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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2008-09-24 Approved CAC MinutesJefferson County/City of Port Townsend Climate Action Committee Minutes September 24, 2008 3:30-5:30 WSU Extension Office Spruce Room Shold Business Park 201 Patison Street, Port Hadlock Members Present: _Kristin Marshall, Mark Welch (Vice-Chair), Stanley Willard, Taylor Beard (alt.), Nora Burnfield, Kees Kolff (Chair), Dave Turissini, Pete Raab Staff: Judy Surber, Karen Barrows Guests: Andrew Reding Scribe: K. Barrows______________ Topic Recommendation/Action Follow-up (if needed) Call to order 3:37 pm Approval of Agenda & Minutes Chair Kolff postponed approval of the agenda and minutes pending a quorum Announcements Chair Kolff mentioned that Josh Bryant is no longer a CAC member because he has left the area for college. The joint BoCC/City Council meeting, originally to be held on November 10, 2008, for the presentation of the CAC’s draft Work Plan, will need to be changed, since the BoCC has a schedule conflict. Staff will advise of new date, time, and location for joint BoCC/City Council meeting. Public Open Houses Chair Kolff announced that there are three upcoming open houses offered to the public to learn about the CAC’s Work Plan, and to give the public the opportunity to comment and submit ideas for the Work Plan and/or for the list of potential measures. The open houses are tentatively scheduled in mid-October in Brinnon, Chimacum, and Port Townsend. Staff will confirm meeting venues; will advise of dates, times, and locations for public open houses; and will create and circulate advertisements to local publications. Public Comment Andrew Reding spoke to say that he wanted to make three points. First, the City spends a substantial amount on streetlights. He said that lights installed prior to 1998 could be removed by Puget Sound Energy free of charge, and said he thinks the old streetlights “should be replaced with full cut-off fixtures.” He wanted to know the CAC’s position on this issue. Second, he mentioned that there are alternatives to the requirement to hook up to sewer systems; composting systems would be less expensive and generate less carbon dioxide. He asked the CAC to create an incentive for local government to provide homeowners with the option of a composting system. Third, he asked that the CAC visit the issue of required setbacks. He said that the way lots are currently oriented, passive solar energy systems are not workable. Committee Member Report/Discussion Stan Willard reported on progress with respect to the carbon emissions back-casting and forecasting tool. He said back-casting in particular is contingent upon limited information from the Port Townsend Paper Corporation (PTPC). A discussion followed, during which Chair Kolff mentioned that he is concerned about using national trend data, but that that still leaves the question of how best to obtain accurate answers. Chair Kolff read a letter from a former PTPC executive, whose numbers for mill emissions in 1990 cannot be confirmed by PTPC officials today; however, Chair Kolff said if the higher numbers for 1990 are to be used, the PTPC executive’s information will show how the mill’s emissions have been reduced. Kristin Marshall spoke to say that the national trend data is the best that is currently available. She said that population estimates related to mill production are not reliable, and that now PTPC is mixing grades and reducing fossil fuel usage, as well as improving marketing. These factors are expected to result in continued emissions reduction at PTPC. With respect to forecasting, there was much discussion about the differences between emissions comparisons for the industrial and residential sectors. Mark Welch asked how other communities have handled the forecasting issue, but there was no information available. Chair Kolff pointed out that activities resulting in emissions reductions between 2005 and 2012 will be revealed when the CAC collects data for 2012, one of the interim target-years. He also pointed out that even stabilizing emissions would be significantly better than the “business-as-usual” upward slope, and may be all that can be expected by 2012. Stan Willard asked if the committee members thought that any Industrial Emissions numbers in the forecast should reflect changing population figures; the consensus was not to do so. (A population growth of about 2% per year is assumed, a non-PTPC industrial growth and emissions increase of 2% could be assumed, and a 2% reduction per year in emissions from PTPC could be assumed.) There seemed to be consensus that the best way to handle the uncertainty was to merely “straight- line” the forecast of Industrial Emissions for the “business-as-usual” projections. Brainstorming Potential Measures Continuing work from the August 27th meeting, staff broke the CAC into three groups; each group was again given a model action plan to review: Whatcom, Bellingham, and “Best Bets”. Groups were asked to identify those measures that would transfer to the Jefferson County Plan and any other recommended measures for the Land Use, Solid Waste, Sewer, and Water sector. The public was invited to join in the exercise; Mr. Reding joined the “Bellingham” group. Each group drafted a list of potential measures for staff to continue compiling and collating. Staff to compile lists and eliminate duplication. (Comprehensive list should be available by the October 22nd meeting.) Updates and Announcements; Next Steps - Agenda Planning There was some discussion about the fact that a quorum was not achieved at this meeting, and therefore, while there was excellent discussion and continued work, official steps such as approving the minutes and agenda could not be taken. Members were asked if they can still accommodate the meeting day and time, to which the answer was affirmative from those present. Nora Burnfield will take Josh Bryant’s place as the student representative on the CAC, and Taylor Beard will continue to serve as Nora’s alternate. Nora was thanked for her willingness to take on the role of full committee member. There was also discussion about the materials needed for the open houses. The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 22nd from 3:30-5:30 p.m. at the Pope Marine Building in Port Townsend. Tentative Agenda: • Approve August and September meeting minutes • Adopt back-cast & forecast • Report on compiled list of potential measures • Report on open house series • Finalize Work Plan • Presentation on data collection strategies for existing measures. Staff will provide (by October 13th) open house presentation materials including blank flip charts, sample CAC work products, easels with markers, enlargements of back-cast and forecast graph(s), enlargements of potential measures compilation list, etc. Adjourn 5:30