SERVICES

Sustainable Energy and Climate Plan (SECAP)

What is SECAP?

The Sustainable Energy and Climate Action Plan (SECAP) is a key document in which a signatory to the Covenant of Mayors describes how it intends to deliver on its commitments to climate change mitigation and adaptation, achieving the targets, timeframes and assigned responsibilities.

SECAP is a sustainable energy and climate change action plan that every municipality should have.

It should be remembered that opportunities for emission reduction arise with every new development project approved by the local authority. The impact of such opportunities can be extremely significant and may last for a long time. This means that energy efficiency and the reasons for emission reduction need to be considered in all new developments, even if SECAPs have not yet been completed or approved.

What should SECAP contain?

SECAP must meet minimum criteria to be approved by the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission.

The SECAPA criteria are:

• The action plan must be approved by the municipal council or equivalent body.
• It must clearly set out commitments for climate change mitigation and adaptation.
• It should be based on the results of a comprehensive baseline emission inventory (BEI) and risk and vulnerability assessments (RVA).
• The action plan must cover key sectors (public, tertiary, housing and transport) in relation to mitigation.
• The baseline emissions inventory must cover at least three of the four key sectors.
• Mitigation measures must cover at least two of the four key sectors.