2023-10-05 Climate Protection Committee MinutesCity of Edmonds - Mayors Climate Protection Committee ("CPC")
October 5, 2023
Mission of the CPC is to (1) Encourage citizens to be a part of the solution, (2)
Encourage City staff and citizens to conserve current resources, (3) Work with the City
Council to implement ideas, and (4) Effectively address the future impacts of climate
change.
In Attendance:
On -Site (Brackett Meeting Room):
Committee Members: Cynthia Pruitt (Chair), Angela Winzen (Vice Chair), Pam
Tauer (Minutes)
City Staff: Tristan Sewell, Sarah Brinkley, Thom Sullivan
Council Rep: Susan Paine
Zoom:
Committee Members: Steven Cristol
Citizen: Georgina Armstrong
1. Call to Order, Review of Agenda, & Introductions
a. The meeting was called to order at 11:07 am.
2. September Meeting Minutes
a. September meeting minutes were approved without changes.
3. Public Comment and CAB Update
a. Angela Winzen provided an update of the Climate 50 meeting held on Wednesday,
October 4th. Mayor Nelson, Director McLaughlin, Tristan Sewell, and Susan Paine
joined. At this meeting, the Climate Advisory Board (CAB) shared their mission
statement, guiding principles, and their proposal for prioritization of CAP
implementation action items. Key to the establishment of the CAB is that 98% of
Green House Gases (GHG) comes from residential and commercial; only 2% are
municipal. Citizens and the community need more education and engagement.
b. Georgina Armstrong provided a background of the Climate Advisory Board (CAB).
The CAB was started to ensure a CAP implementation plan is adopted, prioritized,
and executed. The CAB is lobbying the city to hire a Climate Action Manager. The
CAB has been working -on action items stemming from the Climate Action Plan
implementation plan.
c. Georgina Armstrong is also spearheading the Edmonds Condo Coalition (ECC) to
bring together our large community of condo dwellers. One of the potential topics
for discussion in the inaugural meeting is climate adaptation. The first meeting will
be held next week; Pam Tauer will be attending.
d. Hank asked about citizen oversight of the CAP execution. Georgina confirmed the
CAB will be the liaison between city and environmental groups overseeing on -going
CAP implementation tasks. Georgina responded that the CAB is an informal group
unlike the CPC.
e. Tristan shared that there are items the city will have a hard time succeeding without
community support. The CAB and citizen groups are essential to the success of the
CAP.
f. The Climate 50 meeting meets quarterly and everyone on the CPC is invited.
4. Council Update
a. Susan Paine spoke about the mayor's proposed budget and where it is available to
review. The budget process is to conclude by November 215Y. Susan
recommends actions to support the budget include sending an email to the City
Council or speaking at a Council meeting. She also shared that those that speak
during the Council audience comments stay for the council agenda item that is of
interest. If unable to attend, please submit an email.
5. Public Safety Building Solar Project
a. Thom Sullivan is the Facilities Manager for the City and has come to the CPC meeting
to provide an update on the Public Safety Building Solar Project
b. The project, Energy Retrofits for Solar Panels for the Public Safety Building, received a
grant from the Department of Commerce to add solar panels to offset electricity
costs. A factor in the grant award was the visibility of the public safety building,
especially from Civic Field, thus promoting green energy.
c. The grant stipulates that 1000KW is the maximum power allowed. There will be no
capacity to store excess or back feed the system. (The PUD is not allowing feeding
power back into their system.)
d. The total cost of the project is $685K. Grants, rebates, IRA, and tax credits offset the
cost by 50%. The project took 19 months of planning, and the solar panels will
provide 17-23% efficiency (ROI).
e. Seattle is one of the least viable markets for solar panels. Solar panel materials and
technology have allowed more capability. Cloud cover and ambient light are the
major factors in solar energy efficiency.
f. Fun facts regarding the energy savings are:
a. 70,337lbs of carbon dioxide offset
b. Equivalent of 6 cars /year, 879 75-watt lightbulbs, 3 average households ,9
acres of trees, and 32,868 of coal not burned.
g. Cynthia recommended we do an Op/Ed to promote this project.
h. Steven asked if much of the cost is labor? With the Inflation Reduction Act credits,
there were $174K savings even with labor costs increasing.
i. Georgina asked Thom to send us the sources about efficiency of materials is greatly
improving to share with condo associations. Thom shared the Bullet Foundation as a
great resource.
j. Hank shared that his solar panel installation recouped 20% (ROI) each.
k. Cynthia asked if we could contact PIO to publish an article. Thom said yes.
I. Susan Paine asked about adding a Level 3 charger (480V) to the power. Thom
replied there is too much real estate required.
m. Hank recounted the "Solarize Edmonds" campaign. The solar panel's lifetime was
about 30 years. Hank inquired when to replace an older solar system with new
panels. Thom recommended once you pay off the investment, then replace before
the 50% efficiency degradation. Panels will be viable for 50 years, and the project
should be paid off in 26 years.
n. Cynthia spoke to the Sustainable Heroes campaign and why families invested in
sustainable improvements. The economics Thom shared should be a motivator.
Having state partners makes projects like this make it possible to implement.
o. Thom explained the decision process for selection of the municipal building for this
project. City Hall is more viable for a green roof than solar panel investment.
p. Thom shared other green energy projects. The city is commissioning 8 new EV
chargers at city park parking lots. City parks were determined to be the most
equitable locations. The project is ready to roll once the administrative company
running the point of sale (POS) is ready.
q. The city undertook a full LED lighting replacement and insulated windows on the east
side. Almost all HVAC systems have variable speed, which ramps up demand and
improves efficiency.
r. Sarah's crews have championed composting in five buildings. All chemical usage is
all metered (cleaning solutions) to ensure manufacturer specs are adhered to and to
ensure the least amount of chemicals are used.
s. Thom stated that city facilities must be compliant with Clean Building Act by 2028 or
be fined by square footage. Currently, the Frances Anderson Center qualifies for that
compliance. That Clean Building Act specifically mentions carbon reduction.
t. Hank asked about the biochar program. Thom recommends Ross Hahn come talk
to us beginning next year.
6. Staff Updates
a. Jeff Levy will be joining the Planning & Development team and will work on the
Comprehensive Plan
b. Climate Change and Resilience deadline for input is 2029; however, Tristan believes
the primary goal is to address this in the 2024 plan.
c. City released last week an advert for interested parties to draft policy changes as per
CAP.
d. The building code update has been deferred by the state for another 90 days.
e. A draft of the Green Building Incentives land use component is complete. The focus
is primarily residential zoning; commercial zones requiring more consideration.
f. Climate Champs RFQ had 6 submissions for temporary art installation depicting sea
level rise. Greg Ferguson (CAB) is very interested in that the data used is accurate.
Tristan stated the data was sourced from NOAA and UW.
g. Georgina asked what is entailed to add the resilience deadline to 2024. Tristan did
not have the specifics.
7. Grant Opportunities
a. The city received an application for the solar grant. Housing Hope proposed two
different models, one that reduced 50% of energy use and one that saved 90%. There
were no other applicants. The city is rooting for the second proposal to be funded.
b. Tristan met with Nick Maxwell last week to discuss a grant opportunity through the
Department of Commerce tied into the comprehensive plan to mitigate green house
gases (GHG) in a way the city could not do otherwise.
c. Cynthia shared that the CPC wants to review ideas for grants and see what our top
priorities are.
d. The" Ideas for Grants" list generated by CPC and community members was projected
for discussion.
e. Public Works wants an electric street sweeper. Would the Volkswagen grant be
viable?
f. Renewing cycle for resilience study for restoring salmon is June. Georgina asked
about pursuing this one. Tristan says we have time.
g. CPC members do not have time currently to commit to grant deadlines due to one -
month deadlines.
h. Cynthia says we will reevaluate future grants when staff have the time
i. Georgina and Nick would like to get a copy of the "Ideas for Grants" list.
j. Pam recommends having interested members attend a grant workshop. Tristan can
ask. Cynthia recommends the Department of Commerce has valuable tools.
Tristan's sister is a grant writer at the zoo, and she may have resources.
8. Committee Roles & Responsibilities
a. Cynthia shared that the agendas and related documents will be available to the
public as per Georgina request. This references the use of agenda packets.
b. Cynthia will work with Tristan to load past meeting packets as time permits.
c. Tristan has no update on recruitment. Susan Paine recommended we look at high
school students.
d. No updates on code package.
e. Reviewed potential activities for 2024 calendar. Cynthia will resend and ask to poll
via email top 3 priorities. Susan shared library has a great interest in having
induction stoves — this will be proceeding with Nancy Johnson. Hank shared that
Complete Streets has been used to get grant money through city staff members that
know how to get it. Steven observed that #3 (Writing Adaptation Plans) and #5
(Supporting the CAP) are high-level strategic and very important and other items are
more tactical. Georgina stated that the CAB is managing the on -going support
implementation of the CAP (item #5); recommends removing this activity. She also
stated that writing adaptation plans is very broad and complicated; recommends
removal from the list. Cynthia stated we cannot remove #5 because that is core to
CPC goals. Angela asked if there was interest in meeting in 2 weeks to address this
topic. The attendees agreed and Angela will follow up by email.
9. November 2"d Agenda & Action Items
a. Susan Paine will reach out to Robert Knolls, PSE, to speak at the next meeting.
10. Announcements and Public Comment
a. Fluorescent light recycling will be held on November 4t". Sarah may need a
volunteer.
b. Georgina would like to have the meetings recorded. Tristan agreed to use the
recording feature on Zoom.
c. Due to city email issues, the CPC needs to use Steven's personal email.
The meeting adjourned at 12:40pm
Ideas for grants
INSTRUCTIONS: Make a mark (e.g. X or a check mark) on the ideas you would most
like to see a grant developed for. We will discuss the priorities at the Oct. Vh
meeting; this isn't a final determination!
Idea #
Your top 3
Idea for Grants
Who's
preferred ideas:
idea
1.
Engineering grant to study the options for a
Hank
Highway 104 bicycle and pedestrian bridge
crossing of the Interurban Trail. Mayor Nelson
and three council members and
representatives from Shoreline and Mountlake
Terrace rode the trail and viewed the options
last Friday. In addition to promoting non -
motorized transportation and safety, this
improvement would help connect the
communities with each other and with the new
transit center. The estimated cost of the study
is between $ 100k and $ 200k to be shared by
the communities and potentially other
sources.
2.
Engineering and environmental (resilience)
Hank
study to identify the best methods to restore
salmon spawning habitat and remove barriers
to salmon migration in Perrinville Creek and
Shell Creek. These creeks have already been
adversely impacted by climate change.
3.
Use of the U of W's or some other predictive
Hank
tool to identify climate impacts to Edmonds
and the surrounding area ---with further study
to identify mitigation measures.
4.
Complete the CAP GHG predictive tool by
Hank
adding "best estimates" for those categories
of emissions now left blank. Better to provide
rough estimates (all values are estimates) and
correct the values later than to add new
categories.
5.
3D visualization/simulation of sea level rise at
Steven
Edmonds waterfront, as an educational tool to
impact citizen attitudes and behavior as well
as policymaking
6.
A trade-in/incentive program for all gas-
Steven
powered lawn/landscaping equipment (not
just leaf blowers), to be swapped out for
electric
7.
Incentives for residential awnings and energy-
Steven
efficient window coverings
8.
Enabling Edmonds EV's to put power back on
Steven
the grid
9.
Funds to do outreach and education on ways
Cynthia
to reduce individual residence and retail/office
GHG output, including financing. (Consistent
with CAP Strategies BE-1.2, BE-1.4, BE-1.5, LC-
1.4, LC-1.5, LC-2.1, LC-2.3.)
10.
Funds to stage a week of events including
speakers, friendly competitions, events
focusing/involving youth and diverse
communities, etc. similar to Bellingham's.
(Consistent with CAP's 'Equity' chapter, and
Strategies BE-1.5, TR-3.4, LC-2.3)
11.
Our Climate Action Plan currently has one
Georgina
component - mitigation. The CAP also needs
its partner, a Climate Change Adaptation Plan
(CCAP).
The goals and policies of a CCAP are to
ensure:
A. A healthy, safe and resilient community,
which provides 1) effective emergency
preparedness and response following a
climate -related disaster; 2) focuses adaptation
efforts and engagement on the most
vulnerable populations; 3) minimizes the
health impacts of climate change; and 4)
increases economic resilience
B. A natural environment resilient to climate
hazards, which protects and restores climate -
vulnerable habitat and ecosystems.
C. Resilient infrastructure and built
environment which will 1) protect and enhance
reliability of utility infrastructure (including in
fire hazard zones); and 2) support greater
resilient, redundancy and reliability of local
and regional infrastructure.
12.
Climate Vulnerabilities Study (CVS), which not
Georgina
only covers climate threats created by extreme
weather events, but also provides information
on climate impacts for the City's economy. A
Climate Vulnerabilities Study and a Sea Level
Rise Study both inform a Climate Change
Adaptation Plan. Components in a typical CVS
are:
Historical Hazards; Changing Hazards with
Climate Change (drought, fog changes, ocean
warming, wildfires, stronger storms, sea level
rise); Hazard Ranking; Vulnerable City Assets
and Populations; Existing Strategies and
Policies for Adaptation (natural assets,
community, utilities, infrastructure); and a
Vulnerability Scoring Matrix.
13.
Wildfire Mitigation. While we have a CAP
Georgina
mitigation strategy, we do not have a
mitigation plan for the prevention of
wildfires. We have two large parks and also
open space that need mitigative measures to
be taken in order to ensure that Edmonds
doesn't have its own wildfire. Ladder fuel -
dried grasses and plants - directly under trees
are common areas where wildfires start
(sometimes from a spark caused by gas -fueled
cars parked on soft -landscaping when starting
their engine is started). When ladder fuel
becomes incendiary, flames can move quickly
up the trunks of trees where tree crowning can
be triggered (where the tops of trees become
balls of fire). Tree crowning is what spreads a
fire very quickly from tree to tree, sometimes
traveling great distances in the wildfire -
created wind and/or if its a naturally windy
day, of which we have many. The two parks in
question are City Park and Yost Park. A
wildfire in the former could leap 104 and cut
off parts of Woodway, and also Pt. Edwards. A
wildfire in the latter would put residents at the
greater risk due to its size. The risk of wildfires
becomes greater during periods of drought
which are forecast for our region, so having a
wildfire mitigation plan is essential.
Wildfire Mitigation would require an
amendment to the CAP.
14.
[Suggestion for Hank's #4], "Complete the CAP
Georgina
GHG predictive tool by adding "best
estimates" for those categories of emissions
now left blank. Better to provide rough
estimates (all values are estimates) and correct
the values later than to add new categories" I
would suggest that a grant to use the web -
based application "Clear Path"
(www.icleiusa.org/clearpath) should be
considered. It might be a way to get the
specific data now as opposed to best
estimates, but I don't know which tool our
consultant was going to use and what the
holdup is to get that going. Not having
received our GHG inventory tool from the
consultant should not prevent us from
knowing either the specific data from another
source or, as you suggested, best estimates.
Potential Activities for 2024 from 9-7-23 Brainstorm
Potential Activities to Implement in 2024
1.
Assist the population in electrifying homes using Inflation Reduction Act
funding;
2.
Get youth more involved with a Creative Climate Competition;
3.
Writing Adaptation Plans... Consider what should an adaptation plan look like.
What informs it is a Climate Vulnerability Study;
4.
In section 3.4/Transportation in the CAP: adapt streets to promote walking;
have walkable weekends;
5.
support implementation of the CAP;
6.
Report to the City Council;
7.
Two key discussions: Outreach to the Port and the Railroad;
8.
Holding E/V Rallies;
9.
Have a table at the Farmer's Markets;
10.
Partner with vendors and Verdant to demonstrate heat pumps and
weatherization in a mobile walk-in space;
11.
Create a digital simulation of Sea Level Rise;
12.
Hold a speakers' series;
13.
Our responsibility is to educate and inform, so a speakers' series would be
great for that. How often? Monthly?
14.
induction stove loans from the library; plant -based food demonstrations;
15.
Finding families eligible for free heat pumps and weatherization who fall into
a middle -income bracket;
16.
City sponsorship of a program like "Trees for Life" where trees would be
planted "in memory of" with a plaque in trade for a substantial donation to
causes we would like to see supported (talk to Tree Board); connectivity with
surrounding communities—Woodway in particular.