AGENDA ITEM#!
ISSUE:

RESOLUTION COMMITTING THE COUNTY OF SANTA

CLARA.IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE BAY AREA AIR

QUALITY MANAGEMENT DISTRICT. TO PARTICIPATION IN
THE CITIES FOR CLIMATE PROTECTION CAMPAIGN
RECOMMENDATION:

Adopt Resolution

Recommendation: As part of his fuel cell initiative, Supervisor Beall has referred the
attached resolution for consideration by the Legislative Committee. The resolution
commits the County,in partnership with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District

(BAAQMD),to participation in the Cities for Climate Protection Campaign (CCP). This
effort identifies five milestones by which greenhouse gas and air pollution emissions
are measured and subsequently reduced. The Legislative Committee recommends
adoption of this resolution, and acknowledged that a determination would need to be
made regarding the resources necessary to implement the resolution.

Background and Analysis: Cities for Climate Protection (CCP)is a campaign of the

International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI). The CCP provides a

framework for local governments to develop an agenda to reduce global warming and
air pollution emissions, which would additionally improve quality of live in the
community. Internationally, five hundred local governments are participating the
Campaign, representing 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. There are currently 151
U.S. cities and counties participating in the program. According to ICLEI,just 70 of
these local governments quantified to date have reduced over 22 million tons of
greenhouse gas emissions reductions annually.
According to ICLEI, the CCP focuses on the following emissions:
• carbon dioxide (CO2), emitted by energy consumption of fossil fuels by

municipal buildings and facilities, households, institutional and commercial
buildings, auto transportation, industrial and manufacturing process. It can also

be sequestered through urban forestry:
• methane (CH4), a GHG emitted in urban areas by local waste disposal, especially
landfills and waste water treatment; and

• conventional air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and non

methane volatile organic compounds,compounds that are precursors of ground-

level ozone and smog, as well as by-products of fossil fuel combustion.
CCP Five-Milestone Framework

Local governments participating in ICLETs Cities for Climate Protection™ (CCP)

Campaign commit to undertake and complete five performance milestones. The
milestones allow local governments to understand how municipal decisions effect
energy use and how these decisions can be used to mitigate global climate change while

improving community quality of life. The CCP methodology provides a simple,
standardized way of acting to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and of monitoring,
measuring, and reporting performance.
The five performance milestones are:

• Conduct an energy and emissions inventory and forecast
•

Establish an emissions target

• Develop and obtain approval for the Local Action Plan
• Implement policies and measures
• Monitor and verify results
Additional details on each milestone, provided by ICLEl, are as follows:

MILESTONE 1: Conduct an energy and emissions inventory and forecast
The inventory profiles energy use and greenhouse gas(GHG)emissions for a base year
(1990 or 1995), and estimates growth in emissions for a target year, typically 2010 or
2015, for:

1. municipal operations, including buildings, facilities, and waste streams;
2. the wider community, including residential and commercial buildings,
transportation, and industry (if data is readily available).

MILESTONE 2: Establish an emissions target

Adopting a target and timetable for its achievement is essential to foster not only
political will but also to create a framework that guides planning and implementation
of measures. Many CCP participants are striving to adopt the “Toronto Target” to

reduce GHG emissions by 20% from 1990 levels by the year 2005 or 2010.
MILESTONE 3: Develop and obtain approval for the Local Action Plan

A strategy to reduce GHG emissions is created by the Local Action Plan, which
synthesizes the previous analysis, provides a rationale for the target and timetable, and
outlines the policies and measures the local government will pursue to achieve the
target. The Local Action Plan ideally incorporates public awareness and education
campaigns, as well as direct GHG reduction measures.
MILESTONE 4: Implement policies and measures

This step begins implementation of individual measures to reduce GHG emissions. This
may begin once the Local Action Plan is developed and approved or may begin

concurrent with Action Plan development, since the GGP participant may choose to
start measures before adoption of the formal plan.
MILESTONE 5: Monitor and verify results

Monitoring and verification of progress on the implementation of actions to reduce
GHG emissions is an ongoing step that begins once measures are implemented and is
formalized with the approval of the Local Action Plan. IGLEl’s software tool (which

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appear to be free to participants) assists in the quantification of emissions reductions
and allows for uniform reporting of emissions reductions to ICLEl on a biennial basis.
The level of local staff resources to meet these objectives is unclear. Cities and counties
will receive technical assistance from ICLEl Cities for Climate Protection staff and

receive a CCP Toolkit through the CCP Milestone process. The Toolkit helps
participants identify emissions reduction ideas and strategies.

Other participating jurisdictions in California include the Counties of Marin and
Sonoma, the City and County of San Francisco, and the Cities of Areata, Berkeley, Chula
Vista, Cloverdale, Cotati, Davis, Fairfax, Healdsburg, Los Angeles, Novato, Oakland,
Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Sacramento, San Anselmo, San Diego, San Jose, Santa Cruz,
Santa Rosa, Sebastapol, Sonoma City, West Hollywood and Windsor.

Partnership with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD): Many of
the objectives of the CCP are believed to be already underway through the work of the
BAAQMD. Supervisor Beall’s staff has been in contact with BAAQMD to initiate a

conversation about existing air quality data and initiatives, and BAAQMD has indicated
their support for the District’s partnership with the County.

Legislative Committee Discussion: The Legislative Committee endorsed the resolution
and recommended forwarding it to the Board. Supervisor Kniss asked how the costs of
implementing the resolution would be addressed, stating that grants might be available
to cover some of the costs. Supervisor Beall noted that the resolution establishes a goal
and that otherjurisdictions used student interns to collect data and perform
monitoring activities. Staff was asked to outline what monetary and staffresources are
necessary to implement the resolution.

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