Lisbon has placed the quality of the environment in a high priority order and is at the forefront of the quest for a green and sustainable Europe. Lisbon received the title of “Green Capital of 2020 ” of the European Union.

Thanks to its initiatives, Lisbon was awarded the prestigious European Award by the European Commission, and the jurors commented that “it is inspiring to see such strong leadership from Lisbon… Lisbon Truly paving a clear road to a more sustainable and responsible future.”

Here are some of the goals and projects of the municipality for the coming years:

• Reducing the level of air pollution.
• 60% reduction of the city’s carbon dioxide emissions.
• Building an urban park in Praca de Espanha, Parque urbano Praca de Espanha.
• Planting 100,000 additional trees in Lisbon by 2021
• Addition of green spaces throughout the city.
• Implementation of advanced systems for water circulation.
• Assimilation of renewable energies.
• Holding conferences, exhibitions and activities in schools on the topic of environmental quality.

Also, the municipality of Lisbon has announced that the downtown area will undergo some changes to make it more environmentally friendly and reduce CO2 emissions. The ZER project will renew these areas and change the face of the city.
In the two most sought-after neighborhoods of Lisbon, Baixa and Chiado, the municipality is taking significant steps to reduce the impact on the environment, make the space more pedestrian-friendly and achieve an ambitious goal of a significant reduction in the use of private cars.

Making the city more pedestrian-friendly will require a number of traffic restrictions that will reduce the number of cars entering these neighborhoods by about 40%, this will result in a significant decrease in pollution and 60,000 tons less CO2 emissions. This will be possible together with improved public transportation in the narrow streets, fifty percent more parking and easier access to underground parking.
The plan will make the charming streets of Beisha and Shiado more peaceful for the residents and allow pedestrians to enjoy open, quieter and cleaner areas.

There is no doubt that for those looking for real estate in Portugal, these changes in Lisbon make it a particularly attractive destination.

See visualizations for the city center renewal plans.

The English website of the Green Capital of Europe project.