Going Green in a Blue Economy…NC Sustainability Lessons Learned 24 October 2011 – NCLM, Raleigh

Maggie Ullman, AshevilleRichard Douglas, SelmaRob Phocas, CharlotteDavid Spector, CDM

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Session Objectives

Provide perspective from successful sustainability initiatives in large, medium, and smaller cities

• Provide case studies on strategic planning for green programs

• Provide lessons learned for implementing green initiatives and the funding/financing strategies used in a down economy

Going Green in a Blue Economy: NC Lessons Learned

PLANNING TO BE GREENGetting Started

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Presentation Objectives

• Profile the “birth” of, and strategic planning for, city-wide programmatic green initiatives

• Identify lessons learned for getting started

• Lay the groundwork for the panel discussion on implementation

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Similarities: Charlotte and Asheville Approaches

• Predicated on energy/$$ savings

• Community and municipal GHG emissions baselines

• Flexible implementation approaches

• Sustainability Manager and Green Teams to implement

• Monitoring and reporting protocols

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Charlotte: Emissions Inventory

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Charlotte: Energy Strategy Planning Context

EECBG Funding

• City applies for initial $250,000 to develop DOE-required Energy Strategy & conduct energy audits for City facilities

• Once Energy Strategy approved by DOE, City can apply for ½ of remaining EECBG ($3.2M) to implement components of the Energy Strategy

• Remaining $3.2M given after reporting on initial results

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Charlotte: Energy Strategy Development

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

Potential Projects

City & Community

Ranking High Priority

Low Priority

DOERequirements

Compatible

Not Compatible

Energy Strategy

Action Plan

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Charlotte: Project Prioritization

• Air Quality and GHG Emissions• Community Catalyst• Return on Investment• Job Creation Potential

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

• Innovation and Leadership• Implementability• Leveraging Programs and

Partnerships

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Charlotte: Monitoring & Communication

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Asheville: Emissions Inventory

• GHG Assessment completed in 2001 and 2007

• 2007 GHG Emissions in 2007 were 36,216 MTCO2e, similar to energy needed for 1 year to power 3,295 homes or 6,633 vehicles

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Asheville: Sustainability Plan Context

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

• Created Sustainability Advisory Committee and Office of Sustainability in 2006

• Resolution passed in 2007 committing to a reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 2% per year until 80% reduction.

• Resolution identifies the need for a management plan

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Asheville: Sustainability Plan Development

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Asheville: Project Prioritization

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

• Recommendations ranked according to:

• Existence of current program or activity• Environmental benefit• Economic benefit• Social benefit• Financial incentive• Personnel availability and

capacity

• Organizational leadership• Technical feasibility• Stakeholder concerns• Regulatory requirement• Contribution to established

goals• Timeframe to realize benefits

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Asheville: Monitoring and Reporting

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Selma Green Initiatives

• Environmental leadership and commitment• LEED building renovations for police, fire, and library facilities • Energy audits for utility customers/grants for efficiency

improvements• Electric and water conservation programs• Curbside recycling program

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

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Getting Started

Getting Started: Planning to be Green

Establish Committee

Public Declaration

Identify Champion

Identify Stakeholder

s

Identify Opportuniti

es

Conduct Assessment

Focus Areas / Goals

Develop Vision

Identify Metrics & Targets

Develop Action Plans

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Thoughts on Sustainable/Energy Planning

• Spend the extra time at the front end to clearly align planning expectations among diverse stakeholders.

• Focus on continuous and flexible approaches to securing stakeholder buy-in during the process so that the initial ideas themselves are “sustainable” and the desired outcomes are achievable.

• Emphasize flexible implementation approaches, performance management, tracking and communications

• Consider the “scale” of the plan (municipal operations vs. community)

Getting Started: Planning to be Green