In order to initiate the design, communication and implementation of the transformation to a lowconflict and climate-adapted land-use system, the Centers of Competence e.V. organized three events in the context of nordwest2050 between 2010 and 2013. In cooperation with the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg, a dialogue was initiated in which heterogeneity of the issues and the various interests of the actors on the issue of land-use was discussed and a solution-oriented manner. At the second and largest event, in February 2013, the »Aurich Declaration,« a regional statement on the most important land-use problems, and concrete approaches to solutions, was adopted. It is represented and supported by a wide range of authors from the region.
Political and administrative structures play an important role in climate adaptation. Political scientific analysis can identify factors and scopes of action, which could increase the adaptive capacity. The Governance Team therefore investigated key sectors in the Metropolitan Region, including spatial planning, water management, coastal and inland flood protection,
and civil protection.
Due to growing animal stocks and increasing numbers of biogas facilities (fermentation residues), as well as the limited possibilities for use as fertilizer, handling liquid manure involves ever greater distances. In the future therefore, important steps will involve both an increase in transport-worthiness and a reduction of transport routes and quantities of organic nutrient-containing materials produced; this is especially true for liquid manure and fermentation residues. New, climate-adapted business models need to be developed. During the course of the nordwest2050 project, The Naturdünger-Verwertungs GmbH (Natural Fertilizer Recycling Company/NDV), functioning as an expert and a multiplier, provided data on background knowledge especially for the presentation series Land-Use in the Context of Climate Change in the Northwest.
The farm Moorgut Kartzfehn in Bösel/Kartzfehn is the largest independent turkey-raising operation in Europe, and at the same time has Germany’s largest research site for turkeys. Since turkeys, like all birds, cannot sweat, the predicted long and hot summer days are a risk, especially for the final stage of turkey-farming. In order to avoid heat stress for the animals, various ventilation and feeding concepts have been developed in the context of nordwest2050.
The company Colocation IX GmbH is building a new data center in Bremen, and has decided upon the use of a new innovative cooling technology: Instead of traditional air conditioning to remove the waste heat from the servers, integral wells and geothermal probes are to provide energy-effi cient cooling in summer and heating energy for use in winter. The company is working together with the University of Bremen and the company Geo-En GmbH, which has expertise in integral wells. These alternatives to electrically driven compressor cooling will protect the environment through energy savings, help relieve the power grids, and at the same time ensure a decentralized and fail-safe cooling supply. The project has been funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research to the tune of €280,000. The co-payment share for ColocationIX GmbH amounts to €315,000.
The restaurant trade is increasingly facing delivery bottlenecks as a result of climate change, which may even cause interruptions of the production of food products. Due to reduced yields and at the same time increased resource requirements, cost pressures are rising. In order to face these challenges in a timely manner, the DEHOGA East Friesland & Weser-Ems District Association is developing climate adaptation strategies for the restaurant trade. In the present project, the effects of climate change are analyzed, and specific solution paths for the restaurant trade are developed and communicated within the DEHOGA District Association.
Rather than focusing on climate-protection measures, the Bremen Cargo Distribution Center (GVZ Bremen) has identified measures for adaptation to climate change. In 2011 and 2012 the Institute of Shipping Economics and Logistics (ISL), together with the Bremen University of Applied Science, carried out a comprehensive empirical investigation of the effects of climate change on the logistics sector of the Metropolitan Region Bremen-Oldenburg in the Northwest. The results clearly show that the expected impacts of climate change could mean a new challenge, both for the GVZ and for individual companies at the Center.
A farmer and turkey raiser in Varrel (Oldenburg, Germany) has set up an absorption cooling plant on his farm which provides the necessary air-conditioning for his stall on hot summer days with the help of the waste heat from a biogas plant. The biogas plant itself is fueled partially by turkey manure, and the waste heat from the cogeneration plant linked to the biogas facility is used to operate an absorption cooling plant. The absorption cooling experts from the companies SolarNext AG and Meyer Kühlanlagen, together with the University of Bremen are working on implementation. The project has been subsidized to the tune of €185,000 by the Federal Ministry for Education and Research. The farmer’s self-payment share amounted to €45,000.
Practical Project of the Centers of Competence: A Communication Platform for Climate-Adapted Land-Use Regulation
(2014)
