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Municipalities across the country have lowered the temperature in their buildings and turned off outdoor lighting, but in Odense Municipality, the administrations have combed through buildings and put their minds to the implementation of even more measures.
“Although Odense Municipality supports the national recommendations in solidarity, more is needed. Therefore, the city council’s parties have agreed on a comprehensive plan for Odense Municipality’s handling of the energy crisis. A plan that can reduce energy consumption and optimize the resources that are available,” the municipality wrote in a press release presenting the measures on Monday.
Some of the measures are familiar from other municipalities—such as turning off the saunas in swimming pools and clubs as well as partially turning off the city’s fountains. But others are more inventive.
Thus, the wireless networks in the administrative buildings that are not staffed 24 hours a day will be shut down at night, and computer screens in sleep mode will automatically be switched off.
In addition, “selected multifunction devices” must be shut down and the cooling systems in a number of buildings switched off.
“We don’t use electricity for fun, so we will start with these measures to reduce energy consumption, which is a really significant contribution. We can save electricity and at the same time keep the municipality running,” Odense Mayor Peter Rahbæk Juel (S) explained during the presentation, according to the Fyens Stiftstidende newspaper.
They expect that the measures can cut the municipality’s energy consumption by ten percent and save approximately DKK 10 million.
The municipality has prepared a number of additional measures which may be put into use if the energy crisis worsens and requires further savings.
In that case, the temperature in indoor swimming pool facilities will also be lowered, and both an indoor swimming pool and an ice-skating rink will be closed down temporarily. In addition, the level of ventilation in municipal buildings may be reduced, and drying cabinets in institutions may be switched off, just like lights in art installations.
BuildingTech has contacted Odense Municipality to find out more about the practical challenges that the measures will have to overcome, but the municipality was unable to respond before the editorial deadline.
