eugene community climate and energy action plan

8/8/2019 Eugene Community Climate and Energy Action Plan

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A CommunityClimate and

Energy ActionPlan for Eugene

September 2010


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Eugenes rst Climate and Energy Action Plan:

In 2008, in response to increasing concern about global climate changeand the potential or volatile and rising uel prices, Eugenes City Councilasked sta to develop Eugenes rst Community Climate and EnergyAction Plan.

The Community Climate and Energy Action Plan goals:

1. Reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions 10 percentbelow 1990 levels by 2020.

2. Reduce community-wide ossil uel use 50 percent by 2030.

3. Identiy strategies that will help the community adapt to a

changing climate and increasing ossil uel prices.

The Six Action Areas:

Buildings and Energy looks at energy used in residential,commercial, and industrial buildings in Eugene. This section includesrecommendations to reduce energy use in existing buildings and newconstruction, expand use o renewable energy, and prepare buildings orclimate change.

Food and Agriculture includes everything related to our oodproduction, delivery, distribution, and waste disposal. This sectionincludes recommendations to reduce consumption o meat and dairy

oods, reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with agriculture andood waste, protect regional armland, increase home- and locally-grownoods, and prepare our ood systems or an uncertain uture.

1 State o the Climate Global Analysis, NationalOceanic and Atmospheric Administration, June2010.

2 IPCCFourth Assessment Report: ClimateChange 2007, Intergovernmental Panel onClimate Change, 2007.

3 Peaking o World Oil Production: RecentForecasts, US Department o Energy, 2007.

Executive Summary

The decade rom 2000 to 2009 was the warmest ever recorded.[1]

Over the last three decades, each has beenwarmer than the one beore and science is telling us that this trend will continue.[2] In addition, the inexpensive

ossil uels that our community and country depend on or transportation, ood production, and industry are

projected to become increasingly expensive.[3] Eugene is joining a growing list o cities around the world that are

addressing these climate change and energy concerns with a plan to meet the challenges with vision and creativity

In developing this local plan, community leaders and citizens have clearly recognized the need to re-imagine how

we live, eat, travel, and play. As we work to adapt to the uncertainties ahead, we can be sure that the boldness o

our actions today will determine the quality o lie in Eugene now and into the uture.


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ExecutiveSummary

Land Use and Transportation considers the use o land andthe transportation o people and goods. This section includesrecommendations to increase urban density and mixes o land use anda ocus on improving systems or bike, pedestrian, transit, and electricvehicles.

Consumption and Waste looks at everything in the liecycle oconsumer goods rom extraction o raw materials to manuacturing,packaging, distribution, product use and nally, disposal. This sectionincludes recommendations to reduce greenhouse gas emissionsassociated with consumption o goods, improve recycling andcomposting, improve municipal purchasing practices, and adaptconsumption strategies based on new ndings.

Health and Social Services addresses mental and physical health careand assistance programs or disadvantaged populations. This sectioncontains recommendations to prepare health and social systems or adierent uture and reduce the impacts o climate-related disasters.

Urban Natural Resources considers the soil, air, water, plants,and animals o our city. This section contains recommendations tomanage land, trees, and water or multiple benets, update resourcemanagement plans, improve access to natural resource data, and expanddrinking water and stormwater management programs.


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Climate LeadershipInitiative, et.al. createsreport: Preparing for

Climate Change in theUpper Willamette Basinof Western Oregon highlighting impacts ofclimate change toEugene and surroundingarea

Eugene City Councilinstructs staff to create aCommunity Climate andEnergy Action Plan

City of Eugene creates

the first Internal (cityoperations) ClimateAction Plan

20

09

Eugene Sustain-able BusinessInitiative recom-mends creation of1) sustainabilitycommission and 2)

metropolitanclimate actionplan

2006 State of

OregonGoal:Reducegreenhousgas

emissions75% below1990 level

Oregon legislature firstestablishes carbon-reduction goal

Rio Earth Summit(United Nationsframeworkconvention on

climate change)

Kyoto

protocol

Eugene Mayor signs theUS conference of MayorsUS mayors climateprotection agreement,striving locally to meet orbeat the Kyoto protocoltargets

City of Eugene creates a

greenhouse gas inventoryfor internal municipaloperations

Oregon strategy forGreenhouse Gas Reductionscompleted

Eugene sustainabil-ity commission isestablished

City of PortlandDescending the OilPeak reporthighlights challengesof fossil fuel depletion

City of Eugenecompletes a commu-nity greenhouse gasinventory

City of Eugeneworks withcommunitypartners tocreateEugenes firstCommunityClimate and

Energy ActionPlan

State ofOregon Goal:Reducegreenhousegas emissions10% below1990 levels

City of EugeneGoal: Reduceoverallcommunityfossil fuel use50% below

2005 levels

1989

1

992

1

997

2005 2

00

7

20

10

2020

2050

2

030

Photo by Kazuaki Fus

CEAPTimelineandGoals

Timeline and Goals


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PreParing For Change

In the winter o 2008/2009, Eugenes City Council unanimously directedsta to develop a Community Climate and Energy Action Plan (CEAP).[4]All City operations and City-owned acilities were to be carbon-neutralby 2020. During the same year, the Council committed the City to workwith its partners to develop a plan to set carbon emission goals, tosuggest eective emission reduction strategies, and to identiy ways inwhich the community can adapt to the anticipated changes. Four monthslater, the Council expanded the action plan to include steps or achievinga 50 percent reduction in community-wide ossil uelconsumptionby 2030. This plan is the product o those eorts to understand whatclimate change and uel cost increases could mean or Eugene, and

to nd ways that lessen the expected impacts and meet the goals orreducing emissions and ossil uel consumption.

While there is considerable discussion and some debate on the issues oclimate change in the community and beyond, this plan was undertakenin response to Council direction and is inormed by the scientic evidenceavailable at the time o its publishing.

The CommuniTy ClimaTeand energy aCTion Plan (CeaP)

Goals

1. Reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions to 10percent less than 1990 levels by 2020 and 75 percent below 1990levels by 2050.[5]

2. Reduce community-wide ossil uel use 50 percent by 2030.[6]

3. Identiy strategies that will help the community adapt to achanging climate and increasing ossil uel prices.[7]

Geographic Scope and Timeline

Citizens, topic experts and partners rom inside and outside o the Cityo Eugene were invited to develop a plan or the broader community.This public engagement process identied challenges and opportunities

and presented options and action items that will require partnerships andjoint eorts across the community.

The CEAP establishes general directions and oers specic actionsover the next three to ve years; however, the scientic and generalcommunitys understanding o climate and energy challenges are evolvingrapidly and Eugenes direction and goals will likely need to be updated.

Introduction

[4]

More policy detail and background can beound in Appendix 9.

[5]This goal matches Oregons stated GHG reduc-tion targets rom House Bill 3543. While thistarget is not equivalent to the ossil uel reductiontarget, it reects the degree o GHG reductionsthat are necessary, according to scientifc research

Additional discussion o relative greenhouse gastargets begins on page 14 o Appendix 8.

[6]This goal, unanimously adopted by Eugene CityCouncil February 2009, will use the base year2005, the year o data used or the 2007 com-munity greenhouse gas inventory.

[7]The ull text o the City Council directives re-lated to the CEAP can be ound in Appendix 9.


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howwasThePlandeveloPed?The Climate and Energy Action Plan Advisory Team

The CEAP advisory team was assembled in May 2009 and was composedo 11 community members and representatives o partner agencies. InJune 2009, the team began providing input on the public outreach andgeneral planning processes. The group brought expertise to the publicmeetings, observed and participated in topic discussions, providedeedback on the development o the plan and the plan document, andprovided background data.

Team Member Partner Agency/GroupChuck Gottried City o Springeld

Sarah Mazze Resource Innovation Group andThe UO Climate Leadership Initiative

Joshua Proudoot Eugene Area Chamber o Commerce

Jason Heuser Eugene Water and Electric Board

David Hinkley Friends o Eugene

Lorraine Kerwood/Twila Souers Eugene Human Rights Commission

Joe McCormack Lane Transit District

Mike McKenzie-Bahr Lane County

Jan Wostmann Neighborhood Leaders CouncilHeidi Beierle/Bill Randall City o Eugene Planning Commission

Shawn Boles City o Eugene SustainabilityCommission

The Public Engagement Process

News releases, print and online calendars, website announcements,and emails invited members o the public to participate in seven publicorums. A kicko event was held in September 2009 and one publicorum was held on each o the six topics between October 2009 andMarch 2010. More than 500 members o the public participated, sharing

concerns about climate uncertainty and uel price volatility, and weighingin on what should be the communitys highest priorities. Below are the sixtopics or action areas:

H Buildings and Energy

H Food and Agriculture

H Land Use and Transportation

H Consumption and Waste

H Health and Social Services

H Urban Natural Resources

Introduction


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The process or identiying action items or each o the six topic areas wasas ollows:

1. A strategy list was compiled using inormation submitted byregional experts and gleaned rom municipal- and state-levelclimate and energy plans rom across the nation. The list wasreviewed by the topic specialists, rened, and then used as astarting place or the public orums.

2. Topic specialists were identied rom across the community. Eightto twelve expert community members with broad knowledgeo the topic and the ability to bring a variety o perspectives tothe public orums were invited to assist with the plan. The topicspecialists contributed to the development o the strategy lists,provided technical inormation support at the public orums, and

assisted with the prioritization o strategies. A complete list oTopic Specialists can be ound in Appendix 3.

3. Public orums were held to engage members o the communitywho are interested in climate and energy challenges as they relateto each o the six topics. Each o the orums were attended by50 to 120 community members, including topic specialists, CEAPadvisory team members, neighborhood leaders, and SustainabilityCommissioners. Forum participants reviewed the strategy listor the subject topic, provided perspectives on which actionsshould be given the highest priority, identied missing actions orstrategies, and provided detail on how individual actions could beimplemented.

4. Topic specialists reviewed proposed actions in greaterdetail, provided input on priorities, claried ideas, identiedopportunities and challenges, and helped to ground the process inEugenes unique economic, social, and environmental conditions.

5. Advisory team members weighed inormation rom backgrounddocuments, input rom the public orums and the topic specialistmeetings, and oered their varied perspectives on each topic area.The team completed a nal review o the strategies and reviewedand commented on the drat Community Climate and EnergyAction Plan.

6. Additional Research was conducted ater the drat was released toclariy some o the relative costs and benets o actions. This addscondence that the priorities included in the plan are the best

places or our community to take action. Targets and measureswere also added.[8] This inormation is compiled in the attachedspreadsheet, Appendix 1.

The ouTComes

O the several hundred possible action items suggested, reviewed, anddiscussed in the public engagement process, the plan only includesthose that are expected to best reduce ossil uel consumption andGHG emissions, and to prepare Eugene or the impacts o energy pricevolatility and climate uncertainty. A strict cost-benet analysis wasnteasible, but the project team designed a process that weighs the relativeimportance o potential actions in the context o the three stated goals.

[8]The targets associated with objectives andactions in the Plan reect best estimates o the re-ductions necessary. Creating targets that are care-ully calibrated to the overall GHG and ossil uelreduction goals will require additional research.


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whaT haPPens nexT?Funding: In the 2011 scal year budget, $200,000 o one-time undingwas earmarked or use in implementing both the Community Climateand Energy Action Plan and the Citys Diversity and Equity Strategic Plan.These unds are in addition to the work already underway across the Cityorganization in Solid Waste management, the Green Building program,Stormwater Management, Urban Forestry, and many other existing Cityprograms.

Reporting back: The City Council will receive annual reports assessingthe progress being made on each o the multiple objectives included in

the plan.Updating the plan: Our understanding o the complex issues aroundclimate change and greenhouse gassources is continually improving, andas our community moves orward on the priorities included in this plan,it will be important to revisit, revise, and update Eugenes CommunityClimate and Energy Action Plan every three to ve years.

howisThe CommuniTy ClimaTeand energy aCTion

Plan organized?

The strategies are divided into six action areas. The rst our are the

primary targets or greenhouse gas emissions and ossil uel reductions,and the last two ocus on actions necessary to adapt to climate changeand rising uel prices.

H Buildings and Energy

H Food and Agriculture

H Land Use and Transportation

H Consumption and Waste

H Health and Social Services

H Urban Natural Resources

Please note that the actions in each area are not organized by priority.

The rst action in each section is not necessarily the most important, noris the last the least important.

A table containing all o the actions and associated targets, measures,estimated nancial impacts, and estimated greenhouse gas reductions datais available in the Compiled Priority Action Items Tables in Appendix 1.

Terms in italics are dened in the glossary located in Appendix 2.

Introduction


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howwill ClimaTe Changeand volaTile,rising Fuel PriCes aFFeCT eugene?

How Do Greenhouse Gases Contribute to ClimateChange?

The earth receives radiant energy rom the sunpart o which isrefected back to space. Greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide,methane, and nitrous oxide, surround the earth and trap some o thisenergykeeping the surace warm and making lie on earth possible(see Figure 1). Since the start o the Industrial Revolution we have beenburning ossil uels such as oil, coal, and natural gas to heat and light

our homes and businesses, create electricity, and provide transportation.By burning ossil uels and releasing carbon dioxide, these activitieshave increased the amount o greenhouse gases in the atmosphere,causing more o the suns energy to be trapped. The trapped energywarms the earth and changes our climate. Climate scientists have beentelling us i we are to avoid urther intensiying the greenhouse eectand its impact on our climate, we will need to reduce our greenhousegas emissions. Nations, states, and communities must work to decreasegreenhouse gas emissions and plan or climate change.

How Will Our Climate Change?

Carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases produced today will remainin the atmosphere and continue to aect the climate or decades tocome. However, reducing greenhouse gas emissions now is expectedto decrease the magnitude o climate change over time. Preparing orClimate Change in the Upper Willamette River Basin o Western Oregon:Co-Benecial Planning or Communities and Ecosystems,[9] publishedin 2009, identies several important changes expected to aect ourcommunity:

H Average annual temperatures increase by 8 to 12 F by around2080.

H Reducedsnowpack and resultant lower stream fows in summer

H Increased demand or water or agricultural uses.H Reduced summer hydroelectric power generation capacity (due to

lower stream fows in summer) and increased summer demand orelectricity.

H Increased storm intensity, fooding, and wildres.

H Higher rates o heat-related illness , exhaustion, asthma, andrespiratory diseases.

In addition to these physical impacts, climate change is expected tohave signicant nancial impacts, particularly i it accelerates and i wedont prepare our systems or the impacts just outlined. The report, An

[9]Preparing or Climate Change in the UpperWillamette River Basin o Western Oregon:Co-Benefcial Planning or Communities andEcosystems, US Department o Agriculture,Climate Leadership Initiative, and National Centeror Conservation Science and Policy, 2009.

Figure 1 - Source: State o WashingtonDepartment o Ecology


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Overview o Potential Economic Costs to Oregon o a Business-As-UsualApproach to Climate Change,[10] makes several important observations,including the ollowing: I spread evenly, Oregons households, onaverage, could incur annual costs o $1,930 per year by 2020. O thisamount, $830 relate to expenditures on energy, $460 relate to health-related costs, and $370 to the adverse eects o climate change onsalmon populations. These costs are not negligible. The 2020 averageo $1,930 represents more than 4 percent o the current medianhousehold income in Oregon. The report continues by listing many othe costs that havent yet been calculated, and states that, Far greatercosts might materialize elsewhere or in uture centuries, the result o abusiness-as-usual approach to climate change over the next ew decades.

I temperatures rise to the maximum levels predicted under the business-as-usual scenario, billions o people in less-developed countries likelywould endure increased thirst and starvation, thousands o species wouldace extinction, sea levels would rise several meters, and vast areas o theoceans could become essentially barren. To the extent that these distanteects matter to todays Oregonians, the potential costs would be argreater than we indicate.

In contrast to these costs, several reports suggest that taking actionnow will result in signicant savings. Washington Western ClimateInitiative Economic Impact Analysis[11] and Pathways to a Low-CarbonEconomy,[12] suggest that reducing energy use and preparing or climatechange will quickly save citizens, businesses, and governments millions odollars by reducing energy costs and creating sorely needed jobs.

How Will a Rise in Fuel Prices Aect Eugene?Continued dependence on coal, oil, and natural gas aects not onlyour climate, it infuences the stability o our local and national economy.Global demand or oil and natural gas has increased rapidly over thelast 30 years. The supply o these non-renewable resources is limited,and over the last decade, concern about the shrinking supply and risingdemand has increased. Many credible sources project that global oilsupply will go into irreversible decline within the next ve to ten years.[13]

Gas prices over $4 per gallon during the summer o 2008 remindedconsumers o how dependent Eugenes economy is on these uels or

[10]An Overview o Potential Economic Coststo Oregon o a Business-As-Usual Approach toClimate Change, CLI Et. al. 2009

[11]Washington Western Climate InitiativeEconomic Impact Analysis, ECONorthwest, 2010

[12]Pathways to a Low-Carbon Economy: Version2 o the Global Greenhouse Gas Abatement CostCurve, McKinsey and Company, 2009

[13]Peaking o World Oil Production: RecentForecasts, US Department o Energy, 2007

Continued dependence on coal, oil, and

natural gas aects not only our climate,

it infuences the stability o our local andnational economy

Introduction


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our daily activities. The increased costs o uel, transportation, ood,and consumer goods had a signicant impact on many consumersand businesses, and hit small businesses and lower- and xed-incomehouseholds the hardest.

The City o Portland Peak Oil Task Force studied the likely impacts orising uel prices and in 2007, published their ndings in Descendingthe Oil Peak: Navigating the Transition rom Oil and Natural Gas. [14]The report identies a number o ways in which northwest communitiessuch as Eugene are vulnerable to changes in global energy markets. Forexample, transportation o reight via air and truck is expected to becomemore costly and to cause ood prices to rise. Increased costs or ertilizer,animal eed, and processing will also put upward pressure on ood costs.Likewise, heating and cooling buildings will become signicantly moreexpensive. Rising costs and shrinking disposable incomes will result ineconomic weakness, increased unemployment, and higher demand orsocial services. As is the case with the eects o climate change, theimpacts o rising costs and a weakening economy will be elt broadlyacross the region and those hardest hit by the changes will be the mostvulnerablechildren, the elderly, and those with lower or xed incomes.

While there is clearly a need to transition away rom dependence onoil, coal, and natural gas, there arent always easy substitutes. That isin part because these ossil uels provide a huge amount o energy ina very small volume that can be easily transported, stored, and used by

just about anyone. Just one gallon o gasoline, currently sold or about$3, is roughly equivalent to three weeks o labor or one person. [15] Oureconomic systems have become very reliant on this incredibly cheap andconvenient source o labor and when the cost o this labor goesup, so do the prices o goods and ood that depend on this energy orproduction and distribution.

In contrast to convenient and energy-dense oil, most o the availablerenewable substitutes like wind, solar and wave energy all generateelectricity that requires heavy and expensive batteries to store. The energytransmission and storage systems that will be required or widespread useo these alternatives will take 10 to 20 years and signicant investment

to develop.[16] In order to reduce the impacts o high ossil uel prices,these investments must be made soon. Heavy investments in renewableenergysources will only help replace part o our current energy need, soreduced energy use overall is essential.

[14]Descending the Oil Peak: Navigating theTransition rom Oil and Natural Gas, City oPortland Peak Oil Task Force, 2007.

[15]The Tightening Conict: Population, EnergyUse, and the Ecology o Agriculture, M.Giampietro, D. Pimentel, 1994.

[16]Peaking o World Oil Production: Impacts,Mitigation,& Risk Management, Hirsch et. al.2005.


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What has Eugene Done to Prepare or Climate Change andRising Fuel Prices?

Internal Climate Action Plan: In 2009, at the direction o CityCouncil, the City o Eugene created an Internal Climate Action Plan[17]that describes how the organization will reduce energy use in internaloperations with the goal to be climate neutralby 2020. This will bedone by increasing energy efciency, increasing waste prevention,improving purchasing methods, and osetting any remaining energy useby purchasing quality carbon osets.

Waste reduction plan: The City o Eugene is currently creating aninternal waste reduction plan with the goal to reduce waste 90 percent

by 2030. This will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions rom Cityoperations.

Food Scope document: In early 2010 sta completed a scoping andresource plan or development o a ood security plan in conjunction withcommunity partners.[18] This work is a positive step toward improvingood security in Eugene, and an important part o preparing or climatechange.

The Community Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory or Eugene

In 2007, as a rst step toward creating a climate and energy actionplan, City sta and community partners compiled an inventory o thecommunitys greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Eugene CommunityGreenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory Report[19] provides useul detailabout the communitys emissions related to buildings, energy use, andtransportation.

This report, however, does not account or the energy and associatedemissions, that are embodied in consumer goods, energy and services.Embodied energyis all o the energyincluding electricity, oil and naturalgasused in making, transporting, storing, distributing and disposingo the consumer goods we userom drinking cups and lawn urniture,to rerigerators and cars. It is the energy used to mine the metal, harvestthe wood, grow the cotton, extract the oil to make the plastic, as well as

to manuacture, distribute, and nally to dispose o these items. Manyproducts today are made o components which come rom several placesand have been shipped around the world beore we encounter them.For this reason, calculating the amount o energy in any one item is verydicult; the data and methodology or this type o analysis have beendeveloped only recently.

[17]The City o Eugene Internal Climate ActionPlan can be ound in Appendix 4 and on the Cityswebsite.

[18]City o Eugene Food Security Scoping andResource Plan, City o Eugene, April 2010.

[19]See Appendix 8 or the ull text o the EugeneCommunity Greenhouse Gas Emissions InventoryReport, July 2007.

Introduction


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[20]Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory; TheCarbon Footprint o Residents and BusinessesInside the Portland Metropolitan Region Metro,

April 2010.

[21]For more detail on greenhouse gas emissionsrom buildings and energy use in Eugene, see

Appendix 8 Eugene Greenhouse Gas EmissionsInventory Report City o Eugene, July 2007.

48%Materials

(goods andfood)

25%Transportation

20%Building HVAC

and lighting

7%Appliance and

device use

Figure 3 - Greenhouse gas emissions by system.Source: Metro Regional GHG Inventory

What is the Buildings and Energy Action Area?This section ocuses on all the energy used to provide heating, cooling,light, and power in residential, commercial and industrial buildings inEugene and on the resulting GHG emissions. The emissions rom thissector come rom a wide variety o power uses such as operating acommercial businesses (e.g., supermarkets), producing industrial products(e.g., operating sawmill equipment), to powering events (e.g., lighting atAutzen Stadium), as well as the traditional heating/cooling/power needso homes, apartments, oce buildings, manuacturing acilities, etc.

What Part o Eugenes GHG Footprint Comes rom Buildingsand Energy?

The GHG inventory created by Metro[20] shows that emissions rom energyuse in buildings accounts or roughly 27 percent o that communitysGHG emissions (see Figure 3). This plan assumes that those numbers aregenerally true or Eugene. The community GHG inventory created by theCity o Eugene[21] shows the bulk o emissions associated with buildingenergy use comes rom burning natural gas to heat water and buildings,and not rom electricity use. There is still need to pay close attention toelectricity use, however, because any increases in electricity use, whetherrom growing population or increased overall demand, is likely to be metby burning coal or natural gas to generate electricity. Thereore, ongoingeorts at electricity conservation are essential to avoiding increased GHG

emissions.

How Do Buildings and Energy Contribute to GHG Emissions?

The primary utilities or Eugene are the Eugene Water and Electric Board(EWEB), a publicly-owned utility, and the NW Natural Gas Company,an investor-owned utility. Though natural gas is cleaner than coal or oilcombustion, it still produces signicant amounts o greenhouse gases.The 2007 community GHG inventory projects that by the year 2020 thecommunity will produce more emissions by burning natural gas than byburning gasoline or transportation.

Compared to other communities, a small amount o Eugenes GHGemissions result rom electricity generation and use; largely because EWEBsources most o its electricity rom hydroelectric dams and other low-GHG-emitting energy sources (see Figure 4). In addition, over the past severaldecades, EWEB has met much o the increased demand or electricity inEugene through eciency. Instead o additional power plants to meetincreasing demand EWEB unds energy conservation programs to reducedemand. This has reduced the amount o electricity that EWEB needs togenerate or purchase on behal o customers by 13 percent. Continuingto reduce the GHG emissions rom the local electricity mix by increasingconservation and including more renewable energy sources will ensure alow-carbon electricity mix well into the uture. Note that even renewable

Buildings and Energy

3% Coal3% Wind

2% Natural gas1% Biomass

71%Hydro

13%Efficiency

7%Nuclear

Figure 4 - EWEB power source by type.From EWEB data.

BuildingandEnergy


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energy sources, such as wind and solar power, have some associatedGHGsprimarily rom construction o the required inrastructure; however,the amounts are minimal compared to burning ossil uels to generateelectricity.

The big opportunities to reduce GHG emissions are increasing thepercentage o energy that is renewable, retrotting existing buildings andequipment, and maximizing eciency in new buildings. The NorthwestPower and Conservation Council[22], EWEB[23] and the Energy Trust ofOregon[24] all call or increased conservation and use o renewable energysources correlating directly with the recommendations outlined in this plan.

How Will Rising Fuel Prices Impact Buildings and Energy?

In order to signicantly reduce ossil uel use and GHG emissions inthe buildings and energy sector, the community must make structuraland behavioral changes. The increase in uel costs associated with theprojected increase in demand and decreased supply o oil will haveconsiderable impacts on the ability o residents and business owners toheat and power their homes and businesses. Because they are less energyecient, many older homes and non-residential structures will becomeincreasingly expensive to heat, light, and operate. Rising uel prices willalso increase the cost o constructing new buildings and retrottingexisting ones, especially as the costs to extract and process raw materialsand transport goods increases. This increase is likely to encourage the

reuse o buildings and building materials.

How Can We Prepare the Buildings and Energy Sector orClimate Change?

While Eugene takes steps to reduce the communitys GHG emissions,we must also prepare or the projected impacts o climate change. Moreintense storms, reduced snowpack, lower summertime stream fow, andmore extreme summertime heat events, will have tangible impacts onbuildings and energy resources. Some o the changes can be mitigatedthrough the application o the ollowing adaptation strategies:

H Maximizing energy and water eciency in buildings.

H Designing buildings, and locating them in ways that take advantageo the sun and natural ventilation.

H Using landscaping to increase summer shading and minimize airconditioning use.

H Reducing the urban heat islandeect by planting trees andincorporating refective roos and light-colored pavement.

H Designing buildings to be more durable and to withstand moreintense storm events.

H Incorporatingstormwatermanagement strategies such as greenroos, bioswales and raingardens.

[22]The Northwest Power and ConservationCouncils 6th Plan calls or all new electricity load

growth in the region to be met through conserva-tion (over 5,800 average megawatts-aMW) orrenewables.

[23]EWEBs 2008-2027 Energy ConservationResource Strategy 2008-2027 identifes theacquisition o over 54 aMW in conservation mea-

sures over the next 20 years at a cost o less than$0.055/kWh.

[24]Energy Trust o Oregons current 5-yearStrategic Plan includes the goal o saving over22.5 million annual therms o natural gas throughefciency and conservation. Strategic Plan 2009-2014, Energy Trust o Oregon. 2009. http://energytrust.org/About/policy-and-reports/Plans.aspx


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Fortunately, many adaptation strategies will help the community reduceboth energy use and GHG emissions.

Eorts Underway

Several organizations are working to increase energy eciencyand reduce GHG emissions in Eugene. Local utilities have eectiveconservation programs that have had a very signicant impact on energyconsumption. For example, EWEB has oered energy conservationprograms or its customers or over 30 years or an annual energy savingsthat exceeds 500 million KWh per yearmore than the combined outputo the utilitys six hydroelectric projects.[25] Other eorts underway:

H

The City o Eugene oers assistance or energy-eciency throughhousing rehabilitation loans, business loans, and the Green BuildingIncentive Program.

H The Climate Master program created by the Climate LeadershipInitiative.

H Housing and Community Services Agency (HACSA) oers energyeciency incentives.

H The Energy Trust o Oregon oers incentives.

H BRING Recycling oers the ReThink Business program.

H The City o Eugene is implementing its Internal Climate ActionPlan to reduce GHG emissions rom City-owned buildings and City

operations.

[25]2008 Facts & Figures, Eugene Water andElectric Board. 2009.

eweB greenPower

In 1999 EWEB became the rst public

utility in Oregon to build and own a

wind arm. Today, Adams Elementary

School and Northwest Youth Corps

are both preparing to mount solar

panels on their roos. And i you

charge your electric car at Lane

Community College, that power too,

will be coming rom the sun.

Projects like these, unded by

EWEB Greenpower, help meet the

goal to increase the amount o

energy that comes rom renewable

sources. I Eugene is to experience a

dramatic shit away rom ossil uels,

investments will need to be madeat many levels and ortunately or

businesses and residents, supporting

this transition to renewable energy

has become very easy and aordable.

EWEB Greenpower is a voluntary

program or customers who can

pay as little as $1.50 per month

to support the program. These

Greenpower unds, collected rom

neighbors and local businesses, arethen combined to support renewable

energy projects right here in the

Northwest. To learn more, visit

www.eweb.org/greenpower.

BuildingandEnergy
http://www.eweb.org/greenpowerhttp://www.eweb.org/greenpower


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oBjeCTivesand aCTionsFor Buildingsand energy

Objective 1:Reduce total GHG emissions from existing buildings by 50 percentby 2030.

According to the Metro Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory, residential,commercial and industrial energy use in existing buildings accounts orabout 27 percent o all GHG emissions. Sixty-six percent o Eugeneshousing stock was built beore 1980 when eciency standards were muchlower, signiying a substantial opportunity to increase energy-eciencyin existing buildings. Their retrotting will be accelerated by expandingthe successul programs oered by EWEB, Energy Trust o Oregon, andother partners. Educational and outreach programs will continue to be animportant tool to reduce energy use by changing the behavior o buildingoccupants. For example, requiring that inormation about a buildingsenergy use is made available at the time o sale will empower builders,building owners, renters and buyers to make inormed choices and willincrease market demand or more energy-ecient buildings.

High-Priority Actions

1.1. Identiy the most cost-eective opportunities or increasingeciency in existing buildings. Support the existing eorts o localutilities to nd these opportunities.

1.2. Expand assistance and incentive programs or building retrotsthat increase energy eciency and reduce the carbon ootprint oexisting buildings.

1.2a) Work with Energy Trust o Oregon to ocus onimproving eciency in buildings that are heated with naturalgas.

1.2b) Target sectors with high-eciency potential includingrental buildings, multiamily housing, remodels, andcommercial tenant inll.

1.3. Establish a project und to complement existing loan andincentive programs by ocusing on long-term, low-interest

nancing mechanisms or residential and commercial energyeciency and/or renewable energy system installations.

1.4. Target occupant behaviorin order to reduce energy use in alltypes o buildings.

1.4a) Strategies include Advanced Meter Inrastructure(already planned or by EWEB), real-time energy consumptioninormation and community-based social marketing programs.

1.5. Adopt an energy perormance score program or similar toolto disclose total energy use in existing and new buildings or useby builders, realtors, owners, and renters.


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disTriCT energy

In a district energy system, steam,

or hot or chilled water is produced

in a central plant and distributed

to multiple buildings in a dened

area through underground pipes.

These systems eliminate the need or

heating or cooling equipment in each

building, reducing upront costs and

saving energy. Also, district energy

systems may oer more fexibility in

the type o uel used resulting in an

easier transition rom ossil uel. An

additional value o district systems is

the distribution o expenses across

all users or operations, maintenance

and/or retrotting, thereby reducing

costs to customers. District energysystems, especially those that use

renewable uel sources, can play an

important role in reducing the carbon

ootprint o Eugenes buildings.

Objective 2:Reduce GHG emissions from new construction by 50 percent by2030.

Advances in technology and emphasis on whole building design andintegrated design are enabling construction o buildings that canachieve ar greater energy eciency than previously imagined. Newconstruction also provides an opportunity to incorporate adaptationstrategies that allow buildings to work eectively in a changing climate.Facilitating construction o high-perorming new buildings can play asignicant role in reducing GHG emissions. The actions listed belowaim to improve eciency standards and increase assistance or energy

eciency and climate adaptation strategies in new buildings.High-Priority Actions

2.1. Lobby or adoption and actively participate in development obuilding code amendments that meet theArchitecture 2030standards or energy eciency (standards outlined in Appendix11).

2.2. Increase incentives or highly energy-ecient new buildingsaiming towardzero net energyand carbon neutralbuildings.

2.2a) Revise or expand incentives to encourage smallerhomes that require less energy to operate and ewer buildingmaterials to construct.

Objective 3:Expand Development of Renewable and District Energy Systems.

Renewable energy comes rom resources that can be naturallyreplenished such as wind, hydroelectric, and solarin contrast to ossiluels like coal and oil that cannot. Renewable energy sources alsoproduce much ewer GHG emissions than ossil uels. Increasing useo renewable energy will reduce our use o ossil uels, decrease GHGemissions, generate green jobs and increase local energy sel-suciency.

High Priority Actions:

3.1. Increase the use o on-site renewable energy systems, such assolar hot water,photovoltaic, and ground-source heat pumps,by removing nancial, inrastructural, regulatory, and perceptualbarriers.

3.1a) Invest in EWEBs downtown network to allow surplusenergy rom photovoltaics on downtown buildings to beintegrated into the electricity grid.

3.1b) Address the nancial barriers to onsite renewableenergy by expanding nancing options like long-term loansand property-assessed clean energy bonds.

BuildingandEnergy


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3.1c) Assess and reduce barriers to solar energy use andbalance priorities or solar access.

3.3. Develop at least one community scale renewable energypilot project by 2015.

3.4. Develop district energysystems in Eugene.

3.4a) Remove legal, technical, policy, governance, andnancial barriers to district energy systems.

3.2b) Complete the viability study or a district energy systemor the EWEB Riverront Master Plan.

3.2c) Develop at least one clean district energy, or shared

energy, system pilot project by 2015 by working with propertyowners and local utilities.

Objective 4:Increase the implementation o climate change preparationstrategies or the built environment.

While Eugene takes steps to lower greenhouse gas emissions, thecommunity must also prepare or the inevitable impacts o climatechange. Since buildings constructed today will likely be in use ordecades, state building codes must acilitate climate preparationstrategies. These strategies that improve energy eciency will also helpthe community adapt to the eects o climate change. Increasing eorts

to conserve water will also help reduce the amount o energy used totreat and distribute water, and will improve Eugenes ability to adapt tothe projected reductions in water supply.


4.1. Encourage the use o passive systems in buildings orheating, cooling, ventilation, water delivery, and incorporateclimate change preparation strategies into building design andconstruction.

4.4a) Lobby to improve state building codes.

4.4b) Develop incentives to encourage the use o passive

heating and cooling systems, lighting, ventilation,and other strategies that reduce energy demand andbetter adapt buildings or a changing climate.

4.2. Provide education, assistance and incentives to reducepotable water use in new and existing buildings andlandscaping.

4.2a) For example: low-fow xtures, appropriate(xeriscape) landscaping, use o greywaterand onsiterainwater catchment systems, behavior change, etc.

CiTyoF eugene green

Building Program

The goal o the Citys Waste

Prevention and Green Building

Program is to make sustainable

waste prevention and green building

practices the norm in Eugene,through the guide2Green Program.

Priority goals or the program are

to reduce GHG emissions, promote

sustainable economic development

and support local sel-suciency

activities. To achieve these goals,

the Program provides technical

assistance, education and training,

and grants and incentives to the

Eugene community. In September

2009, the City implemented a Green

Building Incentive Program. To be

eligible, projects must seek green

building certication through either

Earth Advantage or Leadership in

Energy and Environmental Design

(LEED) programs. Incentives include

priority plan review and inspections,

same-day permits, reduced systems

development charges, technical

assistance, and recognition and

publicity benets. Residential projects

that meet high standards or energy

eciency and waste reduction are

also eligible or rebates on permit

ees, which are partially unded by the

American Recovery and Reinvestment

Act through the Energy Eciency and

Conservation Block Grant Program.


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What is the Food and Agriculture Action Area?In this Plan, the ood and agriculture sector includes everythingrelated to ood production and delivery, rom the agricultural eldto grocery store shelves. This includes the systems, inrastructureand activities which produce and process ood, the systems usedto transport and distribute ood, and the systems that dispose owaste rom ood production, processing and consumption.

What Part o Eugenes GHG Footprint Comes From Foodand Agriculture?

Eugenes 2007 greenhouse gas inventory does not specically

identiy greenhouse gas associated with ood productionand distribution. However, Metros regional greenhouse gasinventory[26] indicates that ood provision accounts or roughly 14percent o total greenhouse gas emissions or the Portland Metro

area (see Figure 5) and this plan will assume that the ndings or Eugenewould be similar. This gure does not include GHG emissions associatedwith transportation o ood or disposal o solid waste generated by oodproduction.

How Do Food and Agriculture Systems Contribute to GHGEmissions?

A popular misconception is that transportation is the largest source oGHGs associated with our ood supply. In act, GHG emissions associatedwith our ood come primarily rom the ood production phase[27]aresult o energy use by arming and processing equipment, manuactureo ertilizers and other agricultural chemicals, production o animal eed,provision o irrigation water, etc. In addition, a very signicant amount oGHGs, largely in the orm o methane, are generated by livestock animalsand management o their wastes.

While there is growing national interest in buying locally-producedoods and there are many good reasons to support local growers, whenit comes to reducing GHG emissions associated with ood, the mosteective approach is to reduce the consumption o carbon-intensiveoods such as dairy products and red meat. It turns out that the methodsused to grow our ood, and the amount o meat and dairy products thatwe eat, have a much more signicant impact on total GHG emissionsthan do typical transportation methods or distances.

[26]Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory; TheCarbon Footprint o Residents and BusinessesInside the Portland Metropolitan Region, MetroRegional Government, April 2010. See Appendix7 o this document.

[27]Food Miles and the Relative Climate Impacto Food Choices in the United States, Weber andMatthews. 2008.

Figure 5: Greenhouse gas emissions bysystem. Source: Metro Regional GHGInventory

25%Goods

14%Food

1.1%Infrastructure

7.3%Long-distance

freight1.3%Solid waste

25%Transportation

27%Energy

Food and Agriculture

FoodandAgriculture


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How Will Rising Fossil Fuel Prices Impact Food and AgricultureSystems?

Fossil uels are used extensively in most ood and agriculture systemsor powering agricultural, processing and rerigeration machinery;manuacturing ertilizers, pesticides, and other agricultural chemicals;transporting and distributing products; and producing agriculturalequipment and materials. Increasing costs or uel, including diesel, gasand natural gas, will impact ood and agricultural systems at all o thesepoints and are expected to have a signicant impact on the price o ood.

How Can We Prepare Our Food and Agriculture Systems or

Climate Change?While steps must be taken to reduce the carbon ootprint o oodand agriculture systems, the systems must also be prepared or theprojected impacts o climate change. Preparing or Climate Changein the Upper Willamette River Basin o Western Oregon,[28] identiesseveral likely climatic changes expected in the Eugene area. The area willlikely experience warmer, wetter winters and warmer, drier summers,actors that will undoubtedly aect the agricultural productivity o thevalley. Here are a ew adaptive strategies that will enable the ood andagriculture systems to maintain productivity in the ace o climate change:

H Growing a wider diversity o ood crops.

H Growing ood with ewer ossil uel inputs.H Developing drought-tolerant ood crops or this region.

H Reducing the agricultural consumption o reshwater, and usinggreywater where appropriate.

Eorts Currently Underway

Many organizations and members o the Eugene community are workingto improve access to locally-grown oods and to raise awareness aboutthe importance o ood security or the community. Willamette Food andFarm Coalition, the Farm to School program, Lane Food Policy Council,Food or Lane County, the Extension Service, neighborhood sustainability

and arming groups, and many others are working to strengthensupplies, improve storage capacity, encourage local agriculture, acilitatehome gardening and otherwise improve resiliency o the local oodsystems.



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oBjeCTivesand aCTionsFor Foodand agriCulTure:Objective 5:Reduce consumption o carbon-intensive oods.

Growing evidence shows that the kind o ood we eat makes a signicantdierence in the associated GHG emissions. The acts and choices are notalways intuitive and it is important that education and outreach programsare developed to inorm the community about the importance o oodchoice as a strategy to reduce GHG emissions.


5.1. Begin a community campaign to educate the public about oodchoice as part o a climate-riendly liestyle.

5.1a) Specically encourage reduced consumption o redmeat and dairy products and other carbon-intensive oods.

5.2. Implement a Buy climate-riendly rst ood purchasing policyor public institutions including city and county governments,schools, and hospitals.

Objective 6:Reduce GHG emissions associated with agriculture and ood waste.

While most agricultural production occurs outside Eugenes urban areas,

local governments and citizens can encourage growers and state leadersto reduce the GHGs associated with agriculture. A waste-digestingsystem or the community would provide methane rom decomposingood waste or use as a locally-generated uel source.


6.1. Transition to agricultural methods that reduce GHGs. Supporteorts o Oregon Department o Agriculture, Oregon Tilth,Oregon State University, Willamette Farm and Food Coalition, andother partners.

6.2. Conduct a pilot project at the River Avenue WastewaterTreatment Plant to determine the systems ability or co-digestion

o ood waste and biosolids as detailed in the Consumption andWaste section.

FoodandAgriculture


25/5325

Objective 7:Increase ood security by preserving the productive capacity o thelocal and regional foodsheds.

In order to increase the resilience o Eugenes ood supply, local andregional agriculture systems must maintain the capacity to grow asignicant percentage o the communitys ood.


7.1. Strengthen land use regulations which protect arm lands,particularly those on high-value agricultural soils.

7.1.a) Strengthen City and County land use protections toprevent urban growth onto prime armlands.

7.2. Strengthen current armland protections at state levels.

7.2.a) Lobby state agencies to strengthen protections orhigh-value armlands.

Objective 8:Prepare our ood systems or the uncertainties created by climatechange and rising energy prices.

Eugene can take action now to ensure that the communitys oodsupply is resilient to the system-destabilizing eects o climate change.In addition, by reducing the energy inputs required by the ood supplysystem, the community can reduce impacts that increasing energy costs

will have on the cost o ood.


8.1. Implement the ollowing recommendations rom Eugenes FoodSecurity Scoping and Resource Plan.[29]

8.1.a) Identiy a City o Eugene liaison or ood-system relatedprogramming.

8.1.b) Develop a comprehensive Community Food SecurityAssessment and implement changes to improve ood security.

8.2. Develop an updated regional emergency ood distribution planthat accounts or climate- and energy-based disruptions. The

level o need or such a plan will be made clear by conductinga vulnerabilityassessment as outlined in the Health and SocialServices section.

8.3. Increase the diversity and drought resistance o ood cropsgrown in the upper Willamette Valley.

8.3a) Support eorts o ood-advocacy organizations, oodgrowers, and state agencies to develop appropriate crops.

8.3b) Prioritize development o vegetable protein crops suchas beans and grains that are suited to the Willamette Valley.

8.4. Remove barriers to using greywater in agriculture. Work withstate lawmakers to nd solutions or greywater re-use.

[29]City o Eugene Food Security Scoping andResource Plan. City o Eugene Planning andDevelopment Department, April, 2010.


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Objective 9:Increase availability o home-grown and locally-sourced ood in Eugene

Many Eugene community members are interested in growing their ownood to reduce the energy intensityo their ood, gain new skills, enjoythe recreational benets o growing ood, and reduce the cost o theirhouseholds ood. Food gardening can also be an important community-building activity, strengthening neighborhoods and social groups. Theincreased social cohesion it encourages can improve the communitysresilience in times o change and challenge. Home-grown and locally-grown ood can provide security and resilience during short- and longer-term emergencies by reducing reliance on ood imported rom longdistances.


9.1. Expand community gardens on public and private landsincluding school campuses, City lands, and church properties.

9.1a) Conduct an assessment o opportunities or communitygarden locations within the city.

9.2. Encourage planting o non-invasive ood-bearing trees andshrubs on public and private lands. Support urban tree oodprograms o such advocates as Tree by Tree, and the Eugene TreeFoundation.

9.3. Reevaluate limitations on numbers and types o animalspermitted under Eugenes code to allow, where appropriate, anincrease in the number and variety o ood-producing animalsthat can be kept by urban residents.

FoodandAgriculture

Common ground garden

The rst crop o onions and garlic were

planted in October; and by mid March,

leay greens were planted in protected

cloches, ollowed by kale, chard, lettuce,

caulifower, broccoli, kohlrabi, snap

peas and snow peas. In June, tomatoes,

peppers, summer squash, cucumbers,

herbs, bush and pole beans, beets,

ground cherries, and leeks were all

put into the ground. Over the course

o a year, this group o neighborhood

gardeners hopes to produce 1600

pounds o ood.

Nearby residents in the Friendly

Neighborhood, had been thinking about

starting a garden on the unimprovedcity street or years, and in September

2009, a small group ormed around the

vision o a shared, open, neighborhood

garden. During a neighborhood meeting,

the group decided how to organize the

garden, name the garden, and how to

orm work parties to build beds, plant

seeds and starts, and make use o ree

city leaves and ree arborist wood chips.

The Common Ground Garden exempliescommunity based action and serves as a

model or others across the community.

In addition to growing bountiul ruits

and vegetables, this garden grows social

capital, neighborhood empowerment,

better nutrition, neighborhood resilience,

and a eeling o community well being

and belonging.

Interested in trying this out in your

neighborhood? In early 2011, look or

the Citys Urban Gardening Manual, a

resource guide that shares best practices

or how to start a neighborhood garden,

access nancial and organic resources,

and clear guidance on using public lands.

For more inormation, contact City o

Eugene Compost and Urban Ag Specialist

Anne Donahue at 541-682-5542.


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land useand TransPorTaTion

What is the Land Use and Transportation Action Area?

This section o the Community Climate and Energy Action Plan considershow the community is spatially organized, and how that organizationaects transportation needs. The transportation systems in this sectionare those that move people and local reight: passenger vehicles, bicycles,mass transit systems, air transport and local reight distribution systems,and the roads and other inrastructure required or these systems.Transportation o goods is discussed in Chapter 4: Consumption andWaste section.

Although a particular land use may directly impact consumption oossil uels and emission o greenhouse gases, in most cases, the moreimportant impacts o land uses are on the demand or transportationsystems. Land use directly impacts transportation system needsand transportation systems contribute signicantly to ossil uelconsumption and GHG emissions. As the two are so connected,this plan will consider them together and outline action items oreach that will aect the other.

What Part o Eugenes GHG Footprint Comes From LandUse and Transportation?

According to the analysis completed or the Metro Regional

Greenhouse Gas Inventory,[30] about 25 percent o the Portlandareas greenhouse gas emissions are associated with localtransportation systems. This plan will assume that GHG impactsor Eugene are similar. The majority o emissions come romon-road commercial vehicles, private cars and air travel, withrail, marine and mass transit contributing smaller amounts ogreenhouse gases (see Figure 6).

Figure 6: Greenhouse gas emissions by system.Source: Metro Regional GHG Inventory

[30]Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory; TheCarbon Footprint o Residents and BusinessesInside the Portland Metropolitan Region, MetroRegional Government, April 2010.

48%Materials(goods and

food)

27%Energy

14%Local passenger

transport

10%Other passenger

transport< 0.01%Transit

1%Local freight

Land Use and Transportation


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How Do Land Use and Transportation Contribute to GreenhouseGas Emissions?

Land use decisions infuence where people live and do business, andwhere the schools, services and industry are located. Distances andavailable transportation modes between home, stores, work and schoolhave a signicant impact on transportation needs and are a major drivero a communitys greenhouse gas outputs.

Metros study ound that local passenger transportation accounts or14 percent o greenhouse gas emissions in the region. Other passengertransport, primarily long distance ground transportation and air travel,accounts or 10 percent,and mass transit or less than 0.01 percent,

o total regional GHG emissions. As stated above, emissions rom longdistance reight are associated with transporting goods rather thanpeople, and their scope, impacts, and reduction strategies are discussedin Chapter 5: Consumption and Waste.

How Will Rising Fuel Prices Impact Land Use andTransportation?

Increases in uel prices will discourage the use o less uel-ecienttransportation modes such as the single-occupancy vehicle. As operatinga private vehicle becomes more expensive, Eugene will likely see anincrease in demand or mass transit and other transportation options,

and or housing nearer to employment, which could lead to denser landuse patterns.

How Can Eugene Prepare Land Use and Transportation Systemsor Rising Fuel Prices?

Fuel prices and demand or transportation alternatives can rise morequickly, as in 2008, than transportation systems can adapt. I investmentsare made in alternatives to the single-occupant vehicle, the communitywill be better prepared or increases in the price o uel and subsequentshits in transportation demand. With alternatives in place, such asimproved mass transit, bicycling, and electric vehicle inrastructure, the

community can shit more easily away rom expensive transportation.Alternative transportation will be particularly important or communitymembers who cannot aord to purchase newer, more uel-ecient orelectric-powered automobiles.

Another proactive measure that will reduce transportation-related GHGemissions is making uel-wise land use decisions that reduce dependenceon single-occupant vehicles, such as acilitating inll development anddeveloping walkable neighborhoods.

LandUseandTransportation


29/5329

Preparing Eugenes Land Use and Transportation Systems orClimate Change.

A recent study o potential climate change scenarios or the Eugenearea concluded that the community may experience more severe stormevents and resultant fooding, as well as an increase in orest res. [31] Thisanalysis suggests that transportation systems will be impacted, especiallyroads and railroads, and those along rivers and streams, or on unstableslopes, will be especially vulnerable. Increased storms and wildre smokemay also impact air travel and transport o goods. In order to minimizethe impacts to the transportation system, planning and design eortsmust consider these scenarios.

In addition to impacts on the transportation system, the same studysuggests that the Eugene area could experience an infux o climatereugees, people moving away rom areas that have become less livabledue to a rise in sea level, severe storms, or prolonged drought. Land useand transportation planning processes must consider possible impacts onthe community.

Eorts Underway

A number o government agencies, business, and non-protorganizations are working to reduce the communitys dependencyon ossil uels or transportation. For years Eugene has developed

and implemented land use regulations, such as the state requiredUrban Growth Boundary, that acilitate compact growth and reducetransportation demand. The community has nationally-recognized masstransit, and bicycle inrastructure systems that decrease dependence onsingle-occupant vehicles. Likewise, alternate modes advocacy, undertakenby City sta along with partners such as point2point solutions, LaneCoalition or Healthy Active Youth, Bike Lane Coalition, Greater EugeneArea Riders, and many others, continues to press or more non-vehicletransportation inrastructure. However, the community must do evenmore to meet the Eugene City Councils goal o reducing ossil uel use50 percent by 2030. Below is a list o objectives and related action itemsthat will help Eugene reach this goal.



30/5330

oBjeCTivesand aCTionsFor land useand TransPorTaTion:

Objective 10:Create 20-minute neighborhoods, where 90 percent o Eugeneresidents can saely walk or bicycle to meet most basic, daily,non-work needs, and have sae pedestrian and bicycle routes thatconnect to mass transit.

Twenty-minute neighborhoods are those in which a signicant numbero regular trips can be made in 20 minutes without using a personalautomobile. A resident might walk to the grocery store or school and meetmany o their recreational and social needs without using a car. Creatingthese neighborhoods is an important step toward meeting our greenhousegas and ossil uel reduction goals. This objective cannot be achievedby local government alone; success will depend on partnerships withneighborhoods, businesses, Lane Transit District, school districts, and others.

Implementing the 20-minute neighborhoods action will ultimatelyincrease the mix o land uses (residential next to commercial, nearschools, near parks) in the urban area, and increase connectivity oalternative transportation systems such as bike paths, pedestrian paths,and the bus system. Recent research suggests that accessibility odestinations is strongly associated with vehicle miles traveled (VMT),and walking is most strongly related to measures o land use diversity,intersection density, and the number o destinations within walkingdistance.[32] Work is underway at the state and regional levels to createthe models that can predict how much greenhouse gas reductions canreally be achieved by making these changes. In the absence o thosetools, there is broad agreement that these changes can and will have asignicant and lasting reduction in the use o gasoline and diesel uel inour urban areas.


10.1. Make the creation o 20-minute neighborhoods a corecomponent o the Eugene Plan and the Eugene Bicycle andPedestrian Master Plan.

10. 2. By 2013, complete and implement a 20-minute

neighborhoods plan:10.2a) Identiy unding or necessary planning eort.

10.2b) Identiy key accessibility components or 20-minuteneighborhoods: e.g., schools, parks, grocery store, retailservices, etc.

10.2c) Conduct a network gap analysis to determine needs.

10.2d) Identiy steps to improve the number and distributiono 20-minute neighborhoods.

10.2e) Coordinate with opportunity siting and infllcompatibility standards planning.

[32]Travel and the Built Environment: A Meta-Analysis, Ewing et. al. 2010.


Envision EugEnE in the year

2030. Envision your neighborhood,

home, job, school, and your avorite

parks and shops and how you will

get there. In the spring o 2010,

Eugenes Planning Division started

a community conversation, called

Envision Eugene, to think abouthow Eugene will grow and change

over the next 20 years. The plan will

help answer the questions o how

and where we will accommodate a

population o nearly 200,000 people;

and wheres the balance between

increasing density and preserving

whats important to us about our

neighborhoods, city, and area?

Envision Eugene has been collectingcommunity input through workshops,

websites, and surveys to help inorm

the creation o our community plan.

People are being asked to think about

ways to grow inside the existing

urban growth boundary (UGB), and

i necessary, where and how might

the boundary be expanded. Concepts

rom the Climate and Energy Action

Plan like 20 minute neighborhoods,increasing reliance on buses, bikes

and walking, and special setbacks or

Bus Rapid Transit, are key components

o the Envision Eugene discussion.

In the all o 2010, Envision Eugene

will ask community members to help

select a preerred growth scenario

that meets the citys land needs

and promotes the most sustainable,

livable, prosperous city possible. To

learn more about Envision Eugene

and how you can be involved, visit

our website at:

www.EnvisionEugene.org.


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Objective 11:Increase density around the urban core and along high-capacitytransit corridors:

Growing evidence indicates that increasing the density o developmentaround the urban center and transit corridors is an eective strategyor reducing ossil uel use and greenhouse gas emissions. This typeo development increases access to services, increases bikeability andwalkability, reduces single occupant auto trips, and makes transit moreeective.[33],[34],[35] In addition to reducing ossil uel use by curbing single-occupant vehicle trips, preventing sprawling land use appears to helpcommunities adapt to climate change by reducing the number o extreme

heat events.

[36]


11.1. Zone uture commercial and high-density residential usesin and around the urban core, and along EmX and other high-capacity transit corridors to accommodate urban growth.

11.1a) Coordinate with opportunity siting and inllcompatibility standards planning eorts.

Objective 12:Include the potential or climate reugees when conducting landuse planning.

The negative impacts o climate change in the Pacic Northwest maybe low relative to impacts in other regions o the US and globally. Thiscould bring about rapid movements o climate reugeespeople leavingunlivable locations seeking less-impacted areas. In order to prepare orthese possible impacts, city and community planning activities must beincreasingly fexible and broad-thinking.[37]


12.1. Closely monitor the communitys population growth rate togauge whether population projections are accurate.

12.1a) Set population thresholds that will trigger review o

community growth plans; or example, i growth rates aresignicantly dierent than projections or several years in arow.

12.1b) I trends show a signicantly higher rate o populationincrease than was assumed in the planning process, Eugeneshould update its planning model sooner than legallyrequired.

[33]Cost-Eective GHG Reductions through SmartGrowth & Improved Transportation Choices: Aneconomic case or investment o cap-and-trade

revenues, Center or Clean Air Policy, July 2009.[34]Moving Cooler: An analysis o transportation

strategies or reducing greenhouse gas emis-sions, Urban Land Institute, 2009.

[35]Travel and the Built Environment: A Meta-Analysis, Ewing et. al. 2010.

[36]Urban Form and Extreme Heat Events: AreSprawling Cities more Vulnerable to ClimateChange than Compact Cities? Stone, et. al., 2010.

[37]The City o Eugene is currently undergoing aland use planning process, Envision Eugene, to becompleted in early 2011, that will determine howthe next 20 years o population growth will beaccommodated.


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Objective 13:Continue to expand and improve Eugenes bicycle and pedestrianinrastructure and connectivity to increase the percentage o tripsmade by bike and on oot.

In order to increase the number o trips taken by bike or on oot, gapsin bicycle and pedestrian transportation systems must be identied andnecessary improvements must be made. In May 2010, the City o Eugenewill begin work on a Eugene Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan. Thisproject will identiy gaps in the bike and pedestrian networks and enablethe community to ocus resources or inrastructure where most needed.A systematic approach to improving bike and pedestrian transportation

networks, will advance Eugene toward meeting community ossil ueland greenhouse gas reduction targets.


13.1. Create a pedestrian and bicycle master plan that willaccomplish the ollowing:

13.1a) Identiy mobility gaps in the bicycle and pedestriantransportation system.

13.1b) Recommend improvements to increase saety (real andperceived), comort, speed, and convenience or users o allages and skill levels.

13.1c) Create a plan or implementing the necessary systemimprovements.

13.1d) Identiy unding sources or implementation.

13.2. Increase the mileage and connectivity o bicycle boulevardsand shared-use paths to encourage biking by cyclists o variousskill levels.

13.3. Create a Complete Streets policy that requires allsubsequent transportation and rehabilitation projects toincorporate inrastructure or bicycles, pedestrians, and masstransit service.



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Objective 14:Increase the supply o integrated, convenient, ecient, and cost-eective public transit:

Mass transit is one o the more eective strategies to reducetransportation reliance on single-occupant vehicles. Not only doesincreased use o transit reduce GHGs,[38] but it can provide a lower-cost,accessible transportation alternative.


14.1. Diversiy unding sources or Lane Transit District (LTD) toincrease the long-term reliability o mass transit service whilemaintaining cost eective and uel ecient transit service.

14.2. Align City o Eugene Transportation System Plan and LTDslong-range transit plan to integrate bus routes into the broaderalternative transportation system.

14.2a) Partner with LTD to help inorm service changes andimprovements.

14.2b) Create specialsetbacks along uture Bus RapidTransit (BRT) or other mass transit corridors to accommodateuture right-o-way expansion.

14.2c) Determine the role o mass transit in accomplishinggreenhouse gas emission reduction goals by working with LTDin developing the Long Range Transit Plan.

14.3. Invest in transit inrastructure that meets uture access andmobility needs while consuming less ossil uel.

14.3a) Maximize electrication o the regional mass transitsystems.

14.3b) Increase use o hybrid vehicles including buses andother heavy vehicles.

[38]Moving Cooler: An Analysis o TransportationStrategies or Reducing GHGs, The Urban LandInstitute, 2009.

healTh imPaCTsoF

ClimaTe aCTion

Many o the actions contained in

this plan will have positive impacts

that go beyond saving energy and

ossil uel. With help rom Upstream

Public Health, a non-prot healthadvocacy organization, an eort was

made to assess some o the possible

health-related impactsand the

product is the rst ever Health Impact

Assessment (HIA) conducted on a

local climate action plan.

Similar to environmental impact

assessments that require

ederal agencies to consider the

environmental impact o theirproposed actions, HIAs are used

to evaluate the potential health

eects o a project or policy beore

it is implemented. The assessments

are voluntary and typically ocus on

health outcomes such as obesity,

physical inactivity, asthma, injuries,

and social equity.

The HIA ound that many o the

transportation-related objectives in

the Plan are likely to positively aect

the publics health. Several policies

aimed at reducing greenhouse gas

emissions also result in increased

physical activity, better air quality,

and ewer vehicle crashes. These

changes lead to reduced rates o

chronic disease and mortality, reduced

respiratory illness, and ewer injuries

and atalities rom vehicle collisions.The ull report is available as appendix

5 o this report and more inormation

is available online at:

www.upstreampublichealth.org.


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Objective 17:Increase the use o low-carbonvehicles and uels to improveoverall uel-eciency and reducevulnerability to fuctuating oilprices.

In order to meet the stated ossiluel reduction target (reduced 50percent by 2030), some o the current automobile transportation must betransitioned rom ossil uels to electricity. This will require considerablenew inrastucture, some o which is now in the planning phase.

According to the Oregon Department o Transportation, Reducingon-road vehicle GHG emissions by 75 percent rom 1990 levels wouldbe equivalent to reducing Oregonians per capita annual consumptiono petroleum uels rom 567 gallons to 68 gallons. This will not beachievable without transormative changes in vehicle feets and uels suchas electrication o the light vehicle feet.[40]


17.1. Accelerate the transition to plug-in hybrids and electricvehicles. Partner with Lane County, EWEB, auto retailers, electricalcontractors, UO, LCC, and others.

17.1a) Support the installation o a network o electric car

charging stations.17.1b) Require installation o electric car charging stations innew multiamily housing.

17.1c) Use guidance provided by the University o OregonElectric Vehicle strategy.

17.2. Conduct research to understand what role biouels can play indecreasing Eugenes vulnerability to energy markets. Work withpartners at LTD, the Oregon Department o Energy, etc.

17.2a) Complete research by 2013 so that outcomes caninorm the next CEAP.

[40]Background Report:The Status o OregonGreenhouse Gas Emissions and Analysis, OregonDepartment o Transportation, October 2009.


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What is the Consumption and Waste Action Area?

For the purposes o this plan, consumption and waste includes everythingin the lifecycle o consumer goods; the embodied energy in everythingrom chairs to cars, rom building materials to strollers. The liecycle o thesegoods begins with mining or extraction o raw materials, and includes theirmanuacturing, packaging, distribution, use and nally, their disposal.

What Part o Eugenes GHG Footprint Comes rom Consumptionand Waste?

Until very recently, many inventories o GHG emissions, including theCity o Eugenes, ocused on the direct emissions that come rom the useo ossil uels. Using this methodology, these analyses have consistentlyshown that transportation and energy systems are the major contributorsto GHG emissions; however, a number o recent consumption-basedanalyses measure what the ossil uels are ultimately used or. Thisnew evaluation method is the basis o leading research on US GHGemissions and includes an inventory completed in the all o 2009 by theEnvironmental Protection Agency (EPA).[41] Consumption or systems-based inventories show roughly 42 percent o US emissions comerom the provision o ood and goodsroughly equaling the combinedemissions rom the transportation and energy systems.

The GHG inventory recently completed by Metro[42] also consideredliecycle emissions and developed estimates or the metropolitan Portlandregions total GHG emissions using regionally adjusted consumption

and transportation data. Metros report estimates that the provision ogoods (excluding ood) accounts or 25 percent o GHG emissions in theregion. However, when the emissions rom provision o ood and solidwaste disposal are included, the total GHG emissions comprise roughly40 percent o the regions total emissions (see Figure 7). According to theinventory, consumption and waste in the Portland Metro region have agreater share o total emissions than either transportation or energy usein buildings. For the purposes o this Action Plan, we will assume that theEugene areas prole is within the bounds o the two studies and thatconsumption and waste comprises roughly 40 - 42 percent o the totalGHG emission prole.

How Do Consumption and Waste Contribute to Greenhouse GasEmissions?

Conventional sector prole GHG inventories consider GHG emissionsrom solid waste management. This includes carbon dioxide romcollection, transportation and processing o waste with the majority oemissions coming rom the decomposition process in landlls wheremethane is released. Systems GHG inventories, such as that created byMetro, consider resource extraction activities such as mining and logging;transporting and processing o raw materials; and manuacturing, andpackaging and distribution o consumer goods, which all consume largeamounts o coal, oil, and natural gas.

[41]Opportunities to Reduce GreenhouseGas Emissions through Materials and LandManagement Practices. US EPA, September2009.

[42]Regional Greenhouse Gas Inventory; TheCarbon Footprint o Residents and BusinessesInside the Portland Metropolitan Region, MetroRegional Government, April 2010.

Consumption and Waste

Figure 7: Greenhouse gas sources by system.Source: Metro Regional GHG Inventory

25%Goods

14%Food

1.1%Infrastructure

7.3%Long-distance

freight1.3%Solid waste

25%Transportation

27%Energy

ConsumptionandWaste


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How Will Rising Fossil Fuel Prices Impact Consumption and

Waste Systems?

Due to the large amounts o coal, oil, and natural gas used duringproduction and distribution o goods and ood, a small increase in ossiluel prices will likely be magnied in the cost o goods. As prices oproducts increase (and incomes stay fat), more people may chose torepair and reuse consumer goods, expanding the usable lie o productsresulting in a decrease in new consumer purchases. Rising ood costswill mean that ood will likely become a larger portion o a householdsbudget and may shit more amilies into a position o ood insecurity.This decrease in purchasing o consumer goods and ood will likely createdownward pressure on the local, regional and national economy.

How Can We Prepare Consumption and Waste Systems orClimate Change?

While climate change will likely have some impact on consumption andwaste systems, they are not expected to be as signicant as the impactorecasted or other systems and sectors. Thereore, this plan does notocus on adaptation or preparation strategies or consumption and wastesystems.

Eorts Currently Underway

Eugene has a strong history o implementing reduce, reuse, and recycle

programs. Currently, over 95 percent o Eugene households participatein recycling services and roughly 53 percent o the waste produced in thearea is diverted rom the landll. In 1994, the City o Eugene began usinga rate structure or home solid waste collection that charges homeownersmore money i they throw away a larger volume o waste. This has had theeect o reducing the volume o waste going to the landll. The majorityo solid waste rom Eugene is taken to Lane Countys Short MountainLandll, where an estimated 75 percent o the methane released romdecomposing waste is captured and used to generate electricity.

In addition, the community supports and benets rom local recycling,reuse, and composting businesses ranging rom industrial recycling at

Schnitzer Steel to home scale re-use at St. Vincent de Paul and GoodwillIndustries. BRING Recycling has been a leader in the community or thereuse o building materials or over 30 years and NextStep Recycling hasprovided electronics reuse and recycling or over 10 years. Organizationssuch as MECCA (Materials Exchange Center or Community Arts) andthe Resurrected Reuse Action Team also help community membersnd creative new ways to re-use materials. Large-scale commercialcomposting acilities operated by Lane Forest Products and RexiusSustainable Solutions help keep organic wastes out o the local landll.All o these local businesses create jobs, reduce waste, and severalprovide service and education to disadvantaged populations, urtherbuilding the capacity o our community.


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oBjeCTivesand aCTionsFor ConsumPTionand wasTe:

Objective 18:Reduce greenhouse gas emissions by addressing purchasinghabits.

The actions in this objective are aimed at working with communitypartners to change consumer behavior to reduce the impact that ourpurchasing habits have in creating greenhouse gases. Consumption is

not only being addressed at the grassroots and household levels, butthrough international business organizations such as the World BusinessCouncil or Sustainable Development.[43] Major corporations are alsobeginning to recognize the need to decrease emissions related to productdevelopment.


18.1. Educate businesses and residents about the important roleo consumption in creating greenhouse gas emissions. Focus onencouraging the purchase o durable, repairable and reusablegoods; reducing the amount o materials that go to waste(including ood); reducing consumption o carbon-intensive

consumer goods and services.

18.2. Lobby at the state level or better product labeling thatincludes inormation about greenhouse gas emissions associatedwith products.

18.3. Provide inormation or the public on when to replace highenergy-use appliances such as rerigerators, dishwashers, andwater heaters. Where this inormation is already available,increase its distribution and accessibility.

18.4. Actively support new state and nationalproduct stewardshiplegislation that requires producers to be involved in end-o-product-lie management, either through product design changes

(e.g. compostable snack bags), investing in take back programs(e.g. Oregon E-cycles), or placing a ee on the sale o products tosupport diversion (e.g. Oregon Bottle Bill).

[43]Sustainable Consumption Facts and Trends:From a Business Perspective, The World BusinessCouncil or Sustainable Development, 2009.

ConsumptionandWaste


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22.2. Encourage other local public agencies to prioritize: Reuse oproducts and materials, purchasing durable goods, and avoidingdisposable goods whenever possible.

22.3. Reduce public agency purchase o greenhouse gas-intensivegoods by 2014.

22.3a) Identiy City-purchased goods (either directly orthrough contracts) with the highest associated lie cyclegreenhouse gas emissions by 2012.

22.3b) Create a plan to reduce purchase o the 5 goods thathave both the most greenhouse gas intensive lie cycles, andthe highest rates o purchase.

22.3c) Annually report the quantity o these goods beingpurchased.

22.4. Implement steps outlined in the City waste reduction plan toreduce waste at City buildings, events, and ongoing operations.

22.4a) Continue to monitor the waste st

eugene community climate and energy action plan

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