Municipal heat planning: State association in Wolmirstedt learns about the problems and concerns of citizens and municipalities
The town of Wolmirstedt is in the middle of municipal heating planning. Much has already been achieved – data has been extensively processed, potentials analyzed and initial target scenarios determined. The town of Wolmirstedt has commissioned the external company ETA-E to handle these tasks.
The progress of municipal heat planning in Wolmirstedt has now also come to the attention of the Saxony-Anhalt Renewable Energy Association. Two employees from the association’s office – office manager Stephan Pham and communications officer Udo Krause – therefore recently presented themselves and their association in Wolmirstedt town hall. They were particularly keen to arrange an appointment with the town of Wolmirstedt because the association wants to identify challenges and problems in municipal heating planning that are of concern to local authorities.
Anja Schmidt, who is responsible for municipal heat planning at Wolmirstedt town hall, Jens Sonnabend, head of the building and public order department, and Sophie Pötzsch, town planner, were happy to discuss the issue. Anja Schmidt explained that one of the challenges of municipal heat planning in the town of Wolmirstedt is communicating with citizens. “We have to explain it in a way that is understandable and tangible for our citizens. That’s not always easy with this complex topic,” she said.
This item also includes the concerns of residents relating to municipal heat planning. There are always questions from citizens – the city has answered the most frequent ones on its website, for example, under “Frequently asked questions” at https://stadtwolmirstedt.de/energie-und-klima/kommunale-waermeplanung/faq-waermeplanung/. People are mainly concerned about the financial aspects of the energy transition and municipal heat planning, but also about fears of new technologies and doubts about the technical feasibility of the solutions offered by municipal heat planning.
The State Association for Renewable Energies was previously hardly familiar with all these concerns of the citizens and therefore also the municipalities. This is why the discussion with the town of Wolmirstedt was very informative for the association’s employees. Thanks to this open communication, Wolmirstedt can become a real model municipality in terms of municipal heat planning. The town hall would also like to network and exchange ideas with other municipalities much more closely in the near future.
The Saxony-Anhalt Renewable Energy Association is currently involved, among other things, in drafting an implementation law for municipal heat planning in the state. In order to better tailor this to citizens and thus also to the municipalities, the association also needs an unbiased view of the problems municipalities have with municipal heat planning, which it has now been able to obtain in Wolmirstedt.
