...Title
Presentation to the City of San Leandro City Council on the Climate Action Plan 2021 Annual Update
...Staffreport
COUNCIL PRIORITY
• Infrastructure
• Sustainability & Resiliency
SUMMARY
The Climate Action Plan (CAP) 2021 was approved and adopted by City of San Leandro City Council in July 2021. Since then, the Sustainability Manager within the City Manager’s office has led related implementation initiatives as well as supported other departmental projects. Many of the strategies to address climate change identified in the CAP are in progress. Projects were prioritized based on existing regional and cross-departmental partnerships, funding opportunities, long-term goals, state requirements, and major impacts in greenhouse gas (GHG) reductions, equity, or other co-benefits. City staff will continue to work to implement related projects with a goal to complete the Tree Master Plan and Sea Level Rise Master Plan by the beginning of 2025.
BACKGROUND
The Sustainability Manager along with the City’s consultant PlaceWorks, led the CAP development during the period of 2019-2021. The CAP development project comprised of a robust community engagement process that included over 150 one-on-one and small group meetings, two public workshops, two public surveys, and three climate board game sessions. The CAP includes 54 climate mitigation strategies and 59 climate adaptation strategies, with implementation of each strategy envisioned to be completed through a lens of climate equity, and prioritizing benefits to frontline communities that are disproportionately impacted by climate change. The overall GHG emissions reduction target is 40% above 2005 baseline levels by 2030, matching the state 2030 target. The 2017 GHG inventory results showed that the City of San Leandro had achieved a 20% reduction at the community level and was on track to meet its 2020 goal of 25% reduction.
Analysis
With the large number of strategies in the plan, project prioritization remains crucial to its effective implementation. To this end, staff from across all city departments have identified and advanced programs or projects that aligned with the CAP strategies. This list was combined with projects that aligned with City Council adopted goals and which could generate substantive reductions in GHG emissions reduction, or otherwise advance equity or other co-benefits. Existing regional partnerships, funding opportunities, and state requirements determined the timing of projects.
Attached to this staff report is a list of highlighted accomplishments that were achieved over the past year in support of CAP implementation.
Thanks to these projects and work efforts, the City is generating a number of short- and long-term benefits, including:
• Reduced municipal energy costs from solarized municipal facilities
• Provision of essential infrastructure for mobility across the City
• Improved air quality, reduced urban heat, and increased tree canopy
• Reduced municipal paper resource consumption and costs
• Improved accessibility for communications and knowledge sharing
• Planning for long-term climate hazards and risks
• Reinvestment in local businesses
• Reduced municipal and community GHG emissions
• Reduced waste and resource consumption across the community
In the coming year, staff will continue working to plant trees through the CalFire grant and will aim to complete the Tree Master Plan and Sea Level Rise Plan by beginning of 2025. Additionally, initial seed funding will be provided to the resilience hubs for essential projects.
Committee Review and Actions
• The Climate Action Plan 2021 was approved and adopted by the City Council on July 19, 2021.
Fiscal Impacts and Budget Authority
No Council actions are needed for this informational presentation and it will not impact fund balance.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Attachment A - CAP Update Presentation
• Attachment B - Highlights of CAP-related accomplishments
PREPARED BY: Hoi-Fei Mok, Sustainability Manager, City Manager’s Office