The City Council on Monday voted to support updating the targets of the city’s Climate Action Plan 2.0 goals, bringing them into compliance with increasingly stringent state goals.
City Administrator Rosanna Bayon Moore told the council that city staff can, in approximately 90 days, present the council with some specific prospective goals for the next steps to take in furthering the city’s effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The City Council adopted the Piedmont Climate Action Plan 2.0 in March 2018. Its charge — to reduce greenhouse gas emissions within city limits by 40% from 2005 levels by 2030, and by 80% by 2050. Piedmont is on course to meet its 2030 emissions reduction target, according to a city report, thanks largely to transportation emission reductions and localized decreases in emissions from gas-powered heating and appliances.
Something else that could reduce emissions, Dykman said, is reducing online shopping. While trucks that deliver consumer goods to Piedmont create substantial emissions, those emissions are not counted as coming from Piedmont. She said “alternative consumer choices” such as fix-it clinics and re-use efforts could take some pressure off such deliveries.
When Councilmember Jennifer Long asked whether there’s sufficient community engagement regarding the city’s Climate Action Plan, city Sustainability Manager Alyssa Dykman said it’s likely most Piedmont residents understand the general need to fight climate change and to reduce carbon footprints. However, Dykman suggested future efforts to promote reductions in emissions should be directed toward specific actions like electrification, building sector options, and transportation-based efforts. The city, she said, could consider a formal policy on telecommuting, which can also save energy.
Swimming pool project update
An example of working toward Climate Action Plan 2.0 goals is the city’s Community Pool complex, which city leaders say will open in late summer 2024. As the entire complex including the pool, building, and all lighting will be powered by electricity, there will be no on-site greenhouse gas emissions.
On Monday, the council was told the project will soon move from the digging phase to the building phase. George Samen, Griffin Structures’ project manager for the Piedmont pool project, said some “unforeseen conditions” — difficult soils, and an unexpected underground tank — have been encountered. Such things, along with a few change orders, Samen said, are not unusual on such large projects.
Samen also acknowledged that workdays in the pool area are set to ramp up from eight hours a day to 10 hours a day, but that the general public — specifically people who live, drive, or attend school near the construction site — should notice little if any added activity (or delays).
Track athletes honored
Members of the Piedmont High School relay team — Christian Taylor, Parker Long, Jack Zirklebach-Ngai, and Sam Shelby — were honored for their accomplishments at the California Interscholastic Federation championships on May 26, where the team finished seventh in its heat in the 1,600.
Contact Sam Richards at sam.richards4344@gmail.com
Correction: “was” not “.Waco”.
Just some clarifying comments. The 2021 reduction Waco almost exclusively due to transportation. GHG from buildings actually went up very slightly, but less than expected given that 2021 was a colder year than 2020. Heat pumps may have contributed. Piedmont’s “consumption” refers to more than just online shopping – our bigger homes, more travel and more purchases cause residents to consume more carbon per capita than any other city in the Bay Area. These patterns are not reflected in the CAP. Finally, Director Gonzales indicated the city was putting together a package of code requirements that could allow the installation of EV chargers in the right of way (parking strip). That could make home charging at home at lot easier for residents.