HomeMy WebLinkAboutDocumentation_Environmental Advisory Committee_Tab 01_3/8/2023Agenda Item #1.
Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC)
STAFF MEMO
Meeting: Environmental Advisory Committee (EAC) - Mar 08 2023
Staff Contact: Robert Shaw Department: Environmental Advisory
Committee
TITLE
A Climate Action Plan for the VOT
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Proposed: Projected Remaining:
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ATTACHMENTS:
VOT Baseline GHG Emissions Inventory and Climate Action Plan 3.1.2023
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Table of Contents
ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability USA ...................
List of Tables ................................................................................................................................................. 3
List of Figures ................................................................................................................................................ 3
Inventory Calculations ................................................................................................................................... 5
Key Findings..................................................................................................................................................... 6
Climate Change............................................................................................................................................... 8
Greenhouse Gas Inventory as a Step Toward Carbon Neutrality .............................................. 10
ICLEI Climate Mitigation Milestones............................................................................................... 11
Inventory Methodology............................................................................................................................... 12
Understanding a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory .............................................................. 12
Community Emissions Protocol .......................................................................................................... 13
Local Government Operations (LGO) Protocol .............................................................................. 13
Quantifying Greenhouse Gas Emissions.......................................................................................... 14
......................................................................................................................... 14
................................................................................................................................................ 14
..................................................................................................................... 14
Community Emissions Inventory Results............................................................................................. 16
Local Government Operations Emissions Inventory Results .......................................................... 17
Appendix A: High Impact Analysis Summary Report ....................................................................... 1
...................................................................... 1
....................................................................
Acknowledgements .................................................................................................................................. 2
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 2
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Tables and Figures
List of Tables
Table 1: Global Warming Potential Values (IPCC, 2014) ............................................................................. 12
Table 2: Communitywide Emissions Inventory ........................................................................................... 16
Table 3: Local Government Operations Inventory ...................................................................................... 17
List of Figures
Figure 1: Community-wide Emissions by Sector ............................................
Figure 2: Government Operations Emissions by Sector ................................
Figure 3: ICLEI Climate Mitigation Milestones ............................................................................................ 11
Figure 4: Relationship of Community and Government Operations Inventories ....................................... 12
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 3
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Executive Summary
TheVillage of Tequesta (Village)conducted abaseline (2019)greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions inventory
following the internationally recognized Local Government Operations (LGO) protocol and the
community-wide U.S. Community Protocol (USCP), to better understand the sources and quantity of
GHG emissions community-wide, including from Village operations and facilities. Global warming is a
process whereby GHGs accumulating in the atmosphere contribute to an increase in the temperature of
the earth’s atmosphere. Greenhouse gases allow visible and ultraviolet light from the sun to pass
through the atmosphere, but they prevent heat from escaping back out into space, a process known as
the “greenhouse effect”. The main gases responsible for the greenhouse effect are carbon dioxide,
methane, and nitrous oxide.
The Village recognizes that greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from human activity are catalyzing
profound climate change, the consequences of which pose substantial risks to the future health,
wellbeing, and prosperity of our community. The findings in this report represent the Village’s carbon
footprint and will serve as the baseline for measuring the Village’s future climate action goals.
Prior to conducting its greenhouse gas inventory, the Village joined the International Council for Local
Environmental Initiatives – Local Governments for Sustainability USA (ICLEI) and this report was
prepared by the Village of Tequesta Building Department with assistance from the ICLEI.
While the Village has no current emissions
reduction goals set, it will be considering the ICLEI recommendation of a per capita reduction of 62.8%,
and absolute reduction of 58.2% by 2030, as shown in the ICLEI High Impact Action Analysis Summary
Report for the Village, attached hereto as Appendix A (HIA Summary). The HIA Summary projects the
Village’s GHG emissions from 2019 to 2030 based on forecasted changes in fuel use, land use,
population, historical trends and other factors.
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 4
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Inventory Calculations
This 2019 baseline inventory was calculated following the International Council for Local Environmental
Initiatives – Local Governments for Sustainability USA (ICLEI) ClearPath energy and emissions
management software tool to calculate and track greenhouse gas criteria air pollutant emissions. The
ClearPath software is also used to forecast future emissions levels and track progress towards meeting
th
reduction targets. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) 5 Assessment was used for
Global Warming Potential (GWP) values to convert methane and nitrous oxide to CO2 equivalent units.
ClearPath’s inventory calculators allow for input of the sector activity (i.e., kWh or VMT) and emissions
factor to calculate the final CO2e emissions.
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 5
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Key Findings
There are three types of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions: Scope 1, scope 2 and scope 3. Scope 1 emissions
are those from direct sources of GHG emissions that originate from facilities and/or equipment owned or
operated by the Village, including fossil fuel combustion and fleet fuel consumption. Scope 2 are emissions
made indirectly, including electricity or energy the Village buys for heating and cooling buildings from a utility
provider. Scope 3 are those indirect emissions that the Village is indirectly responsible for, up and down its
value chain, e.g., emissions from employee travel and commuting; emissions associated with contracted solid
waste disposal and wastewater treatment from sources owned or controlled by another entity. The
Inventory Results section of this report provides a detailed profile of emissions sources within the Village of
Tequesta. These data will also provide a baseline against which the Village will be able to compare future
performance and demonstrate progress in reducing emissions.
Figure 1: Community-wide Emissions by Sector and Scope
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 6
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Village Operations Emissions
Figure 2 shows local government operations emissions. Energy use in water and wastewater facilities
accounts for a vast majority (%) of these emissions. The next largest contributor is energy use in buildings
and facilities (2%) of emissions, followed by Vehicle Fleet (%). Actions to
reduce emissions from the above sectors will be a key part of any future climate action plans developed by
the Village of Tequesta. Street Lights & Traffic Signals were responsible for the remainder (less than 1%) of
local governmental operations emissions.
Figure 2: Local Government Operations Emissions by Sector and Scope
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 7
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Climate Change
Naturally occurring gases dispersed in the atmosphere determine the Earth’s climate by trapping solar
radiation. This phenomenon is known as the greenhouse effect. Overwhelming evidence shows that
human activities are increasing the concentration of greenhouse gases and changing the global climate.
The most significant contributor is the burning of fossil fuels for transportation, electricity generation and
other purposes, which introduces large amounts of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the
atmosphere. Collectively, these gases intensify the natural greenhouse effect, causing global average
surface and lower atmospheric temperatures to rise, threatening the safety, quality of life, and economic
prosperity of global communities. Although the natural greenhouse effect is needed to keep the earth
warm, a human enhanced greenhouse effect with the rapid accumulation of GHG in the atmosphere leads
to too much heat and radiation being trapped. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
Sixth Assessment Report confirms that human activities have unequivocally caused an increase in carbon
1
emissions. Many regions are already experiencing the consequences of global climate change, and the
Village of Tequesta is no exception.
Human activities are estimated to have caused approximately 1.0°C of global warming above pre-
industrial levels, with a likely range of 0.8°C to 1.2°C. Global warming is likely to reach 1.5°C between 2030
and 2052 if it continues to increase at the current rate. (high confidence) Warming from anthropogenic
emissions from the pre-industrial period to the present will persist for centuries to millennia and will
continue to cause further long-term changes in the climate system, such as sea level rise, with associated
impacts (high confidence), but these emissions alone are unlikely to cause global warming of 1.5°C
(medium confidence). Climate-related risks for natural and human systems are higher for global warming
of 1.5°C than at present, but lower than at 2°C (high confidence). These risks depend on the magnitude
and rate of warming, geographic location, levels of development and vulnerability, and on the choices and
2
implementation of adaptation and mitigation options (high confidence).
According to the 2018 National Climate Assessment
, the Southeast U.S. will experience potentially
devastating impacts from seasonal changes and hazards occurring at unprecedented magnitudes. Florida
is at particular risk for coastal hazards, flooding, erosion, and hurricanes that will continue to intensify
1
IPCC, 2021: Summary for Policymakers. In: Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of
Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
\[MassonDelmotte, V., P. Zhai, A. Pirani, S. L. Connors, C. Péan, S. Berger, N. Caud, Y. Chen, L. Goldfarb, M. I. Gomis,
M.Huang, K. Leitzell, E. Lonnoy, J. B. R. Matthews, T. K. Maycock, T. Waterfield, O. Yelekçi, R. Yu and B. Zhou
(eds.)\]. Cambridge University Press. In Press.
2
IPCC, 2018: Summary for Policymakers. In: Global Warming of 1.5°C. An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of
global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the
context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts
to eradicate poverty \[Masson-Delmotte, V., P. Zhai, H.-O. Pörtner, D. Roberts, J. Skea, P.R. Shukla, A. Pirani, W.
Moufouma-Okia, C. Péan, R. Pidcock, S. Connors, J.B.R. Matthews, Y. Chen, X. Zhou, M.I. Gomis, E. Lonnoy, T.
Maycock, M. Tignor, and T. Waterfield (eds.)\]. World Meteorological Organization, Geneva, Switzerland, 32 pp.
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 8
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with sea-level rise. The southeast U.S. will experience potentially devastating impacts from seasonal
changes and hazards occurring at unprecedented magnitudes. Southeast Florida, including the Village of
Tequesta, is at risk for coastal hazards, such as flooding, erosion, and hurricanes that will continue to
intensify with sea-level rise. So many people visit and move to this region to enjoy the beautiful coast, but
its seaside location also puts it at extreme risk. In addition, climate change will continue to produce
warmer seasons and extreme temperatures that threaten many sectors within the Village of Tequesta
3
and the greater region, most notably tourism, public health, and agriculture
.
In addition, climate change will continue to produce warmer seasons and extreme temperatures that
threaten many sectors within Palm Beach County and the greater region, most notably building safety,
public health and tourism.
Many communities in the United States have started to take responsibility for addressing climate change
at the local level. Reducing fossil fuel use in the community can have many benefits in addition to reducing
greenhouse gas emissions. More efficient use of energy decreases utility and transportation costs for
residents and businesses. Retrofitting homes and businesses to be more efficient creates local jobs. In
addition, when residents save on energy costs, they are more likely to be spend at local businesses and
add to the local economy. Reducing fossil fuel use improves air quality, and increasing opportunities for
walking and bicycling improves residents’ health.
3
U.S. Global Change Research Program. 2018 National Climate Assessment – Ch 19: Southeast. Retrieved from
https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/chapter/19/
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Greenhouse Gas Inventory as a Step Toward Carbon Neutrality
Facing the climate crisis requires the concerted efforts of local governments and their partners, those
that are close to the communities directly dealing with the impacts of climate change. Cities, towns and
counties are well placed to define coherent and inclusive plans that address integrated climate action -
climate change adaptation, resilience and mitigation. Existing targets and plans need to be reviewed to
bring in the necessary level of ambition and outline how to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 at the
latest. Creating a roadmap for climate neutrality requires the Village of Tequesta to identify priority
sectors for action, while considering climate justice, inclusiveness, local job creation and other benefits
of sustainable development.
To complete this inventory, the Village of Tequesta utilized tools and guidelines from ICLEI - Local
Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI), which provides authoritative direction for greenhouse gas
emissions accounting and defines climate neutrality as follows:
The targeted reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and GHG
avoidance in government operations and across the community in all
sectors to an absolute net-zero emission level at the latest by 2050.
In parallel to this, it is critical to adapt to climate change and enhance
climate resilience across all sectors, in all systems and processes.
To achieve ambitious emissions reductions and move toward climate neutrality, the Village of Tequesta
will need to set a clear goal and act rapidly following a holistic and integrated approach. Climate action
is an opportunity for our community to experience a wide range of co-benefits, such as creating socio-
economic opportunities, reducing poverty and inequality, and improving the health of people and
nature.
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ICLEI Climate Mitigation Milestones
In response to the climate emergency, many communities in the United States are taking responsibility
for addressing emissions at the local level. Since many of the major sources of greenhouse gas emissions
are directly or indirectly controlled through local policies, local governments have a strong role to play in
reducing greenhouse gas emissions within their boundaries, as well as influencing regional emissions
through partnerships and advocacy. Through proactive measures around land use patterns,
transportation demand management, energy efficiency, green building, waste diversion, and more, local
governments can dramatically reduce emissions in their communities. In addition, local governments are
primarily responsible for the provision of emergency services and the mitigation of natural disaster
impacts.
ICLEI provides a framework and methodology for local governments to identify and reduce greenhouse
gas emissions, organized along Five Milestones, also shown in Figure 3:
1.Conduct an inventory and forecast of local greenhouse gas emissions;
4
2.Establish a greenhouse gas emissions Science Based Target;
3.Develop a climate action plan for achieving the emissions reduction target;
4.Implement the climate action plan; and,
5.Monitor and report on progress.
This report represents the completion of ICLEI’s Climate Mitigation Milestone One, and provides a
foundation for future work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Village of Tequesta.
Figure 1: ICLEI Climate Mitigation Milestones
4
Science-Based Targets are calculated climate goals, in line with the latest climate science, that represent your
community’s fair share of the ambition necessary to meet the Paris Agreement commitment of keeping warming below
1.5°C. To achieve this goal, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) states that we must reduce global
emissions by 50% by 2030 and achieve climate neutrality by 2050. Equitably reducing global emissions by 50% requires
that high-emitting, wealthy nations reduce their emissions by more than 50%.
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 11
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Inventory Methodology
Understanding a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory
The first step toward achieving tangible greenhouse gas emission
reductions requires identifying baseline emissions levels and
sources and activities generating emissions in the community.
This report presents emissions from both the Village of
Tequesta community as a whole, and from operations of
the Village of Tequesta government. The government
operations inventory is mostly a subset of the community
inventory, as shown in Figure 4. For example, data on
commercial energy use by the community includes energy
consumed by municipal buildings, and community vehicle-
miles-traveled estimates include miles driven by municipal
fleet vehicles.
As local governments continue to join the climate
Figure 2: Relationship of Community and
protection movement, the need for a standardized
Government Operations Inventories
approach to quantify GHG emissions has proven essential.
This inventory uses the approach and methods provided by the U.S. Community Protocol for Accounting
and Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions (Community Protocol) and the Local Government Operations
Protocol for Accounting and Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions (LGO Protocol), both of which are
described below.
Three greenhouse gases are included in this inventory: carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous
oxide (N2O). Many of the charts in this report represent emissions in “carbon dioxide equivalent” (CO2e)
values, calculated using the Global Warming Potentials (GWP) for methane and nitrous oxide from the
th
IPCC 5 Assessment Report.
Table 1: Global Warming Potential Values (IPCC, 201)
Global Warming
Greenhouse Gas
Potential
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) 1
Methane (CH4) 28
Nitrous Oxide (N2O) 265
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Community Emissions Protocol
5
Version 1.2 of the U.S. Community Protocol for Accounting and Reporting GHG Emissions was released
by ICLEI in 2019, and represents a national standard in guidance to help U.S. local governments develop
effective community GHG emissions inventories. It establishes reporting requirements for all community
GHG emissions inventories, provides detailed accounting guidance for quantifying GHG emissions
associated with a range of emission sources and community activities, and provides a number of optional
reporting frameworks to help local governments customize their community GHG emissions inventory
reports based on their local goals and capacities.
The community inventory in this report includes emissions from the five Basic Emissions Generating
Activities required by the Community Protocol. These activities are:
Use of electricity by the community
On-road passenger and freight motor vehicle travel
Use of energy in potable water and wastewater treatment and distribution
Generation of solid waste by the community
The community inventory also includes the following activities:
Wastewater processing
The Village of Tequesta community-wide inventory followed the US Community Protocol. The Village is
compliant with US Community Protocol by addressing all of the aforementioned categories. The Village
will be considering emissions reductions from these five basic emissions generating activities.
Local Government Operations (LGO) Protocol
In 2010, ICLEI, the California Air Resources Board (CARB), and the California Climate Action Registry (CCAR)
released Version 1.1 of the LGO Protocol.6 The LGO Protocol serves as the national standard for
quantifying and reporting greenhouse emissions from local government operations. The purpose of the
LGO Protocol is to provide the principles, approach, methodology, and procedures needed to develop a
local government operations greenhouse gas emissions inventory.
The following activities are included in the LGO inventory:
Energy consumption from buildings & facilities
5
ICLEI. 2012. US Community Protocol for Accounting and Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions. Retrieved from
http://www.icleiusa.org/tools/ghg-protocol/community-protocol
6
ICLEI. 2008. Local Government Operations Protocol for Accounting and Reporting Greenhouse Gas Emissions.
Retrieved from http://www.icleiusa.org/programs/climate/ghg-protocol/ghg-protocol
Village of Tequesta 2019 Inventory of Community and Government GHG Emissions 13
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Wastewater treatment processes
On-road transportation from employee commute and vehicle fleet
Quantifying Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Communities contribute to greenhouse gas emissions in many ways. Two central categorizations of
emissions are used in the community inventory: 1) GHG emissions that are produced by “sources” located
within the community boundary, and 2) GHG emissions produced as a consequence of community
“activities”.
Source Activity
Any physical process inside the The use of energy, materials,
jurisdictional boundary that and/or services by members of the
releases GHG emissions into the community that result in the
atmosphere creation of GHG emissions.
By reporting on both GHG emissions sources and activities, local governments can develop and promote
a deeper understanding of GHG emissions associated with their communities. A purely source-based
emissions inventory could be summed to estimate total emissions released within the community’s
jurisdictional boundary. In contrast, a purely activity-based emissions inventory could provide perspective
on the efficiency of the community, even when the associated emissions occur outside the jurisdictional
boundary. The division of emissions into sources and activities replaces the scopes framework that is used
in government operations inventories, but that does not have a clear definition for application to
community inventories.
The inventory process requires the selection of a base year with which to compare current emissions. The
Village of Tequesta’s community greenhouse gas emissions inventory utilizes 2019 as its baseline year,
because it is the most recent year for which the necessary data are available.
Greenhouse gas emissions can be quantified in two ways:
Measurement-based methodologies refer to the direct measurement of greenhouse gas
emissions (from a monitoring system) emitted from a flue of a power plant, wastewater treatment
plant, landfill, or industrial facility.
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Activity Data x Emission Factor = Emissions
Most emissions sources in this inventory are quantified using calculation-based methodologies. Activity
data refer to the relevant measurement of energy use or other greenhouse gas-generating processes such
as fuel consumption by fuel type, metered annual electricity consumption, and annual vehicle miles
traveled. Please see appendices for a detailed listing of the activity data used in composing this inventory.
Known emission factors are used to convert energy usage or other activity data into associated quantities
of emissions. Emissions factors are usually expressed in terms of emissions per unit of activity data (e.g.
lbs CO2/kWh of electricity). For this inventory, calculations were made using ICLEI’s ClearPath tool.
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Community Emissions
Inventory Results
The information contained in this Inventory Results section provides a detailed profile of emissions
sources within the Village of Tequesta; information that is key to guiding local reduction efforts. This
2019 data will also provide a baseline against which the Village will be able to compare future
performance and demonstrate progress in reducing emissions.
The total communitywide emissions for the 2019 inventory are shown in Table 2 and Figure 5 below.
Table 2: Communitywide Emissions Inventory
2019 Emissions
Sector Fuel or source 2019 Usage Usage unit
(MTCOe)
2
Residential energy Electricity (Florida Power & Light)47,693,993 kWh 14,457
Residential energy total14,457
Commercial energy Electricity30,623,571 kWh 9,283
Commercial energy total 9,283
Industrial energyElectricity14,085 kWh 4
Industrial energy total 4
On-road Gasoline 40,786,452 VMT16,836
transportation
Diesel 4,224,170 VMT6,220
Transportation total
Solid Waste Waste Generated 15 Tons8
Solid waste total 8
Water and Water Treatment Energy Usage 6
1
Tons
wastewater
Water and wastewater total 6
Total community-wide emissions
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Local Government Operations Emissions
Inventory Results
The Village of Tequesta’s government operations emissions for 2019 are shown in Table 3 below.
Table 3: Local Government Operations Inventory
Usage 2019 Emissions
Sector Fuel or source 2019 Usage
unit (MTCOe)
2
Buildings & Facilities Electricity 1,408,370kWh 427
Buildings & Facilities total 427
Street Lights & Traffic Electricity 3,072kWh 0 (less than 1)
Signals
Street Lights & Traffic Signals total 0
Vehicle Fleet Gasoline 12,211GAL107
Diesel 2,940GAL30
Vehicle Fleet total 137
Employee Commute Gasoline 664058 VMT 241
6877 VMT 3
Employee Commute Total 244
Solid Waste Waste Generation 0.27 Tons 0 (less than 1)
Solid waste total 0
1,301
Water and wastewater 6,088 People
Water and wastewater total 1,301
Total government emissions 2,110
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Acknowledgements
This baseline 2019 inventory was compiled by the Village of Tequesta Building Department with the
assistance of ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability USA (ICLEI), and the Florida League of Cities
Race to Zero Cohort. This template was created by ICLEI in 2022.
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