Barcelona officials have announced that 100 million euros (£85million) raised from its tourist tax will be used to fund solar panels and heat pumps for schools.
Tourists are charged a nightly fee to visit Barcelona and that is set to increase from April 1, as the Spanish city attempts to deal with overtourism.
Jordi Valls, Barcelona’s head of economic and tourism promotion, said: “So far we have spent these taxes on compensating for the impact tourists have on the city, including cleaning services, safety and public transport.
“This year, we’ve decided to go a step further and spend the tax on financing public services from a climate point of view.”
The city is hoping to install solar powered air conditioning systems in 170 schools by 2029 using the tourist tax funds, reports Bloomberg.
Around seven million tourists travel to Barcelona every year and the city has struggled to cope with the crowds.
Local residents have even left graffiti in some areas of the city, telling tourists to leave and go home.
The Spanish city isn’t the only European destination that’s feeling the pressure from high visitor numbers.
Venice has introduced a new daily fee for tourists travelling to the city for the day, while overnight visitors already pay a charge.
The canal city uses the funds to pay for tourist infrastructure and events but officials have said they will use the money to lower the ‘waste tax’ for local residents in 2025.
Paris has hiked its tourist tax ahead of this summer’s upcoming Olympic Games and has also raised the prices of public transport tickets during the event.