A Warmer World— a Challenge and an Opportunity

Commendations 12

• CM1
  The Chula Vista City Council unanimously approved an aggressive program for addressing global warming in City operations and in the community.
• CM2
  San Diego County Government has a responsibility to inventory global warming emissions in County operations and in the community at large, set reduction targets and create and implement an action plan.
• CM3
  San Diego County has not yet developed a climate protection action plan. Fact: There are valuable tools available, such as the King County Guidebook for Local, Regional and State Governments, on preparing a climate protection action plan.
• CM4
  San Diego County needs a climate action plan in order to comply with State legislation and to begin the process of stabilizing and reducing GHG emissions.
• CM5
  Require that 100% of the replacement vehicles purchased for the municipal fleet be high efficiency (hybrid) or alternative fuel vehicles.
• CM6
  Encourage City-contracted fleet operators to adopt the use of high-efficiency (hybrid) or alternative fuel vehicles, by stipulating that 100% of replacement vehicle purchases should be alternative fuel or hybrid vehicles.
• CM7
  Require City of Chula Vista-licensed businesses to participate in an energy assessment of their physical premises every three years and upon change of ownership. _____________________________________________________________________8 SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2007—2008 (filed May 22, 2008)
• CM8
  Adopt community-wide green building standards that are comprehensive in coverage and mandatory. New and substantially remodeled structures will be required to be built to LEED silver or to an equivalent third party certification green building program, with the effect of having an energy efficiency impact of at least 20% over Title 24.
• CM9
  Facilitate widespread installation of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems on commercial, residential and municipal facilities by developing and implementing a solar energy conversion program. Proactively enforce existing codes requiring pre-plumbing for solar hot water.
• CM10
  Facilitate “Smart Growth” around the H Street, E Street and Palomar Street Trolley Stations.
• CM11
  Coordinate with Otay Water District, San Diego County Water Authority and the Sweetwater Water Authority to convert turf lawns to xeriscape (landscaping that employs drought resistant plants). The City Council adopted the entire proposal. FACTS/FINDINGS Fact: Over a ten-month period, the City of Chula Vista’s Climate Change Working Group reviewed 90 GHG emissions reducing measures being employed by other communities for potential use in Chula Vista. Finding #04: The Chula Vista City Council unanimously approved an aggressive program for addressing global warming in City operations and in the community.
• CM12
  The 2007/2008 County Grand Jury commends the Mayor and City Council of the City of Chula Vista for exercising courage and leadership in adopting an aggressive sustainable community strategy. _____________________________________________________________________9 SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2007—2008 (filed May 22, 2008) DISCUSSION #3 Response to Climate Change – County of San Diego San Diego County has adopted a number of “Green Initiatives” including LEED Certified or Silver Standard buildings within its facilities. The Department of Parks and Recreation has two LEED buildings. The Medical Examiner and Forensics Center as well as the Libraries in Fallbrook and Ramona will be built to at least the LEED silver standard, as will all County Operations Center redevelopment projects. The County also has nearly 100 hybrid vehicles in its own fleet with 15 more to be purchased this year. The County has a Green Building Incentive Program for private developers which offer expedited processing, a 7.5% reduction in plan check and building permit fees and no fees for installation of photovoltaic systems and small wind turbines. Also, the County has reached a 52% waste diversion rate, which brings it into compliance with AB 939, the Integrated Waste Management Act of 1989. This law required that local jurisdictions reduce disposal of waste from the base year of 1990 by 50% by the year 2000 or face potential fines of $10,000 per day. The County has established goals for energy conservation and development of renewable energy sources, but like City goals, they are expressed in terms of encouraging and working together to achieve, as opposed to targets, timetables and measurable outcomes. Although not in response to local climate change issues, but of significant importance to habitat protection, the County, several cities within the County and SANDAG began developing a regional Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) in the early 1990s. It received national recognition as the first region to develop such a plan. The purpose of the program was to preserve key areas of habitat in order to protect endangered species and those that could become endangered without protection while providing certainty and expedited processing for development in appropriate areas. The plan involves land acquisition, land management and monitoring. All portions of San Diego County will be included in one of four regional habitat conservation plans: 1) the Multiple Species Conservation Plan South (MSCP) approved in 1998; 2) the Multiple Habitat Conservation Program (MHCP) approved by SANDAG in 1993; 3) the North County Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) to be completed in the fall of 2009; and 4) the East County Multiple Species Conservation Program (MSCP) is scheduled to be completed in the Fall of 2010. Without these habitat conservation plans, San Diego, with its high population growth and large number of species requiring protection, was headed for a “train wreck” as described by a former U.S. Secretary of the Interior. The County is in the process of updating its general plan, but it will not be complete until at least 2010. The County at this point has no Climate Action Plan and no specific program for meeting the requirements of AB 32. The formation of a Climate Action Team is under discussion, but no definitive steps have been taken. _____________________________________________________________________10 SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2007—2008 (filed May 22, 2008) As a comparison, King County, Washington is widely recognized as a leader in developing specific action plans to reduce GHG emissions and to mitigate the impact of global warming. King County is the largest county in the state of Washington, with a population of nearly 2 million, an area of 2,000 square miles and an annual budget of $4 billion. Scientists at the University of Washington formed an interdisciplinary Climate Impacts Group (CIG) to study the impacts of global climate change on the Pacific Northwest and to work with planners and policy makers to apply this information to the regional decision making process. The process began with development of a study prepared by various deans at the University of Washington studying projections for the quality of life in 2050 if no mitigating actions were taken. The results of that study were the basis for the County’s climate action plan. In September 2007, King County and the CIG, in association with the ICLEI published “Preparing for Climate Change: A Guidebook for Local, Regional and State Governments”. This guidebook, with its many specific recommendations, may be an excellent resource for the County Department of Planning and Land Use as it begins preparation of a climate action plan. For example, Chapter 6 “Build Your Climate Change Preparedness Team” recommends a full-scale cross departmental preparedness team including many services, operations and infrastructure such as: water supply, wastewater treatment, public health, environmental protection, planning and zoning, parks and recreation, economic development and emergency services. Another valuable local resource that will soon be available is the Focus 2050 Study for the San Diego Region, which is scheduled for release in June 2008. This is a study funded by the San Diego Foundation and under the direction of the University of California San Diego Environment and Sustainability Initiative. The study will provide a snapshot of the San Diego region in 2050 if current trends continue. It will focus on eight interrelated areas including: o Climate change o Population growth o Land use and sprawl o Transportation o Water o Energy o Public health o Biodiversity and habitat This analysis will seek ways to reduce GHG emissions and develop and implement adaptation strategies to address the potentially harmful economic, social and ecological consequences of climate change in our region. FACTS/FINDINGS Fact: AB 32, The Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, requires that GHG emissions be reduced to 1990 levels by the year 2020, a 25% reduction. _____________________________________________________________________11 SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2007—2008 (filed May 22, 2008) Finding #05: San Diego County Government has a responsibility to inventory global warming emissions in County operations and in the community at large, set reduction targets and create and implement an action plan. Finding #06: San Diego County has not yet developed a climate protection action plan. Fact: There are valuable tools available, such as the King County Guidebook for Local, Regional and State Governments, on preparing a climate protection action plan. Finding #07: San Diego County needs a climate action plan in order to comply with State legislation and to begin the process of stabilizing and reducing GHG emissions.

Agency Responses 2

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