many local companies imple-menting new environmental technology for energy-efficient production.

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renewable energy from JämtlandWind, water and forests provide energy for the production of electricity in this county – all of which are renewable resources.

Hydroelectricity is the major source of en-ergy, providing sufficient electricity for two million households, far in excess of the pop-ulation of Jämtland. 85 percent is distrib-uted to other Swedes and Europeans via the power transmission network.

We also have plenty of wind and therefore good conditions for wind power. At present we have 30 wind turbines in the county. However, prognoses predict an enormous expansion of this sector in the near future. Wind power companies are queuing up to construct 750 new wind turbines.

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if we divide the production of renewable electricity between all those living in Jämtland, we produce 100 mWh per person per annum. this figure puts us at the top of the eu league for renewable energy production.

BILDTEXT:Slår vi ut den förnyelsebara elproduktionen på alla som bor här, produceras 100 MWh el per jämte varje år. Med den siffran vågar vi påstå att vi ligger i toppen inom EU när det gäller förnyelsebar energi. Per europé hamnar siffran någonstans på 1,2 MWh.

bIOEnErgy Is An InCrEAsIngly important source of energy. By 2020 we hope to have doubled our produc-tion of bioenergy. The forestry products used to produce electricity and heat, such as tops and branches, bi-prod-ucts from sawmills and recycled wood, would otherwise be wasted. Other types of bioenergy produced in Jämt-land include biogas from the municipal landfill, and sus-tainable exploitation of a small proportion of the county’s peat resources.

Each new kWh of energy from renewable sources repre-sents one kWh less of electricity from a coal-fired power station somewhere else. Sustainable energy is an impor-tant issue. We are more than willing to share our sustain-able electricity production with others – as Jämtland’s contribution to creating a better climate.

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Here we see some of the 12 electrical bikes that municipal employees now use for local transport, instead of cars.

green traffic – converting to climate-smart trafficThe Municipality of Östersund is a member of the organisation “Climate municipalities” and has for many years worked actively with environmental issues. As Östersund has no heavy industry, and has reduced its depend-ency on fossil fuels in the heating sector, transport is the main factor behind climate-impacting emissions in the area. Östersund has therefore chosen to invest in a mobil-ity management office called “Grön Trafik” (Green Traffic) that works to reduce the im-pact of travel and transport, ideally before journeys even take place. Their work has, among other things, resulted in more bicy-cle paths, environmental vehicles, car pools, eco-driving and video conferences. Grön Trafik has also collaborated in many projects, one of which has resulted in the purchase of twelve electric bicycles for use by municipal employees.

lInKswww.greenhighway.nu

www.ostersund.se/greentraffic

green highway – from coast to coastA thousand-year-old trading and pilgrimage route cross-es Scandinavia, connecting the Atlantic with the Baltic coast. Three cities, Sundsvall, Östersund and Trondheim, in collaboration with energy companies, plan to create a green highway along this route. Environmentally sustain-able fuel will be available along the highway and drivers of electric vehicles will be able to charge their car batter-ies. Some of these services are already available. Two plac-es have biogas pumps, and along the highway there are around 20 filling stations that sell ethanol fuel. This year a string of charging stations will be established, allow-ing electric vehicles to recharge their batteries along the entire highway. The Green Highway Project also includes plans to create an urban winter testing centre for electric and other environmental vehicles in Östersund.

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From fossil fuels to renewable energyThe County Council of Jämtland, respon-sible for providing health care in Östersund and in 29 towns and villages in the county, has for many years worked towards replac-ing fossil fuels with renewable sources of en-ergy. The dramatic rise in oil prices in 1973 triggered the first efforts. At that time the county council had oil-fired central heating in 84 percent of its premises. Today it does not use any oil at all.

In addition to purely practical measures to improve energy efficiency, such as lighting, heat recovery, improved windows etc., the council provides information about energy and environmental issues to their 4,000 em-ployees.

one saved kWh is better for the climate than one additional kWh, even if the additional kWh comes from a renewable source.

the County Council of Jämtlandheating energy kWh per m2/year.1973–2008

429

295

154 128 126 119

200820062003199319831973

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Climate-smart for caravansJohn Pettersson is an entrepreneur who sees opportunities where others see obstacles. At present he plans to improve caravan parks all over Europe through the introduction of small-scale district heating systems. His idea is to enable caravan parks to offer campers cheaper and more environ-mental heating from their own central heating plant, using biofuel, a wind turbine, a solar panel or any other source of energy. His invention “Energistolpen” (the Energy Post) will provide a link between the heating plant and the cara-van. It is a simple but ingenious heat exchanger, which can naturally be used in reverse in warm climates where air-con-ditioning is in demand.

link: www.energistolpen.se

adapting modern caravans or motorhomes to John Pettersson’s inven-tion is neither difficult nor costly, and the “energistolpen” has attracted much attention. He hopes to start production this autumn.

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district heating for the entire townThe hospital, town hall, flats, industries and 3,500 detached houses – almost the entire town of Östersund is connected to the district heat-ing system and is heated by the district heating power plant. To save a little snow shovelling, the central town square and a large football arena are also connected to the system.

Thanks to the decision to invest in biofuel, only one percent of the system is oil-fuelled – which has greatly reduced emissions of nitro-gen and carbon dioxide. Moreover, both the district heating power plant and the 65-metre high accumulator tank, with a restaurant on its top floor, have become popular tourist at-tractions.

the accumulator tank can hold 26 million litres of water and improves the efficiency and reliability of the district heating system. approximately 220 GWh of electricity and 470 GWh of district heating per year are produced for the inhabitants of Östersund.

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the forest provides heat Why transport oil over half the globe when we have abun-dant forests on our doorstep? This thought struck the owners of the small company Sundsjö Bioenergi in East Jämtland. Over the past few years they have invested in converting forest products into wood-chips and firewood – and ulti-mately into heat. Their customers come from the local area and from Norway. Their business idea is based on designing and constructing small-scale district heating systems to heat their own and others’ premises. Exchanging old oil-fuelled furnaces for wood-chip systems not only gives environmen-tal benefits, but also halves the cost of heating. They also provide a heating-system maintenance service to hotel own-ers and others. The service includes the provision of a port-able furnace unit, complete with a chip storage bin. Should the furnace be needed elsewhere, it is easy to transport.

the future lies in the forest. this is the view of the owners of sundsjö Bioenergi, who fuel their heating systems with wood-chips. sundsjö Bioenergi has taken over about 100 council flats and replaced the old oil furnaces that consumed 250 cubic metres of oil per year. now the flats are heated by wood-chips.

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running on biogas Dustbin men, taxi drivers and families – people of all sorts drive biogas vehicles in Östersund. Since the municipality opened its biogas plant and filling station two years ago, the interest in biogas vehicles has increased constantly. At present there are about 200 light vehicles and two waste collection vehicles running on bio-gas in Östersund – something to be proud of considering that it, so far, has been 500 kilome-tres to the nearest biogas filling station.

A state grant combined with a well-established environmental policy were the factors behind Östersund Municipality investing in their own biogas plant. Sludge from the sewage works, whey from a dairy and antifreeze from the local airport are converted into methane gas, carbon dioxide and water in a digester. The methane is then purified and concentrated in an upgrader to produce environmental fuel. The plant produces about 850,000 m3 biogas per year. At present about half is used as fuel for vehicles and the remainder is used for dis-trict heating, so there is capacity for yet more green motorists.

Changing from petrol to biogas reduces the environmental impact of driving by 85 percent according to the swed-ish environmental Protection Board and the swedish road administration.

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For every ten kilometres that a lorry is transported by rail, ten to twelve kilos less carbon dioxide is emitted. in india, for example, emissions of car-bon dioxide could be reduced by an incredible 378 million tons if the railway was chosen instead of road transport.

new invention for transport of lorries and trailers by railRoad haulage is responsible for significant environmental problems, in-creases the risk of accidents and causes wear and tear on roads all over the world. In Sweden alone, lorries travel about 1500 million kilometres a year. One solution is to transport the lorries and trailers by rail, but up till now this has demanded special railway terminals for loading and unloading the vehicles. The newly invented Flexiwaggon is unique in this respect. All it requires is a flat area on which the lorry can drive. Loading onto a railway wagon only demands the pressing of a button and ten minutes’ work for the driver. No cranes or loaders are needed. Each railway wagon can be unloaded individually, which makes it a flexible means of transport. Flexi-waggon is thus a well-chosen name!

link: www.flexiwaggon.se

interested in cleantech? study visits can be arranged to all our different environmental projects, companies and activities.Contact the Östersund tourist and Conference office for further information. www.turist.ostersund.se +46 (0)63 14 40 10

Jämtlands läns energikontorwww.energikontoret.z.setel +46 (0)63-12 49 90

Jämtlands läns landstingwww.jll.se

tel +46 (0)63-14 75 00

länsstyrelsenwww.lansstyrelsen.se/jamtland

tel +46 (0)63-14 60 00

Östersunds kommunwww.ostersund.se

tel +46 (0)63-14 30 00

Jämtkraftwww.jamtkraft.se

tel +46 (0)63-14 90 00

Jämtlands Läns EnergikontorJämtland County Energy Agency

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