Overview
The "Ventotene Zero-emission Island" Project examines the pathways that will lead to sustainable energy solutions for the Island of Ventotene in Italy.
The project aims to integrate renewable energy sources and sustainable mobility actions. It has been financed by the Lazio regional government with the partecipation of the Municipality of Ventotene.
The objectives identified were divided into two phases:
Phase 1. Energy saving and the rational use of energy with production based on renewable sources (creation and installation of photovoltaic systems)
Phase 2. Sustainable mobility actions (implementation of local sustainable mobility programme).
Phase 2 was developed by the Pole for Sustainable Mobility (POMOS), a research centre supported by the Lazio regional government and the University of Rome "La Sapienza". This phase examined several aspects such as renewable energy adoption, efficient energy use, clean transportation options, monitoring and fleet management. The project aims to implement sustainable mobility models on the island through the introduction and development of the following systems:
- a fleet of electric vehicles
- experimental on board systems for telemetry, control of the vehicles
- environmental monitoring system
- wireless communication system
- intelligent charging systems
Key elements of the project are:
- the introduction of electric cars (commercial and prototypes)
- the installation of charging stations integrated with photovoltaic
- the creation of a vehicle monotoring and location system
- the development of an integrated geo-refential platform for telemetry and environmental monitoring
- the development of a wireless communication infrastructure for fleet management
- the integration of individual transportation and public transportation
- educational activities and information
Funding
Results
The characteristics of Ventotene are common in many islands of the Mediterranean area, especially Italy: no cable connection to the grid on the mainland, low efficiency, polluting diesel plants providing the only source of energy, significant population fluctuations due to the tourist stays during the summer, an absence of local sustainable mobility strategies.
A roadmap for the introduction of sustainable transport systems on the island of Ventotene has been made.
The project showed that EVs are very appropriate for use on the island, both for daily transport from the port to the centre and small trips around the island. All the various aspects considered, lead to the conclusion that the Sustainable Mobility integration project on Ventotene is a good example that should be promoted on other similar islands. A documentary about the project has been made.