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SR-02-26-2013-8AID City of City Council Report Santa Monica' City Council Meeting: February 26, 2013 Agenda Item: 8 -A To: Mayor and City Council From: Dean Kubani, Office of Sustainability and the Environment Subject: Santa Monica's 15x15 Climate Action Plan Recommended Action Staff recommends that the City Council: 1) Adopt the 15x15 Climate Action Plan 2) Establish additional community greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets of 30% reduction of emissions below 1990 by the year 2030 and 80% reduction below 1990 levels by 2050 3) Direct staff to analyze the feasibility and cost of reducing greenhouse gas emissions in municipal operations Executive Summary In 2006 Council adopted a goal for reducing community greenhouse gas emissions 15 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2015. Given projected population and economic growth, 29,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions would need to be eliminated throughout the community in order to achieve the target reductions by the end of 2015. The 15 x 15 Climate Action Plan includes 15 measures that if completed would allow the City to meet this goal. Some of the measures have already begun as a result of previous Council direction to staff. Background Council adopted the Sustainable City Plan (SCP) in 1994 to protect natural resources, prevent harm to the natural environment, enhance human health, and improve the social and economic well -being of the community for current and future generations. It was updated in 2003 and revised again in 2006. The 2006 revision included targets for the Greenhouse Gas Emissions indicator which had not previously been set. The targets established were a 15 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2015 communitywide and a 30 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2015 for Municipal Operations. In 2010, Council adopted the Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE). 1 Chapter 3 of the LUCE, Sustainability and Climate Change, specifically calls for the preparation of a Climate Action Plan with periodic monitoring to evaluate progress Santa Monica's 2007 greenhouse gas emissions inventory revealed that communitywide emissions had been reduced to 7 percent below 1990 levels. Between 2007 and 2012, communitywide emissions decreased another 7 percent, resulting in a total reduction of 14 percent below 1990 levels. Since 1990, per capita emissions in Santa Monica have dropped from 10.64 MTCO2e per resident to less than 8.8 metric tons, significantly lower than the state's 2009 per capita average of 13.1.1 Although per capita emissions offer a valuable context for Santa Monica's emissions relative to other municipalities, the community greenhouse gas emissions target, community inventory and 15X15 Climate Action Plan reflect absolute emissions reductions. Projected population and economic growth factors identified in the LUCE suggest an overall increase in greenhouse gas emissions by 2015. Because of this, a 3 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions needs to be achieved by the end of 2015 to meet the 15 percent reduction below 1990 levels. This 3 percent reduction represents an additional 29,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide that will need to be reduced throughout the community. In order to achieve these reductions by the end of 2015, the 15X15 Climate Action Plan was developed. Discussion 15X15 Climate Action Plan Programs and policies that reduce emissions have been included in the Sustainable City Plan, the Urban Forest Master Plan and the Bicycle Action Plan. They are also being integrated into the Water Self Sufficiency Plan and the Zero Waste Strategic Plan which are currently in development. Santa Monica's 15x15 Climate Action Plan brings i Source: California Air Resources Board California Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory: 2000 -2009 2 together the climate - related efforts of these plans, amongst others, to prioritize actions for implementation through the end of 2015. The 15x15 Climate Action Plan is a short-term, action - oriented document that identifies 15 measures that, if completed by the end of 2015, would achieve the City's greenhouse gas emission reduction goal. The 15 measures and associated actions are grouped in the following eight categories: Energy Use and Generation, Waste Reduction and Recycling, Transportation and Mobility, Water Conservation and Efficiency, Open Space and Land Use, Local Food and Agriculture, Municipal Operations, and Climate Mitigation and Adaptation. The reductions associated with each measure and related actions were derived using calculators and methodologies provided by the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and the Statewide Energy Efficiency Collaborative (SEEC). Key criteria used in developing the measures and actions include the magnitude of emissions reductions, the scale of economic and community benefits, and the ability of the City to facilitate their implementation. These measures and associated actions will serve as a checklist to be completed by the end of 2015 and, if implemented, are anticipated to result in greenhouse gas emissions reductions sufficient to meet the 2015 target. The 15X15 Climate Action Plan was developed based on the results of Santa's Monica's 2007 sector -based greenhouse gas emissions inventory. The inventory includes emissions associated with: • Electricity • Natural gas • Fuel oil (distillate and residual) Propane • Gasoline 3 • Diesel • Solid waste disposal Emissions and emissions reductions not included in the inventory are: • Santa Monica Airport aviation fuel • Byproducts of industrial processes • Emissions from goods and food manufactured and produced elsewhere • Sequestration by the existing urban forest* • Offsets* *Although the impacts associated with urban forest sequestration and carbon offsets are not included in the community inventory, they are identified in the 15X15 Climate Action Plan as activities to undertake to achieve the 15 percent reduction target. The reductions associated with some of the measures and actions in the 15X15 Climate Action Plan will be directly represented in a traditional sector -based inventory while the emissions reductions associated with other activities come from climate calculators and software provided by ICLEI. The 15 measures and the anticipated emission reductions identified in the 15X15 Climate Action Plan are identified below. The individual actions associated with each of the 15 measures are detailed in the attached 15X15 Climate Action Plan. 12 Future Targets There is general scientific agreement that greenhouse gas emissions generated globally must decline to 80 percent below 2000 levels by 2050 in order to avoid potentially catastrophic climate change. The cities of Berkeley, Chicago, Seattle and Portland, as well as the State of California, have established the target to reduce emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Currently, Santa Monica does not have greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets beyond 2015. In order to maintain momentum and continuity of effort, staff recommends that Council adopt new community greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets of 30 percent reduction of emissions below 1990 by the year 2030 and 80 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2050. After the completion of 5 Associated % Emission Contribution 15 Measures Reduction to Achieve (MTCO2e) Target Reduction (1) Increase energy efficiency of new buildings to perform 10% better than 2013 Title 24 Standards (2) Reduce energy use citywide in existing buildings by 1 million kWh annually 2,357 8.2% (3) Increase total citywide solar capacity by 500 kW annually 723 2.5% (4) Divert 80% of waste from landfills 6,319 21.9% (5) Reduce daily vehicle miles traveled within the city by 13,000 4,782 16.6% (6) Increase biking and walking mode share to 15% 3,720 12.9% (7) Expand public and private infrastructure to support electric vehicle technology 1,349 4.7% (8) Create vibrant mixed use villages that enhance neighborhoods 2,658 9.2% (9) Expand the age, diversity and number of trees in the urban forest 240 .8% (10)Reduce water demand by 200,000 gallons per day 2,531 8.8% (11)Reduce consumption of carbon intensive foods 500 1.7% (12)Increase the production and consumption of local food _ _ (13)Monitor greenhouse gas emissions _ (14)Adapt to the effects of climate change and global warming (15)Reduce municipal greenhouse gas emissions 3,633 12.6% Community TOTAL 28,812 100 %' Community TARGET 28,812 Future Targets There is general scientific agreement that greenhouse gas emissions generated globally must decline to 80 percent below 2000 levels by 2050 in order to avoid potentially catastrophic climate change. The cities of Berkeley, Chicago, Seattle and Portland, as well as the State of California, have established the target to reduce emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. Currently, Santa Monica does not have greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets beyond 2015. In order to maintain momentum and continuity of effort, staff recommends that Council adopt new community greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets of 30 percent reduction of emissions below 1990 by the year 2030 and 80 percent reduction below 1990 levels by 2050. After the completion of 5 the 15X15 Climate Action Plan, a new greenhouse gas emissions inventory will be performed and an updated Climate Action Plan will be developed in order to identify the measures and actions necessary to achieve the 2030 and 2050 targets. Municipal Operations The Sustainable City Plan also established a target to reduce emissions from municipal operations 30 percent below 1990 levels by 2015. The greenhouse gas emissions inventory for municipal operations accounts for energy use in buildings and facilities, which include streetlights, traffic signals and water delivery systems, and fuel use by the City fleet and Big Blue Bus. Since 1990, emissions have increased by nearly 60 percent, mirroring the trend of increased services and square footage operated by the City. The Big Blue Bus has increased the size of its fleet by over 30 vehicles and significantly expanded its services since 1990, which has increased fuel use and emissions. Also during this period the City has added a new Public Safety Facility, expanded the Main Library, built the Annenberg Beach House and a new Big Blue Bus campus, and expanded parks, street lighting and other infrastructure which has significantly increased the overall energy used by the City. The City purchases green power in order to offset emissions and to support growth in the renewable energy market. Without the consistent investments that the City has made in green infrastructure and sustainable practices such as LED streetlights, alternative fuel fleet and Big Blue Bus vehicles, solar energy and green buildings, the increases in municipal emissions would be even more significant. The 15X15 Climate Action Plan was developed to achieve Santa Monica's community greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. It includes a category that addresses Municipal Operations, but it is not a municipal operations climate action plan. The 15X15 Climate Action Plan includes measures that reduce municipal emissions, but the 15X15 Climate Action Plan is not intended to achieve the municipal greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. In order to achieve the City's target to reduce municipal emissions 30 percent below 1990 levels, Santa Monica will need to reduce its emissions M1 by more than 6,700 metric tons. The measures and actions included in the communitywide 15X15 Climate Action Plan are expected to reduce municipal emissions total about 3,600 metric tons. There are potentially significant costs associated with reducing the City's municipal greenhouse gas emissions further. Therefore, the 15X15 Climate Action Plan focuses on reducing communitywide emissions that can be achieved within existing budgets and work plans. At the direction of Council, staff can analyze the feasibility and cost of further reducing greenhouse gas emissions in municipal operations. Monitoring and Evaluation In order to achieve the projected emissions reductions associated with measures and actions in the 15X15 Climate Action Plan, staff will monitor community greenhouse gas emissions, evaluate progress, and identify new measures and re- examine associated actions every three years to ensure significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are being achieved in accordance with the targets established in this Plan. Financial Impacts & Budget Actions There are no immediate financial impacts or budget actions associated with the adoption of the communitywide 15X15 Climate Action Plan. The majority of the measures and associated actions reflected in the 15X15 Climate Action Plan have been included in the Sustainable City Plan, Urban Forest Master Plan, Bicycle Action Plan and the Land Use and Circulation Element (LUCE). They are also being integrated into the Water Self Sufficiency Plan, Pedestrian Action Plan and the Zero Waste Strategic Plan, which are currently in development. With the exception of three actions, the measures and associated actions included in the Climate Action Plan can be accomplished within the framework of the City's current Maintenance of Effort (MOE) budget or the proposed budgets for FY 2013/14 and 2014/15. N The three actions that are not currently covered by MOE or proposed budgets are 1) the implementation of a Pedestrian Action Plan, 2) the installation of 500 kW of solar capacity on city facilities and 3) the installation of solar thermal systems at the Santa Monica Swim Center and city fire stations. There is not enough information currently available to project the costs for these three actions. When these projects related to the 15X15 Climate Action Plan are advanced, the financial impacts and budget actions will be reported to Council. Prepared by: Shannon Parry, Principal Environmental Analyst Approved: �� g W� r Dean Kubani Director, Office of Sustainability and the Environment Attachments: Attachment 1: 15X15 Climate Action Plan 0 Forwarded to Council: Rod Gould City Manager Additional attachments available for review in the City Clerk's Office.