San Mateo County Grand Jury
• 2007-2008
Energy Conservation Activities in San Mateo County Issue The 2007/2008 San Mateo County Civil Grand Jury (the Grand
⚠️ Aviso de traducción: Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
⚠️ Este contenido ha sido traducido automáticamente. El texto original en inglés es la versión oficial. La traducción puede contener errores.
Findings and Recommendations 14 findings
F1
Replacement of lighting in most County buildings (and some leased space through agreements with the landlords) with high efficiency fluorescent lights and ballasts.
No recommendations for this finding
F2
Inefficient chillers and boilers have been replaced.
No recommendations for this finding
F3
Elevator motors are being replaced with more efficient ones.
No recommendations for this finding
F4
Window films are planned as heat barriers for County buildings.
No recommendations for this finding
F5
Motion detectors are being placed in some areas to turn off lights when unneeded. Otherwise, they are left off. Other equipment changeouts are in process. The County Public Works Department is replacing aged vehicles with more fuel-efficient models. SamTrans is a major consumer of the fuel used by county agencies. Among their efforts to improve fuel efficiency and reduce costs are the following:
No recommendations for this finding
F6
Changed engines in 137 buses to achieve 25% reduction in fleet average emissions and a 40% increase in fuel economy.
No recommendations for this finding
F7
Modified routes to encourage transit use and thereby reduce countywide emissions.
No recommendations for this finding
F8
Adopted policy for and has been pursuing funding for electrification of Caltrain, which would increase transit efficiency, save money, and reduce emissions.
No recommendations for this finding
F9
Engaged in experimental alternate energy programs sponsored, in large part, by state and federal programs. Green Team members have worked (both in their individual neighborhoods and in the County workplace) to promote and implement:
Related Recommendations (5)
R1
Work with cities, the County, and independent agencies to ensure implementation of the recommendations set forth by the Utilities and Sustainability Task Force in their San Mateo County Energy Strategy.
R2
Appoint another task force to do an in depth study, with practical recommendations for reducing transportation-related energy use by cities, the County, and independent agencies. The new task force would be composed of experts from a variety of fields, such as was the case for the Utilities and Sustainability Task Force.
R3
Encourage cities, the County, and independent agencies to share ideas and coordinate efforts toward improving efficiency of the vehicle fleets.
R4
Work with cities, the County, and independent agencies to ensure implementation of the recommendations set forth by the new transportation energy use task force (see #2 above) when it completes its work.
R5
Continue supporting Green Team and Cool Cities programs. The Grand Jury recommends that the SamTrans Board of Directors:
F10
Subsidized mass transit for County employees.
No recommendations for this finding
F11
“Point of use” signage, to remind employees to turn off lights and computers when not in use. The Sierra Club’s Cool Cities Project is aligned with the U. S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. It promotes these main strategies:
No recommendations for this finding
F12
Green vehicle fleets.
No recommendations for this finding
F13
Renewable energy. To date, the County and 16 of 20 cities in the County have engaged in at least one of the five milestones3 of the Cool Cities Campaign. The cities which have not engaged are Brisbane, Colma, Daly City, and East Palo Alto. The milestones are: 1. Establish campaign; 2. Engage community; 3. Sign formal Mayors’ climate protection agreement; 4. Take initial solution steps; 5. Implement advanced energy solutions. Conclusions The County agencies and programs examined by the Grand Jury have recognized the importance of energy conservation, both for environmental improvement and for reducing the impact of increasing fuel costs on the County budget. Those organizations have not only recognized the importance of energy conservation, they have also made good progress toward achieving significant levels of energy conservation. C/CAG’s appointment of the Utilities and Sustainability Task Force turned out to be a very important step toward more efficient energy use in the County. That Task Force did a comprehensive review of our county’s non-transportation energy expenditures, and the possible ways in which those expenditures can be reduced. Many of the suggestions proposed by the Task Force have already been implemented, and plans are in effect for implementing many of the remaining recommendations. Aside from private vehicles, much of the energy used for transportation in our county is used by SamTrans and Caltrain vehicles. The SamTrans refitting of buses with cleaner, more efficient engines was an important step toward reducing fuel costs. Other SamTrans activities, such as possible Caltrain electrification, revising bus routes to be more attractive and studies of alternative fuels for their vehicles, have had some impact to date, but hold promise for considerably more cost and efficiency improvements in the future. Efforts to reduce fuel consumption by vehicles operated by the government agencies in our county have not been consistent. Some cities, the County, and agencies, such as SamTrans, have paid considerable attention to the problems of fuel usage, whereas other agencies seem to have been less concerned. The Green Team and Cool Cities programs have been quite active in our county. These programs have brought many correctible inefficiencies to the attention of those officials who can bring about changes.
No recommendations for this finding
F14
Continue to support and recognize the efforts of County management through its Green Team initiatives to conserve energy and reduce carbon emissions. Response: Concur. The Board is very supportive of all the Department and Green Team efforts to reduce carbon emissions from county activities.
No recommendations for this finding
Conclusions 1
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CL1 Page 5The County agencies and programs examined by the Grand Jury have recognized the importance of energy conservation, both for environmental improvement and for reducing the impact of increasing fuel costs on the County budget. Those organizations have not only recognized the importance of energy conservation, they have also made good progress toward achieving significant levels of energy conservation. C/CAG’s appointment of the Utilities and Sustainability Task Force turned out to be a very important step toward more efficient energy use in the County. That Task Force did a comprehensive review of our county’s non-transportation energy expenditures, and the possible ways in which those expenditures can be reduced. Many of the suggestions proposed by the Task Force have already been implemented, and plans are in effect for implementing many of the remaining recommendations. Aside from private vehicles, much of the energy used for transportation in our county is used by SamTrans and Caltrain vehicles. The SamTrans refitting of buses with cleaner, more efficient engines was an important step toward reducing fuel costs. Other SamTrans activities, such as possible Caltrain electrification, revising bus routes to be more attractive and studies of alternative fuels for their vehicles, have had some impact to date, but hold promise for considerably more cost and efficiency improvements in the future. Efforts to reduce fuel consumption by vehicles operated by the government agencies in our county have not been consistent. Some cities, the County, and agencies, such as SamTrans, have paid considerable attention to the problems of fuel usage, whereas other agencies seem to have been less concerned. The Green Team and Cool Cities programs have been quite active in our county. These programs have brought many correctible inefficiencies to the attention of those officials who can bring about changes.
No Responses Found 1
Government entities assigned to respond to this report. No response documents have been linked in our database.
San Mateo County Board of Supervisors
Elected County Office