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Home My WebLink AboutInfo Item - Sustainablity Plnng & Greenhouse Gases Invntry CITY OF PALM DESERT DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT STAFF REPORT REQUEST: Receive and file an informational report regarding the status update on the process of Sustainability Planning and Greenhouse Gases Inventory for the City of Palm Desert. SUBMITTED BY: Ted Flanigin, EcoMotion Tony Bagato, Principal Planner DATE: January 8, 2009 Recommendation: By Minute Motion, receive and file the informational report regarding the status update on the process of Sustainability Planning and Greenhouse Gases Inventory for the City of Palm Desert. BACKGROUND On December 13, 2007, the City Council voted to adopt Resolution No. 07-78, which pledged the City to enact policies and programs to reduce harmful global emissions. This Resolution began a process of developing a greenhouse gas inventory. In conjunction, the City decided to produce its first "sustainability plan." Staff began to take action by identifying eight focus areas for sustainability planning in Palm Desert. These highly interrelated areas of environmental sustainability are: 1. Energy conservation 2. Water conservation 3. Greenhouse gas reduction 4. Waste diversion from landfills 5. Green building standards 6. Transportation options 7. Open space preservation 8. Recycled, renewable, and locally produced materials usage On June 26, 2008 Council authorized the City Manager to execute a contract with EcoMotion that included three tasks. In addition to providing overall policy guidance to the City Council and executive management, EcoMotion was tasked with developing the City's first sustainability plan and greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory. Information Item Staff Report Sustainability and Greenhouse Gases Inventory Update January 8, 2009 Page 2 of 4 At the direction of the Office of Energy Management, EcoMotion's first priority for the summer of 2008 was the design and development of Palm Desert's Energy Inde�endence Program. AB 811 was signed into law by Governor Schwarzenegger on July 21 S; the City Council authorized Palm Desert's AB 811 program on August 29th. In less than a month, the program's first $2.5 million in funding was fully subscribed. In November, EcoMotion was directed to focus on sustainability planning and the greenhouse gas inventory tasks. This status report presents a) progress in the final two months of 2008, and b) highlights of the upcoming community planning process. SUSTAINABILITY PLANNING • Palm Desert's Sustainability Plan will be a dynamic document that will link City and community-wide activities not previously integrated and coordinated. The Plan's over- arching sustainability policies are intended to guide decision-making over time. It will include specific actions to support those policies. Palm Desert already has an impressive track record with environmental sustainability. EcoMotion will document progress to date, will draw on best practices from near and far, and in collaboration with the Core Management Group (CMG) will guide the City and community through a planning process that involves setting goals and identifying key policies and initiatives to reach those goals. Ultimately, in the second quarter of 2009, EcoMotion will work with the CMG to prepare the final plan for City Council approval. At this stage, activities will be presented for each planning area, along with appropriate metrics for success. Milestones will be developed toward ultimate goals, tracking systems will be put in place, and the Sustainability Plan will be formatted and presented to the City Council for approval. The plan will be fully linked to GHG baseline and target values, complying with AB 32 and CARB guidelines. The resulting Sustainability Plan will serve as the foundation for changes and enhancements to sustainability planning in Palm Desert in the coming months and years. Throughout the process, the City's proposed sustainability plans will be benchmarked with the greenhouse gas inventory to quantify avoided carbon dioxide. CURRENT STATUS Five work areas define the work plan and timeline presented below. They are: 1. Internal/External Research 2. Greenhouse Gas Inventory 3. Community Involvement 4. The Sustainability Plan 5. Administration C:\Documents and Settings\tbagato\Desktop\Green Ordinance StaH Report.doc Information Item Staff Report Sustainability and Greenhouse Gases Inventory Update January 8, 2009 Page 3 of 4 A number of steps have been made in preparation for the activities slated for the first two quarters of 2009: Core Manaqement Group: In November, EcoMotion formed a Core Management Group (CMG) of city officials to guide the planning process. External Research: The Internal/External Research Phase is largely complete; a preliminary report of findings is scheduled for delivery by January 15, 2009. The external research comprises analysis of "best-practices" from ten leading US cities' sustainability planning efforts, reflecting unique circumstances and different objectives. These cities are: 1. Berkeley, California 2. Boulder, Colorado 3. Chattanooga, Tennessee 4. Corvallis, Oregon 5. Honolulu, Hawaii 6. Minneapolis, Minnesota 7. Portland, Oregon 8. San Francisco, California 9. Santa Monica, California 10. Seattle, Washington In addition, EcoMotion has reviewed examples from the Climate Protection Strategies and Best Practices Guide from the 2007 Mayors Climate Protection Summit. Staff has reviewed individual city sustainability plans for Sacramento, San Francisco, Menlo Park, New York, Baltimore, Pasadena, and even the Dongtan sustainability plan in China. Greenhouse Gas Protocols: Background research has been done on greenhouse gas protocols including communications with the Climate Action Registry and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives. EcoMotion has also reviewed exemplary GHG plans. Stakeholder Interviews: In the first three weeks of December, and working with the CMG, EcoMotion identified 24 stakeholders and has met with and completed interviews with 12 of them. Additional interviews will be conducted with the remaining 12 at a later time. NEXT STEPS Two exciting steps begin shortly after the holidays and will be the focus of attention during the first quarter of 2009: • First, EcoMotion will begin a process of engaging the public in the community involvement and community buy-in process. • Second, Palm Desert's greenhouse gas inventory will be developed. C:\Documents and Settings\tbagato\Desktop\Green Ordinance Staff Report.doc Information Item Staff Report Sustainability and Greenhouse Gases Inventory Update January 8, 2009 Page 4 of 4 Communitv Involvement: Community involvement is planned for the first quarter of 2009, and will be relatively intensive over a short period to maintain interest in the process. A kick- off ineeting is planned, followed by a number of small-group meetings on various elements of sustainability (energy, water, etc.) These groups will develop goals for each planning area and to identify programs and initiatives to achieve the goals. Small-group discussions will be reported back to a second large group session. Greenhouse Gas Inventorv: In the first quarter of 2009, EcoMotion will develop Palm Desert's Greenhouse Gas baseline and inventory. This will involve identifying the appropriate protocols for GHG work, and determining baseline values for each sector and subsector of the Palm Desert economy. This will serve as the basis to quantify and measure projected reductions from activities and plans specified in the sustainability planning process. CONCLUSION EcoMotion will continue to work with all parties involved with establishing Palm Desert's Sustainably Plan and Greenhouse Gases Inventory to address the eight areas of sustainability identified by the City Council. EcoMotion and City staff will provide another status update with a detailed work plan and timeline by February 12, 2009. This report is for informational purposes and no action is necessary. 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