I have been thinking a lot recently about water and power and heat, and the relationship between them. Copenhagen is a coastal city, so I am never far from the water. It is winter in Denmark so the days are short and much of our time is spent inside. This inherently brings up questions for me about how we keep the lights on and the heat running. 

The water that we drink is groundwater extracted outside the city and then oxygenated in basins and filtered through anthracite, sand, and gravel. The water here is very “hard” meaning it is high in dissolved minerals, particularly calcium. It doesn’t take long for our water bottles, kettles, shower heads, and anywhere water accumulates to become covered in white calcium residue. 

Denmark, in general, is a very green country. 80% of the power supplied to Copenhagen is renewable, and 57% of that is wind power, the majority generated offshore. It is rare that I will be near the harbor and not see wind turbines. As the photo above illustrates, it is just a part of Copenhagen’s landscape. There is very little sun here, so mass solar deployment would not be efficient. Solar does, however, account for 3% of the renewable energy portfolio. The other day I was visiting Khora, a VR and AR production company that has worked on creating virtual reality content for many green initiatives. While there, I was able to take a virtual tour of one of the largest solar farms in Denmark. One of the biggest priorities when creating this farm was how it interacted with the natural landscape. Steps were taken to camouflage it within the surrounding area, and there was a large effort to maintain the natural habitats that were displaced by the solar panels. The other 20% of renewables comes from biomass, and the remaining 20% of Copenhagen’s energy generation comes from fossil fuels. The city of Copenhagen has made a goal to have CO2 neutral energy by 2025 and a completely renewable grid by 2050. 

Finally, how do they heat their homes and buildings? Well, in this regard as well, Copenhagen is a bit ahead of the curve as it relates to sustainability. The majority of the heat in Copenhagen is supplied by the 3 district geothermal heating plants. The plants don’t produce any electricity, just heat. This significantly decreases the amount of combustibles being used in the city as fossil fuels are not being burned to provide heat that is necessary almost year-round in a large city. 

It has been very interesting to learn about Copenhagen’s water and power system and has also given me insight into my day-to-day experiences in the city. Most of the production of these resources is happening all around me but goes unnoticed due to the fact that they are well integrated into the environment. Take Amaager Bakke, for example. Also known as “Copenhill”, this is a combined heat and power waste-to-energy plant located in the city. In fact, I see it out of my window every day. However, it is also used as a mountain recreation area. The roof of this plant has been converted into a man-made slope that is used year-round for skiing, sledding, and hiking. This is just one example of how the city of Copenhagen integrates resource generation into the natural and urban landscape.