Sustainability

Our goal is clear: A carbon neutral Columbus by 2050. To achieve this, Smart Columbus is helping to create a more sustainable city by increasing the adoption of renewable energy, electric vehicles, and emerging climate technologies.

These days becoming a smarter city means becoming a greener one. Sustainability is critical to our long-term success as a city, affecting everything from our economic prosperity to our social wellbeing.

Meeting the challenge of carbon neutrality won’t be easy and will take a team effort. Government, corporations, community organizations, and residents will all play a role. Together, we can create a more livable, resilient Columbus for future generations.

COLUMBUS CLIMATE ACTION PLAN

In 2020, Mayor Andrew Ginther introduced the Columbus Climate Action Plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and pollutions with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
 

• 45% greenhouse gas emissions reduced by 2030
• 100% greenhouse gas emissions reduced by 2050

The plan is a comprehensive one, tackling everything from increasing our use of clean energy to improving our city's resiliency to global climate change to eliminating the disproportional impact that climate risks have on our most vulnerable communities.

It’s an undertaking that Smart Columbus is proud to play a role in by leading the implementation of four goals focused on renewable energy and zero emission vehicles.

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Achieving our goal of carbon neutrality starts with cleaner energy sources and a focus on improved efficiencies. Switching to 100% renewable energy will mean cleaner air and a healthier community.

The Columbus Region Green Fund

Clean Energy Partners established the Columbus Region Green Fund to accelerate the equitable adoption of clean energy and reduce carbon emissions. The Green Fund accomplishes this by providing low-interest loans that make clean energy projects financially attractive and attracting private capital to projects they would otherwise not invest in.​

Green Power Initiatives

Through Smart Columbus’ decarbonization initiatives, the City of Columbus Division of Power has been able to prioritize projects and initiatives to provide cleaner energy to 14,000 customers and the whole city. These initiatives include:

• Raising the amount of green energy used for the DOP customers and street lights from 5.7% in 2016 to 50% in 2023.
• Using biogas from city wastewater treatment plants as fuel for a Combined Heat and Power plant, a move that's generating 5,000 MWh per year.
• Repairing O'Shaughnessy Dam's hydroelectric turbines restoring 10,000 MWh per year.

Community Choice Aggregation

Under Community Choice Aggregation, Columbus residents and small businesses will receive competitively priced, clean electricity from a retail generation supplier certified by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio.

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Local companies will play a big role in our push to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. The Smart Columbus Acceleration Partner Program helps connect businesses with the funding and tools they need to significantly reduce both their emissions and their costs.

Smart Columbus is helping the region's largest employers to:

• Improve the energy efficiency of their buildings.
• Electrify their existing fleet.
• Promote driving electric and driving less to their employees.

For more information on creating more energy-efficient and sustainable buildings, read our Sustainability Buildings Report.

We’re helping to create a more connected community through the following projects:

Consumer Electric Vehicle Adoption

We will accelerate electric vehicle adoption among central Ohio drivers to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and prepare our region for the mobility options of the future.

Mobility Sustainability

Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure

We’ll grow the region’s network of electric vehicle charging stations to support the growth future-forward mobility in our city.

 

Mobility Sustainability

Electrified Dealer Program

We’re partnering with manufacturers and dealers on the front lines of the automotive industry to drive toward our goal of increasing electric vehicle adoption by nearly 500%.

Sustainability