In april board member Ulrich Pfeiffer of beacon ECCO Bioenergiedorp Oberrosphe was invited to Loos-en-Gohelle as a "flying expert" to present how Oberrosphe managed the energy transition and became a bioenergy village. Participants were representatives of the city administration of Loos, project partners from France and the University of Marburg.
Loos is a city with about 6,600 inhabitants in the former northern French coal mining district. The coal mine in Loos was closed in 1986. The mines of the entire region were included in the UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2012 and are now, next to the former battlefields of World War I, a tourist attraction.
For many years, Loos has relied on a sustainable development policy involving the population. This includes:
- The construction of green areas on brownfield sites,
- Alternative rainwater management,
- Alternative road construction with water-permeable coverings,
- No use of pesticides,
- Promotion of start-ups in former mining buildings, etc.
Loos wants to be energy self-sufficient by 2050. It will focus on energy projects with financial participation of the community and the citizen set.
The lecture on Oberrosphe was followed closely and many questions were asked.