Title
Provide Comment on the Draft Climate Action and Resiliency Plan
Body
To: Honorable Chair and Members of the Transportation Commission
From: Erin Smith
Deputy Director, Public Works Department
Date: May 22, 2019
BACKGROUND
Alameda is expected to face significant challenge in the coming years due to a changing climate. This means preparing for more frequent episodes of unhealthy air quality from wildfires, rising sea levels, more intense winter rain/wind storms, a rise in groundwater levels and longer, deeper droughts with impacts to transportation, power, communications, health, personal property, housing supply, and the economy, among others.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports that human behavior- particularly burning fossil fuels-accelerates climate change by releasing harmful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The severity of predicted climate change scenarios are explicitly linked to global trajectories of GHG emissions. If emissions don’t decrease, and if Alameda does not prepare for sea level rise and more intense storms, many parts of Alameda will see frequent flooding in the near future, and some parts could be permanently underwater by mid-century.
Building on prior efforts, the CARP provides a roadmap for reducing Alameda’s GHG emissions and becoming more resilient through a number of strategies. The CARP updates and expands the scope of the City’s 2008 Local Action Plan for Climate Protection by adopting an integrated approach consisting of both adaptation and GHG reduction.
The 2008 Local Action Plan set a goal of reducing Alameda’s GHG emissions 25% below 2005 levels by 2020. Current emissions projections indicatethat the City will have reduced GHG emissions by an estimated 23% by 2020. This is mostly the result of Alameda Municipal Power’s (AMP’s) shift to 100 percent clean electricity, which effectively eliminates Alameda’s GHG emissions from electricity consumption. In addition, Alameda’s GHG emissions from waste were cut almost in half due to the success of the Zero Waste Implementation Plan and its Update, and there was a steady downtick in vehicle miles traveled (VMT) from passenger cars. Alamedans’ investment-with AMP’s help-in the energy efficiency of their homes and businesses also played an important role.
Beginning in 2020, with AMP’s delivery of 100 percent clean electricity, the majority of Alameda’s emissions will come from the transportation sector (about 70 percent of Alameda’s annual GHG emissions). As such, there is great opportunity for deeper cuts in GHG emissions from this sector. The transportation system is also a key area of focus for climate resilience. Maintenance of roads and transit is important for emergency response, transit-dependent populations, and the basic functioning of Alameda as a city.
The 2018 Transportation Choices Plan includes recommended actions with significant GHG reduction. The CARP underscores the importance of and assumes complete implementation of the Transportation Choices Plan to reach newly established GHG emission goals for 2030 and 2050.
To develop Alameda’s draft CARP, the Public Works Department contracted with Eastern Research Group, Inc. The development process took approximately one year and included significant collaboration among Alameda staff, community members, and outside subject matter experts. To date, Alamedans provided input on the CARP through a 2018 community survey, multiple community events, and two public input sessions. The draft climate action plan that is now available for public comment incorporates hundreds of suggestions, concerns, and questions that community members offered over the past year and a half. The last public input session is at the Elks Lodge, 2255 Santa Clara Avenue, from 6-8 pm on May 20.
Staff is seeking input on the CARP from various boards and commissions in May and June, and proposing adoption by the City Council on July 16.
DISCUSSION
The purpose of this meeting is to solicit input on the Draft CARP (Exhibits 1 and 2). The CARP outlines a path to achieve eight targeted goals:
1. Reduce GHG emissions 50% below 2005 levels by 2030 and 80% below 2005 levels by 2050.
2. Protect assets from sea level rise and storm surges, plan future land use to avoid impacts and enhance shoreline habitat to mitigate impacts.
3. Increase resiliency and capacity of the stormwater system to prevent flooding of assets during extreme precipitation events.
4. Reduce water consumption and increase drought-resistant landscaping.
5. Reduce heat island effect and protect vulnerable populations from heat impacts during heat waves.
6. Protect public health from smoke impacts during wildfire events, especially vulnerable populations.
7. Ensure that building and infrastructure retrofits and new design standards at high risk of liquefaction consider both seismic risk and sea level rise.
8. Develop financial and human resources and increase transparency, community engagement, social resilience and support for effective CARP implementation.
The CARP recommends specific GHG emissions reduction strategies in the following areas: Transportation, Land Use and Housing, Energy and Buildings, and Carbon Sequestration. The recommended actions in the CARP are in addition to already committed actions in the Transportation Choices Plan and Zero Waste Implementation Plan.
There are two ways to reduce emissions from the transportation sector: mode shift and alternative fuel use. The CARP prioritizes mode shift first, given its multitude of benefits (GHG reduction, reduced traffic congestion, expanded mobility for underserved populations, health benefits, etc.). The CARP’s secondary transportation priority is increasing electric vehicle (EV) use among Alamedans who continue to drive.
The new GHG emissions reduction actions in the CARP that are intended to catalyze mode shift beyond that from the Transportation Choices Plan are detailed in Table 3-4 of the plan and summarized below:
T1. Telecommuting. Encourage employee and employer participation in commute trip reduction through telecommuting.
T2. Build additional bike lanes. Expand TCP project/programs by adding more dedicated and protected bike lanes and making pedestrian/bicycle improvements that increase safety, make it easier for people to use these modes, and connect residential neighborhoods with commercial centers and work places.
T3. Traffic signal synchronization. Improve synchronized timing of 25 traffic lights to improve traffic flow by slowing vehicle speeds and reducing idling.
T4. Expand EasyPass program. Provide 5,000 additional passes by 2030 and ensure everyone in Alameda has a pass by 2050.
T5. Ban gas-powered leaf blowers. Ban gas-powered leaf blowers in the City of Alameda.
T6. Peak hour congestion pricing. Establish peak hour congestion pricing at the Webster and Posey Tubes and four bridges off the main island of Alameda to reduce peak hour congestion and provide funding source for climate-friendly transportation options, such as walking, bicycling, transit, ferries, and water shuttles (long-term project #36 in the TCP). Consider EV exemptions during pricing periods. Incorporate in Alameda’s legislative agenda support for a change in state law that permits local government agencies (if they choose) to implement congestion pricing.
T7. Alameda BART Station. Work with BART and regional transportation agencies to plan for a new cross-bay BART tube with a station in Alameda (long-term project #35 in the TCP).
The new GHG emissions reduction actions to encourage vehicle electrification (i.e., replacing fossil fuel-powered vehicles with electricity-powered vehicles) are detailed in Table 3-5 of the plan and summarized below:
T8. Increase availability of EV charging stations citywide.
T9. Promote purchase of low emission and zero emission vehicles.
T10. Continue programs to encourage new EV purchases and facilitate private charging.
T11. Continue to encourage businesses to install EV charging stations.
T12. Electrify City’s fleet. Convert the light-duty portion of the City’s vehicle fleet to EVs.
AMP is currently developing a plan to further EV adoption in Alameda.
In addition to the importance of transportation from a GHG perspective, the transportation sector also contains a vast network of assets that are critical to social, economic, and physical well-being, as well as emergency response. These transportation assets connect Alameda to other services regionally and beyond, and they support vehicular movement (roads, bridges, tunnels), public transit (bus and passenger ferries), boats, and bicycle/pedestrian paths. The transportation sector’s vulnerability to sea level rise and flooding from intensifying storm events not only puts these assets at risk, but also affects other sectors, amplifying socioeconomic and public health risks. Some of the vulnerability of Alameda’s transportation system stems from its lack of redundancy. With limited connections on and off the island of Alameda, the community will experience very negative impacts any time there are disruptions to tunnels, bridges, or transit service.
Transit dependence can make it harder for economically strained households to respond in times of emergency, and insufficient transit options then make transportation an accessibility issue. Lack of mobility inhibits one’s quality of life and productivity and also makes it harder to respond in emergency situations. When the individuals who are transit-dependent are children, seniors, disabled residents, and low-income residents, these impacts can be more extreme. Transportation resilience would ensure services are accessible and reliable under all circumstances, particularly for the vulnerable populations mentioned above.
The CARP provides site specific adaptation planning for eleven priority locations subject to flooding - see Table 4-4 of the CARP. Three of the eleven locations are within the Transportation Asset Category:
• Webster and Posey Tubes (Table 4-12)
• Doolittle Drive (Table 4-13)
• Critical and high-use roadways (Table 4-14)
Climate mitigation and adaptation, by their nature, require solutions that extend beyond city boundaries. Alameda must continue to partner on adaptation with key stakeholders, including, but not limited to, Caltrans, East Bay Regional Park District, Port of Oakland, East Bay Municipal Utility District, Pacific Gas & Electric, AT&T, and other telecommunications.
It is also in Alameda’s interest to track the evolving landscape of state, regional, and county governance structures around GHG reduction and climate adaptation and to seek leadership opportunities to help shape those structures and policies. For example, creation of a regional sea level rise governing body could influence the direction of local shoreline adaptation projects.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
The CARP does not authorize expenditure of any City funds. However, the CARP suggests that, if fully implemented, the City would likely require an additional 8 full time employees, one or more of which would work to implement recommendations related to transportation. If the CARP is adopted, City staff will return to City Council with recommendations for how to implement the strategies laid out in the CARP, and at that time will ask for funds to be allocated.
The economic analysis in the CARP suggests that adaptation strategies are a good investment. Even when using conservative assumptions and quantifying the value of only buildings, property and infrastructure, the benefit to cost ratio is at least 3.5 to 1 in all scenarios assessed, suggesting that every dollar spent on prevention avoids at least $3.50 in economic losses. Other benefits to consider, which make the benefit-cost ratio even higher (more favorable), are commerce disruption and loss of non-market benefits associated with Crown Beach and other parks, as well as other non-monetized benefits such as improved safety for people within the city.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
Adoption of a climate action plan is a project subject to review under the California Environmental Quality Act. An initial study is being prepared evaluating the potential impacts of adoption of the Climate Action Plan on the environment. The environmental review documents will be available for public review prior to final consideration of the Plan by the Alameda City Council.
RECOMMENDATION
Provide Comment on the Draft Climate Action and Resiliency Plan Update
Respectfully submitted,
Liam Garland, Public Works Director
By,
Erin Smith, Public Works Deputy Director
Exhibits:
1. Alameda’s Draft Climate Action and Resiliency Plan
2. Alameda’s Draft Climate Action and Resiliency Plan Appendices