Upcoming
Climate-Related Events
Latest
News
Core
District Initiatives
Climate
Protection Resources
What
Can You Do?
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Climate
Action Leadership Summit
In May 2009,
the Air District hosted a Climate Action Leadership Summit with the goal
of accelerating implementation of policies and projects in the Bay Area
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At the Summit , world-renowned journalist
Thomas Friedman, author of “Hot, Flat and Crowded: Why We Need a Green
Revolution – and How It Can Renew America,” delivered a keynote address
that emphasized the power of local governments in pushing a greener economy
for the region and country. Summit attendees then participated in hands-on
working sessions targeted to local governments on implementing climate
solutions and building capacity to address state climate legislation.
F
ollowing the Summit , the Air District Board of Directors added climate
protection to the Air District’s mission, signaling its commitment to pursuing
greenhouse gas reduction through all District programs and initiatives.
Core
District Initiatives
In
2005, the Bay Area Air District initiated a Climate Protection Program.
On June 1, 2005 the Air District Board of Directors adopted a resolution
establishing a Climate Protection Program and acknowledging the link
between climate protection and programs to reduce air pollution in the
Bay Area. The Board of Directors also formed a standing Committee
on Climate Protection to provide direction on District climate protection
activities.
A
central element of the District’s climate protection program is the integration
of climate protection activities into existing District programs. The
District is continually seeking ways to integrates climate protection
into current District functions, including grant programs, CEQA commenting,
regulations, inventory development, and outreach In
addition, the District's climate protection program emphasizes collaboration
with ongoing climate protection efforts at the local and State level,
public education and outreach and technical assistance to cities and counties.
Climate
Protection Grant Program
The
Air District awarded $3 million to fund 53 local projects that will
significantly reduce the Bay Area’s carbon footprint. This
$3 million represents the largest single source of funding available
for climate protection projects in the Bay Area, and makes the Air District
one of the top founders of climate protection activities in the country.
For
more information on this program click here.
4th
and 5th Grade Curriculum
Protect
Your Climate is a climate protection curriculum targeted at 4th
and 5th graders. The curriculum’s 16 lessons investigate the science
and causes of climate change and how students can take action to protect
our climate. Through hands-on activities, students learn ways to reduce
greenhouse gas emissions from energy, waste, and transportation uses.
Lessons are connected to the California state content standards.
After
successfully completing a pilot year in 2007-2008, the curriculum program
was expanded to include 40 classrooms in the 2008-2009 school year.
The participating teachers and approximately 1,000 students in the program
are learning how to take action for climate protection in their classrooms,
homes, and communities.
Protect
Your Climate is now available for download! Click
here to download the full curriculum. Or download the curriculum
by section below. Interested
teachers, please use this link to download the curriculum.
Teachers
and other interested people are invited to use the curriculum in their
classrooms, schools, and education programs. See
this flyer for more general information on the curriculum program.
Please
contact Sigalle
Michael
for questions.
Regional
GHG Inventory
The Air District's regional
greenhouse gas inventory has served as an analysis and educational tool
for policy makers throughout the Bay Area. The regional inventory
provides an overview of greenhouse gas emission sources in the Bay Area,
including a breakdown by county levels and emission sectors. Using
the regional inventory, Air District staff and others may identify emission
sectors where potential greenhouse gas and criteria pollutant emission
reductions can be achieved. The first regional greenhouse gas
inventory was published in 2006 and represented emissions from base
year 2002. Click
here to view and download.
The Air District's updated
regional greenhouse gas inventory, representing base year 2007, is now
available. Click
here to view and download.
Compared with the previous
regional inventory, the updated inventory reflects more current industrial
activity, motor vehicle travel, and economic and population growth.
The updated inventory also contains certain changes in calculation
methodologies such as the inclusion of indirect electricity emissions.
Click here to read more about differences between the updated regional
inventory and the previous one.
CAPCOA
CEQA White Paper
Air
District staff, in collaboration with the California Air Pollution Control
Officers Association, published a white paper entitled
CEQA
& Climate Change: Evaluating and Addressing Greenhouse Gas Emissions
from Projects Subject to the California Environmental Quality Act .
This well-received treatise serves as a resource for public agencies
as they establish procedures for reviewing greenhouse gas emissions
from projects under CEQA. It considers the application of thresholds
and offers three alternative programmatic approaches toward determining
whether greenhouse gas emissions are significant. The paper also
evaluates tools and methodologies for estimating impacts, and summarizes
mitigation measures. For questions on the CAPCOA White Paper, contact
Greg Tholen.
ICLEI-BAAQMD
Workshop Series
The
Air District has an ongoing partnership with ICLEI Local Governments
for Sustainability to host a series of local government workshops on
developing greenhouse gas emission inventories and selecting climate
protection strategies. Workshops have been hosted for local governments
in San Mateo , Santa Clara and Marin counties. The Air District and
partners ICLEI, PG&E and MTC, have provided workshop participants
with city-specific data sets and hands-on training. Over 30 local government
staff have participated and developed greenhouse gas emission inventories
for their communities. For more information on this workshop series
contact Ana Sandoval.
GHG
Fee for Stationary Sources Adopted
On May 21,
2008, Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s Board of Directors
approved a new fee on air pollution sources in the region to help defray
the costs of the District’s climate protection work. Industrial
facilities and businesses that are currently required to submit an air
quality permit to operate will have the modest fee of 4.4 cents per
metric ton of greenhouse gas emissions added to their permit bill. The
fee will apply to Climate Protection Program activities related to stationary
sources. For more information on the fee, see the links below.
GHG
Technology Studies
Phase
1: Opportunities for Further Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions for
the BAAQMD Stationary Sources, March 2007
The
District conducted a region-wide study to identify and evaluate potential
greenhouse gas emission control options for application at stationary
sources in the Bay Area region in California. The study identified the
industries and source categories which most significantly contribute
to greenhouse gas emissions and potential mitigation options for controlling
those emissions. The study qualitatively evaluated the effectiveness,
costs, and impacts of each of the most promising options. The
study is available for download here.
Phase
2: Greenhouse Gas Mitigation: Landfill Gas; Industrial, Institutional
and Commercial Boilers; Steam Generators and Process Heaters, April
2008
The
follow-up report, Greenhouse Gas Mitigation: Landfill Gas; Industrial,
Institutional and Commercial Boilers; Steam Generators and Process Heaters,
is now complete and available for download here.
Internal
Climate Protection Efforts
Air
District conducted a greenhouse gas emission inventory of its own operations
for calendar year 2006 and offset those emissions by investing in renewable
energy development. In becoming carbon neutral, the Air District offset
1,645 metric tons of greenhouse gases. The Air District is continuing
to evaluate and implement measures to reduce electricity and fuel consumption
associated with Air District activities. The
District is a reporting member of the California
Climate Action Registry and
Sustainable
Silicon Valley.
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Resources
for Local Governments
Association
of Bay Area Governments
ABAG coordinates a host of
regional planning and local service programs. Among them is the Focusing
Our Vision or "FOCUS" program which builds on existing progress
related to smart growth to meld local and regional objectives into a
refined development strategy for the Bay Area. ABAG also serves as the
regional Census Data Center and publishes its own Demographic
and Economic forecasts. ABAG
Energy Watch helps local governments implement cost-effective, energy
saving projects in public facilities. The
Green Business Program assists, verifies and recognizes businesses
that operate in an environmentally responsible way. See http://www.abag.ca.gov/
for information on these more programs.
California
Air Pollution Control Officers' Association
CAPCOA is an Association of
Air Pollution Control Officers representing all thirty-five local air
quality agencies throughout California. See CAPCOA's
new climate change web site for news and information on upcoming
events.
California
Air Resources Board
Through the
Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, AB32, ARB has been tasked with
developing Early Action Measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Among the 44 adopted measures, is the development of local
government greenhouse gas reduction guidance/protocols.
The Act also
requires ARB to develop a
Scoping Plan to outline the main strategies California will use
to reduce the greenhouse gases (GHG) that cause climate change. it will
include a range of actions which can include direct regulations, alternative
compliance mechanisms, monetary and non-monetary incentives, voluntary
actions, and market-based mechanisms such as a cap-and-trade system.
For
a listing of upcoming ARB activities related to AB 32, see http://www.arb.ca.gov/app/calendar/cc_cur_evnt.php
California
Climate Action Team
Led
by the Secretary of Cal EPA, this team convenes top officials from California
agencies. In particular, the Land Use Subcommittee, coordinated
by the Chair of the California Energy
Commission, addresses and makes recommendations on land use and smart
growth tools for reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
The
Climate Protection Campaign
Governor's
Office of Planning and Research (OPR)
Pursuant to
Senate Bill 97, OPR is in the process of developing CEQA guidelines
“for the mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions or the effects of greenhouse
gas emissions.” due to the Resources Agency on or before July 1, 2009.
See OPR's web site forma list of environmental
documents addressing climate change and a list of City
and County plans addressing climate change.
ICLEI
Local Governments for Sustainability
An international
organization with US headquarters in the Bay Area that provides resources,
tools, peer networking, best practices, and technical assistance to
help local governments measure and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in
their communities.
Institute
for Local Government (ILG) California
Climate Action Network (CCAN)
The
California Climate Action Network was formed to help California communities
play a leadership role both to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to
prepare for the consequences of climate change. See CCAN’s Best
Practices Framework, recordings
of a Climate101 seminar, and a host of helpful information.
Joint
Policy Committee (JPC)
JPC coordinates
the regional planning efforts of the Air
District, Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), the
Bay Conservation and Development Commission, and the Metropolitan
Transportation Commission (MTC). Among the JPC's current initiatives
are focused growth,
climate protection, and a new approach to the Bay Area's long-range
regional
transportation plan .
Joint
Venture Silicon Valley Network
Joint Venture
Silicon Valley Network has created a climate protection task force composed
of representatives from almost every city and county in Silicon Valley,
plus several special districts and representatives from Pacific Gas
and Electric and SunPower. The Task Force seeks to develop effective,
collaborative, solutions for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions
from public agency operations, by providing a neutral forum for city
and county government agencies and special districts to learn from each
other and from others about climate protection programs.
Local
Government Commission
The Local
Government Commission assists local governments in establishing and
nurturing the key elements of livable communities. Current climate protection
activity includes a statewide
CEQA and Climate Change workshop series along with an AB32
Implementation Project. Attend the March
20 workshop in Oakland, cosponsored by the Attorney General's Office
and the Bay Area Air District.
Office
of the Attorney General
Covers extensive
information on global warming, along with CEQA
comment letters written by the Attorney General's office, a list
of mitigation measures, and a summary of modeling
tools to estimate greenhouse gas emissions from projects and plans.
Metropolitan
Transportation Commission (MTC)
MTC is the
transportation planning, coordinating and financing agency for the nine-county
San Francisco Bay Area. MTC has developed policies,
funding programs, and technical studies to enhance transportation
alternatives and encourage smart growth in the Bay Area. MTC provides
technical assistance and capital grants to assist local governments
in various projects such as transit oriented development, transit station
area plans, multmodal travel, and parking policies.
PG&E
San
Francisco Bay Conservation Development Commission
BCDC’s Climate
Change Planning Project seeks to identify and report on the impacts
of climate change on San Francisco Bay and to identify strategies for
adapting to climate change. Attend BCDC's April 16 workshop for local
governments, Preparing
for Sea Level Rise in the Bay Area.
Sustainable
Silicon Valley
A
collaboration of businesses, governments, and non-governmental organizations
working work to reduce regional carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions 20%
below 1990 levels by 2010. See SSV's list
of helpful educational forums and focused monthly meetings.
Land
Use Resources
Air
District CEQA Guidelines
BAAQMD
CEQA Guidelines: Assessing the Air Quality Impacts of Projects and Plans
provides guidance to Lead Agencies, consultants, and other parties
regarding air quality analyses conducted pursuant to the California
Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The document provides guidance on
evaluating air quality impacts of development projects and local plans,
determining whether an impact is significant, and mitigating significant
air quality impacts.
Association
of Bay Area Governments
See the ABAG
FOCUS web site for resources on: Policy-based
projections, transportation
& land use, TOD
policy, Regional
housing needs, TLC
& HIP, Corridors.
Note, ABAG is hosting a series of meetings on Land Use Requirements
Targets in March and April 2008.
CEQA and Climate Change:
A resource document to addressing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions
from projects subject to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA)
Developed
by the California Air Pollution Control Officers Association (CAPCOA),
and led by Bay Area Air District staff, this white paper is intended
to provide a common platform of information about key elements of CEQA
as they pertain to GHG, including an analysis of different approaches
to setting significance thresholds. It reviews currently available tools
and models for evaluating GHG emissions as well as an overview of strategies
for mitigating potentially significant GHG emissions from projects.
More information.
The
Role of Land Use in Meeting California's Energy and Climate Change
Goals
Developed
by California Energy Commission's (Energy Commission) Integrated Energy
Policy Report (IEPR) Committee (Committee), this report describes how
different land use patterns could reduce the use of energy in California
and therefore, reduce the generation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
The report makes recommendations on how to address the gap between expected
reductions from current measures and the reductions necessary to meet
the State's targets. More
information.
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Ten
Things YOU Can Do to Protect the Climate
The
most severe climate change impacts can still be avoided or reduced if
we act now. We can all take actions to reduce emissions of greenhouse
gases. Driving less, or driving more fuel efficiently will reduce green
house gas emissions, as will recycling, composting, and reducing the
amount of waste we produce. Using less electricity and water will also
contribute to a reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases.
Drive
Smart
Cut
down on speeding, rapid acceleration and heavy braking. Inefficient
driving can reduce gas mileage by 30%.
Light
Right
Replace
incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent ones that use 60%
less energy. See
here for information on CFL light bulb disposal.
Pull
the Plug
Disconnect
electronic devices that are not in use. Passive usage now accounts for
10% of all home energy use.
Think
Before You Fly
Take
vacations closer to home and use teleconferences for work meetings.
Air travel is one of the fastest-growing producers of greenhouse gas
emissions.
2
Degrees = 2,000 Pounds
Set
the thermostat 2 degrees higher in the summer and lower in the winter
to save one ton of carbon emissions yearly.
Turn
off the Tap
Save
water and save energy: 20% of electricity and 30% of natural gas in
California is used just to transport, treat and heat water and wastewater.
Take
the Oil Out of Your Food
Buy more local groceries and products instead of items that must be
transported long distance.
Lose
the Trash
Use
products with less packaging. Manufacturing, transporting, and disposing
of packaging all contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.
Cancel
Your Carbon
Calculate
your greenhouse gas emissions, then pay to “offset” the damage by funding
low-carbon energy alternatives. To
calculate your emissions go here.
Be
Loud
Talk
to your clients and vendors, community leaders and elected officials.
Tell them you want climate protection to be “business as usual.”
The
Science Behind Climate Change
Climate
change refers to change in the Earth’s weather patterns including the
rise in the Earth’s temperature due to an increase in heat-trapping
or "greenhouse" gases in the atmosphere. Greenhouse gases
include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, hydrofluorocarbons,
perfluorocarbons, and sulfur hexafluoride among others. The
Earth’s natural climate has been constantly changing. However, the International
Panel on Climate Change(IPCC) concludes that the global climate is changing
at a rate unmatched in the past one thousand years and that this change
is due to human activity.
Human
activities are adding large amounts of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
Combustion of fossil fuels for heat, electricity and transportation
is the main source of these gases. These heat-trapping gases allow sunlight
to come in, but do not allow radiative heat from the earth to escape
into outer space, thus altering the energy balance of the earth and
resulting in climate change.
Climate
change is already happening: the average surface temperature of the
Earth has increased about one degree Fahrenheit over the last century,
there has been a rise in ocean water temperatures and mean sea level,
and snow and ice cover have decreased at the poles and on mountain glaciers.
Correspondingly, seasons have been changing, the growing season has
lengthened and trees are flowering earlier. As a result of these climatic
changes, some animal and plant ranges have been migrating toward higher
latitudes while other plant and animal species have experienced a decline
in population. If climate change remains unabated, surface temperatures
are expected to increase anywhere from 1.4 to 5.8 degrees Fahrenheit
by the end of the century.
Emissions
of carbon dioxide (CO2) are the leading cause of global warming, with
other air pollutants such as methane, nitrous oxide and hydrofluorocarbons
also contributing. Carbon dioxide concentrations, which ranged from
265 ppm to 280 ppm over the last 10,000 years, only began rising in
the last two hundred years to current levels of 365 ppm, a 30% increase.
According
to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 1998 had the
warmest average global temperature on record, and the 10 warmest years
on record have all occurred since 1990. In California, climate change
indicators measured over the past 100 years such as air temperature,
annual Sierra Nevada snow melt runoff, and rising sea levels all indicate
that California’s climate is warming. Warming in the 21st century is
expected to be much greater than in the 20th century, with temperatures
in the United States rising 5-9 degrees F. The climate change experienced
in California attributable to human activity so far has been gradual,
as assumed in most climate change projections. However, paleoclimatological
researchers, studying past changes in the climate system, are discovering
that the Earth’s climate has experienced sudden and violent shifts and
that global warming may trigger thresholds resulting in dramatic changes
in the climate.
Increased
global warming is expected to result in more extreme precipitation and
faster evaporation of water, disrupting water supplies, energy supply
and demand, agriculture, forestry, natural habitat, outdoor recreation,
air quality, and public health.
Climate
change affects public health because the higher temperatures result
in more air pollutant emissions, increased smog, and associated respiratory
disease and heart-related illnesses. (In one instance, 21 to 38% of
the deaths occurring during a heat wave were attributed to elevated
ozone and PM10 levels.) Increasing temperatures threaten to erode the
dramatic improvements in Bay Area air quality achieved over the past
50 years.
For
more background information on climate change see:
Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change
U.S.
Environmental Protection Agency
Pew
Center on Global Climate Change
Union
of Concerned Scientists Global Warming Web site
Climatologic
Stephen Schneider’s Climate Change Overview
National
Academy of Science
Global Change Web site
Additional
Bay Area Climate Protection Resources
Past
Events
If
you have any questions or comments regarding the contents of this web
site, contact
Abby
Young, Principal Environmental Planner.
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