Get ready for a successful heat detox in 2025
Among New Year's resolutions, there’s no better time than now to commit to healthy heating.
Fossil-free citiesAbout
Across Europe, cities and towns are working to decouple their heating systems from fossil fuels to improve air quality, increase independence and reach climate goals. The Cities Heat Detox campaign unites municipalities committed to this transition, with district heating as a cornerstone of cleaner, healthier energy solutions.
How are cities leading the way in decarbonising heat?
Decarbonising urban heating systems requires a strategic approach, and cities are showing the way forward with three key steps:
The first step to any detox is to have a clear understanding of the system: cities’ heat sources, heat demand, and potential alternatives. Through comprehensive mapping and planning, cities can identify opportunities to decarbonise heat sources, reduce demand, and explore the expansion or implementation of collective district heating (DHC) networks. This process is now essential, with the EU’s Energy Efficiency Directive (EED) mandating municipalities with over 45,000 inhabitants to prepare local heating and cooling plans. Germany has led by example, becoming the first Member State to implement this directive.
In a second phase, cities should embrace collective district heating solutions to boost low-carbon energy use and enhance energy security. Well-established in some regions, such as Germany where district heating already serves 14% of households and continues to grow, DHC networks remain underdeveloped in others. In Spain, for instance, DHC networks cover only a small proportion of heat demand, although there has been growth in the power supplied by these networks in the country over the last few years.
Finally, cities must integrate clean, renewable energy into their heating and cooling systems. Geothermal, solar heat, industrial waste heat, and large-scale heat pumps can all play a role. Cities have different strategies for detoxifying their heat, depending on their resources and needs. For example, to reduce emissions and protect citizens, Dijon is already reaching 75% of renewable energies supplying its district heating. By using waste heat and biomass, the city shrank the percentage of gas used to roughly 25%.
The essentials for an effective detox.
Alongside a comprehensive heat plan, cities across the EU often face important challenges and lack adequate support. That’s why it is essential to establish the right conditions and provide a supportive framework. Cities need to tap into different dimensions of wellbeing for a holistic and effective detox which includes :
- Intellectual Wellbeing – Access to data: Heat mapping and planning are essential, but it is also a demanding task. Even with supportive frameworks, cities struggle to develop a comprehensive heating and cooling plan if they don’t have access to the appropriate data.
- Physical Wellbeing – Municipal Resources: Long-term projects such as heating and cooling plans require skilled staff and long-term financial support, yet many municipalities bring awareness to the insufficient funds available for their heat transitions.
The main challenge is, of course, that it’s a very short time period [to decarbonise heat] and we have to be realistic. It’s not clear if we’ll get enough employees, if we’ll get enough of money.
Eckart Würzner, Mayor of the city of Heidelberg
- Environmental Wellbeing – Legal Frameworks: Resources aside, municipalities need adequate laws and obligations to implement necessary measures. It can include legal possibilities to energy zoning, restrictions on fossil fuel use, and removal of legal barriers to local heat exploitation.
- Spiritual Wellbeing – Technology Clarity: Cities need clear guidance on technologies to harness the potential of available healthy energy sources.
- Financial Wellbeing – Incentives & Subsidies: Economic incentives, such as subsidies to cushion investment costs (redirecting the existing subsidies on fossil fuels), support local heat exploitation and encourage heating system upgrades alongside building renovations.
- Social Wellbeing: Cooperative Local Ecosystem: A successful heat detox requires strong collaboration with all relevant stakeholders as providers, knowledge institutions, and citizens. Involving stakeholders and building trust in district heating networks is essential.
What we learned is mainly, I would say, to involve all the stakeholders. And together with everyone do some awareness campaign also to explain very well how we need to decarbonise the heating system.
Glen Dissaux, Vice-President of Brest Metropole, in charge of the Climate Plan
Ready to move forward on your city’s heat detox journey?
Although developing heat plans and implementing a healthy heat network can be challenging, it is always an effort that pays off. It improves inhabitants’ wellbeing, addresses energy poverty, strengthens the local economy, and enables a more effective switch to sustainable, locally-sourced heating solutions.
To support cities and towns in this journey, the Covenant of Mayors has developed it’s Heat Detox Kit— a comprehensive digital toolbox packed with practical guidance, success stories, tools, and publications to support your journey. Whether you’re just starting or refining your strategy. Explore it now!
