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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - Citizens Sustainability Committee 10/07/2019MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 Upon a motion by Member Trubee, seconded by Vice -Chair Gritters, and a 6-0 vote of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee, the Consent Calendar was approved as presented (AYES: Gatons, Guinaw, Henderson, O'Donnell, Robertson, and Trubee; NOES: None; ABSENT: Blackburn, Heuring, and O'Donnell). V. CONSENT ITEMS HELD OVER None VI. NEW BUSINESS A. PRESENTATION on Green Energy Rates by Jeremy Goldman with Southern California Edison. MR. JEREMY GOLDMAN, Southern California Edison (SCE), provided a presentation about SCE, infrastructure, green energy rates, clean energy, outage information, and a Wildfire Mitigation Plan. Councilmember Gina Nestande interposed and asked Mr. Goldman it SCE acquires energy from the power plants, and what are the power plants burning. Mr. Goldman responded that they acquire energy from the power plants, and they burn natural gas and coal. Councilmember Nestande asked if they still need fossil fuels. Mr. Goldman replied yes and continued with his presentation. He offered to answer any questions. Member James Henderson asked if it is correct that 17 percent of electricity is generated within the district SCE serves. Mr. Goldman responded that SCE does only generate 17 percent of the power for the district. Member Henderson asked where the other 83 percent is being served. Mr. Goldman replied that SCE procures from other sources such as renewables, fossil fuels, etc. Councilmember Nestande referred to the Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) and understood that Palm Desert would have local control to buy energy. However, she also understood that everyone is going to the same sources. She inquired if the CCA could buy 100 percent from here or is there a percentage the CCA could buy locally. Mr. Goldman responded that the CCA could acquire a different amount. Councilmember Nestande asked if everyone is going to the same sources. Mr. Goldman replied that is correct. 2 GAPlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019Winutes\10.7-19 min docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 Member Henderson asked how SCE generated 17 percent of electricity. Mr. Goldman responded that SCE generates electricity from a hydro facility in the Sierra and a generation station in Loma Linda. Vice -Chair Gregory Gritters noted that total sales is 46 percent. He asked where it is coming from. Mr. Goldman said from non -burning sources and wind. Vice -Chair Gritters asked if the 64,000 solar installations are in Riverside County. Mr. Goldman replied yes. Vice -Chair Gritters inquired if some of the incentives for solar installation are going away. Mr. Goldman believed that the tax credit for solar installation expires in 2022. He mentioned that more information regarding solar installation is on the SCE website. Councilmember Jan Harnik asked if hydro is not considered green. Mr. Goldman replied that is correct. He said he was not comfortable discussing hydro not being green. Councilmember Nestande noted that a small percentage of the SCE bill goes toward a Public Goods Surcharge. She also noted that the CCA said they could do a better job with the surcharge. She asked Mr. Goldman to explain what SCE does with the surcharge. Mr. Goldman responded that the surcharge helps fund different energy efficiency programs and rebates for different types of installations, thermostats, HVAC units, appliances, and pool pumps. Councilmember Nestande explained that she wants to have the information because the City Council has been asked to vote to leave SCE. Therefore, she wants to compare information as much as possible. Councilmember Harnik added that SCE also provides help to someone using powered medical equipment. Mr. Goldman noted it is the CARE/FERA Program. Member Henderson asked Councilmember Nestande what the City Council has to vote on. 3 GAPlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019Winutes\10-7-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 Director of Community Development Ryan Stendell briefly explained that the CCA is a way for a city or cities to take over the procurement portion, with nothing else changing. A CCA is a way to allow local governments to take control of power purchasing. Local governments could set their rate structure and portfolio. He stated there was an action to join the Joint Powers Agency (JPA) with the City of Palm Springs and City of Cathedral City, with the intent of starting a CCA. Palm Springs is the only city that has gone live. He said the City Council still has questions, and they plan to have a study session at the beginning of 2020. Councilmember Harnik noted that people, currently, could go 50 or 100 percent green with SCE. She mentioned that the Mayor asked important questions, such as what would it cost the City today and what is it going to cost the City tomorrow. Councilmember Nestande added that the City is also taking on the risk of buying energy. She said that in her research she has learned everyone is buying energy from the same source. In her opinion, and the reason she voted no, she believed the City is taking on too much risk. Member Dennis Guinaw asked Mr. Goldman what the term of SCE's procurement contracts is. Mr. Goldman responded that SCE is locked into many long-term contracts. Member Guinaw asked how many contracts. Mr. Goldman replied that they have 100s of contracts. B. UPDATE on Organics Recycling. Senior Management Analyst Heather Horning gave a PowerPoint presentation regarding SB 1383. A bill to reduce short-lived climate pollutants in California, and require the State to reduce organic waste by 75 percent by 2025. The bill would additionally increase edible food recovery by 20 percent in the same timeframe. Councilmember Nestande asked if charities (e.g., Martha's Village and Kitchen) would be held to the same standards. Ms. Horning responded that the Legislature is still working on the standards. Councilmember Nestande did not understand the disposal of edible food. For example, what if a person only eats half a burger at a restaurant. Ms. Horning explained that if a person only eats half a burger or the meat is spoiled, the food is not edible. However, if the restaurant has leftover burgers at the end of the night and they are part of the Edible Food Recovery Program, then it is considered edible food. 4 G.\Planning\Monica OReilly\Sustatnabdrty Committee\2019Winutes\10-7-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 Members of the Committee questioned what is considered edible food and how it is going to be collected. Ms. Horning said she wanted to give the Committee an overview of organic recycling, and there would be more information to come. Councilmember Harnik asked what non -organic waste is. Ms. Horning replied that it is plastic, landscaping waste, food waste, and everything that is non -organic material. Vice -Chair Gritters asked what the State is expecting golf courses or homeowners' associations (HOAs) to do to comply with State requirements. Ms. Horning responded that the State wants to ensure landscaping waste is hauled to a compost facility and not to a landfill. Councilmember Nestande stated that she understood there are not enough compost facilities. MR. FRANK ORLETT, the District Manager for Burrtec Waste & Recycling Services, agreed that statewide there are not enough compost facilities. The two facilities in the Coachella Valley are Edom Hill Transfer Station and Coachella Valley Transfer Station. Vice -Chair Gritters commented that most large landscape companies are currently sending green waste to fields and getting recycled. Mr. Orlett interjected that under the new law, landscape companies would need to take green waste to compost facilities. Per the State, Ms. Horning said that waste would need to be tracked to make sure it is being recycled appropriately. Chair Gatons inquired how much it is going to cost the City to implement SB 1383. Ms. Horning responded that the State is aware there is going to be a financial impact on California cities to implement SB 1383. Their response is cities should raise rates to accommodate the financial impacts. She mentioned that the City would be hiring a consultant to figure out how much it is going to cost to implement programs and the most efficient way to do so. She announced that a study session to discuss this topic with the City Council has been tentatively scheduled for November 14. She invited the Committee to attend the study session. Chair Gatons asked staff to email the Committee with the date of the study session. 5 GTlanning\Monica ORedly\Sustainabdity O0mmdtee\2019\Minutes\10-7-19 min.00u MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 VII. CONTINUED BUSINESS None Vill. OLD BUSINESS None IX. REPORTS AND REMARKS A. Staff 1. Environmental Sustainability Plan Mr. Stendell stated that the Committee discussed updating the 2010 Environmental Sustainability Plan. However, the document refers to programs that no longer exist. He preferred to focus on the 2017 General Plan. He pointed out that the matrix shown in the General Plan aligns with the values of the Citizens' Sustainability Committee. He said the vision statement under Chapter 1 states, "Our intent is to create a town, great neighborhoods, anchored by a true downtown and a vibrant, walkable university center, connected by safe, comfortable streets by all users." Within each chapter of the General Plan, there are chapters on Land Use, Mobility, Health and Wellness, Environmental Resources, Noise, Safety, Public Utilities and Services..." He suggested covering one chapter at a time under Reports and Remarks of the agenda. Member Mel Robertson asked if staff could email the General Plan to the Committee. Mr. Stendell replied yes. He noted it is also available on the City's website. Chair Gatons asked if the Committee could have a copy of the General Plan. Mr. Stendell said yes. He asked the Committee to let staff know who would want a copy of the General Plan. 2. Construction Ordinance and Leaf Blowers Chair Gatons expressed his concern with HOAs able to use leaf blowers at whatever time they want. He does not live in an HOA but lives on the other side of the wall of an HOA. He stated that City and HOA regulations are different. He has talked to someone at the City about his issue and he was told that he is splitting hairs. Mr. Stendell responded that the City could only enforce what is in black and white. He stated that City staff could look at the ordinance, but the request must be generated by the City Council. 6 G1PlanningWonica OReilly\Sustainability Committee\2019\Minutes\10-7-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAI NABI LITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 Councilmember Nestande inquired if the City has the right to tell an HOA that they are starting too early. City Manager Lauri Aylaian replied yes. She communicated that once a year, there is housekeeping done to the City's municipal code to remove conflicts and address issues. She said that staff could have the City Attorney look at the issue of early morning use of leaf blowers. She noted that the housekeeping of the municipal code does not address the policy issue of the use or type of leaf blower or the issue with particulates and air quality. Chair Gatons encouraged the City Council to look at the leaf blower rules and regulations for the City and HOAs. Ms. Aylaian asked the Committee to let staff know when they see contradictions. 3. Plastic Bag Ban Ms. Horning noted that the Committee asked staff to look into the difference between the State and the City of Palm Desert's ban of plastic bags. She shared that the State's plastic bag ban is only for food -related stores, and the stores are required to charge 10 cents. The City's plastic ban applies to all businesses, and only requires grocery stores to charge 10 cents. She noted that retail stores could use thicker plastic bags not considered single -use plastic bags or have paper bags. However, retail stores are not required to charge 10 cents. 4. Recycling Cart Stickers Ms. Horning reported that Burrtec placed recycling stickers on bins. She said some bins did not get stickers because they are hiding in the backyard. 5. California Resource Recovery Association (CRRA) Conference Report Management Analyst Amy Lawrence stated that she and Ms. Horning attended the CRRA conference. The focus of the conference was about the culture of zero waste and source reduction. She mentioned that most of the source reduction laws are happening in northern California. Such as, Santa Cruz County is banning hotel toiletry bottles, and Palo Alto is banning produce and meat plastic bags. There was also discussion about the promotion of filtrol devices for washing machines to capture plastic microfibers and keep them from entering rivers, lakes, and oceans. She mentioned that the creator of Keurig K-Cups regrets his invention because of the amount of waste the cups generate. One speaker from the United Kingdom said if all lived like Americans, they would need five planets to sustain humans. In effort to educate the Palm Desert community about resource reduction, Ms. Horning ordered sporks to give away at City events. They are going to come up with more ideas to educate the community. Chair Gatons added that hotel chains such as Marriott are getting rid of the toiletry bottles. 7 G'Tlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustawability Commatee\2019\Minutes\10.7-19 min.docx MINUTES CITIZENS' SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE OCTOBER 7, 2019 6. Earth Day 2020 Ms. Lawrence shared that it is the 501h anniversary of Earth Day. She listed the following items the City is considering for Earth Day 2020: a proclamation by the Mayor, a ceremonial tree planting, a public art project, and community outreach. Earth Day is April 22, 2020. 7. Citizens' Sustainability Committee 2020 Meeting Schedule Chair Gatons stated that the 2020 schedule was included with the agenda. Ms. Lawrence added that at the last meeting, the Committee mentioned parking citations for people parking or blocking an electric vehicle charging station. Per the vehicle code, a person could be cited. However, the property owner must post a sign that states the vehicle code. It is up to the property owner to install signage. B. Committee Members Vice -Chair Gritters asked what the criteria for an excused absence is. Chair Gatons noted that the Committee discussed absences at the last meeting. Mr. Stendell stated that it is up to the Mayor's discretion to approve an excused absence. Vice -Chair Gritters said he sent an email, but it was too late because he received a notice that his absence was unexcused. Ms. Lawrence explained that an excused absence must go through the Mayor. She indicated that an excused absence is jury duty, a family emergency, etc. She noted that staff recently learned from the City Clerk, if a committee or commission meets quarterly, members could only have one absence per calendar year. X. ADJOURNMENT With Committee concurrence, Chair Gatons adjourned the meeting at 4:34 p.m. ,N-Y, c . Monica O'Reilly, Recording cretary 8 GAPlanning\Monica OReilly\Sustainabdtty Committee\2019Unutes\10-7-19 min.docx