Heat Transition Vision
In 2021, the municipality drafted a general plan outlining how Voorschoten will transition from natural gas to sustainable heat in the future: the Heat Transition Vision. The main goal of this vision is for the municipality of Voorschoten to be carbon-neutral by 2050. This is a requirement under the “ Rijksoverheid ” (Climate Act) that every municipality must fulfill. In 2021, the Voorschoten “ municipal council ” (Municipal Executive Committee) adopted the Heat Transition Vision 1.0. This was followed in 2024 by the Heat Transition Vision 1.1. Based on what we know now, these documents outline how and through which Requirements we intend to achieve this goal. At least every five years, an updated Heat Transition Vision will be issued, based on the latest national policies, the latest innovations, and technical and financial knowledge.
The report “ neighbourhood ” identifies the most logical sustainable heat sources to switch to. It also indicates when—between now and 2050—a “ neighbourhood ” could make that switch. In addition, for each “ neighbourhood ,” we examined whether an interim solution would be a good idea, such as home insulation, energy conservation, or switching to a hybrid heat pump (which uses significantly less natural gas).
The starting point is that we only work on solutions that we will not regret later. In the coming years, we will further develop these into more concrete implementation plans per neighborhood, or groups of matching homes. We have now started in the first neighborhood: the Krimwijk.
Participation
The municipality could not and did not want to create the heat vision alone and therefore asked residents, entrepreneurs, housing associations, organizations, and other partners to share their thoughts. Over 600 residents shared their opinions and ideas. We used these for the initial roadmap up to 2050.
More than 575 residents completed the questionnaire on the heating transition vision. The residents indicated what they consider important in this regard, what questions they have, and what they see as key “ Requirements ” for the solution. We then organized a workshop for more than 75 residents. There, we explored in greater depth what is possible at each “ neighbourhood ” and what the path toward 2050 should look like.
Update
We will update the heating transition plan as needed, and we will do so at least every five years—for example, if new insights or improved technologies emerge, or if prices change. We will continue to do this until 2050, when the entire municipality will be natural gas-free. In 2024, the Energy Transition Committee ( municipal council ) adopted the Heat Transition Vision 1.1. In this updated vision, we group homes by housing type, rather than according to the neighborhood classifications of Statistics Netherlands (CBS), as was done in the first Heat Transition Vision. We also examine even more closely which heating solution best suits each group of homes.