Going carbon-neutral isn’t enough for the Danish island of Samsø: according to Nordic Energy Solutions, the island actually boasts a carbon-negative footprint.

First chosen as Denmark’s renewable energy island in 1997, Samsø was energy-independent within 10 years. Today, its offshore wind-energy production is enough to not only meet all of the island’s electricity needs but to offset the carbon dioxide emissions generated by transport.

The island depends on 11 1-megawatt offshore wind turbines and an additional 10 2.3-megawatt turbines that were erected to compensate for transport-related emissions. The installations cost more than €42 million.

Samsø’s residents have also moved to make their heating-related energy more environmentally friendly. About 75 percent of the island’s heating needs are currently met with renewable energy sources, including straw, wood chips and solar heat. The only residents not covered by such systems are those in the island’s 2,000 more isolated homes that are off the grid; they retain the option of using renewable or non-renewable sources for heating.

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