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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD - MINUTES - 12/16/2024 1 12/16/2024 - Minutes Air Quality Advisory Board REGULAR MEETING Monday, December 16, 2024 – 5:30 PM 222 Laporte Avenue, Colorado River Room 1. CALL TO ORDER: 5:30 PM 2. ROLL CALL ● Board Members Present – • Dan Welsh (Chair) • Mark Houdashelt (Vice Chair) • Adam Schmidt • Michael Cheeseman • Jeremiah Gorske • Michael Johnson (arrived late) ● Board Members Absent – • Matt Ayres • Maria Moore ● Staff Members Present – • Selina Lujan de Albers, Staff Liaison ● Guest(s) – • None 3. AGENDA REVIEW No changes. 4. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION None. 5. APPROVAL OF MINUTES – NOVEMBER 2024 Members discussed changes to the minutes. Schmidt made a motion, seconded by Cheeseman, to approve the minutes of the November 2024 meeting as amended. The motion was adopted unanimously. 6. PREVIOUS BUSINESS 2 12/16/2024 - Minutes None. 7. NEW BUSINESS a. City of Fort Collins’ Building Performance Standards Presentation – Katherine Bailey, Utilities Energy Services Program Manager Katherine Bailey, Utilities Energy Services Program Manager, stated Building Performance Standards (BPS) is a proposed regulatory efficiency policy for commercial and multi-family buildings in Fort Collins. She noted about a third of the buildings in Fort Collins are already meeting energy efficiency targets while some others may face significant economic or technical barriers meeting the standards; therefore, many jurisdictions have a cap on the maximum amount of energy use reduction required by any building. Fort Collins is proposing a 15% energy use reduction cap for smaller buildings and a 25% reduction cap for larger buildings. Bailey noted the rebate and incentive program for energy efficiency has been in place for over 20 years, and it has provided a great deal of data, part of which is total project cost. Bailey noted Building Performance Standards are essential to achieving the City’s goal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80% from 2005 levels by 2030, as outlined in Our Climate Future. Additionally, there are physical health benefits and economic health benefits, including reduced energy burden, higher occupancy rates, higher tenant retention, and higher resale value. Bailey outlined potential negative impacts of Building Performance Standards, including inequitable impacts, the accuracy of projected impacts, and concerns related to building owners not having sufficient staff to implement the requirements. Bailey noted the adopted BPS framework could include policy changes, such as altering the timeline and delaying the final target, altering the covered building list, and lowering the energy use reduction cap. Bailey stated there is a perception that economic and environmental health goals conflict and discussed the overlap between the two areas. She outlined the impact of Building Performance Standards, specifically in terms of metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, and discussed how the greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals would be impacted by delaying the implementation of BPS. Bailey stated BPS is an efficiency pathway and efficiency enables strategic electrification. In terms of cost, Bailey stated the absolute total dollar amount for BPS is $270 million, which includes $44 million in administrative costs, most (all but ~4-5 million) of which would occur with or without BPS. The estimated community cost is $226 million for building upgrades, which does not include rebates, incentives, tax deductions, or business as usual assumptions. Bailey noted BPS would pay for itself by 2038 just in energy costs avoided, and by 2050, the community would avoid $630 million in energy costs. Bailey also noted it is cheaper to save energy than to buy or build new energy. Bailey stated BPS serves as a climate change mitigation strategy and noted climate change is getting more expensive every year. She outlined the next steps for BPS, which include a third Council work session in January. Bailey noted it is important for 3 12/16/2024 - Minutes everyone to be aware of the impacts of delaying adoption of the policy. Vice Chair Houdashelt asked if the cost savings estimates are based on current day costs and whether future PRPA rate increases are considered. Bailey replied rate increases are considered. Chair Welsh asked if regional and ancillary considerations play into the metrics. Bailey noted efficiency is less expensive than building new solar and stated all renewables that will be necessary to meet the City’s goals will be built by Platte River Power Authority. A Board member asked if there are any financial incentives being considered to encourage buildings to reduce energy use further than the 15% and 25% numbers. Bailey replied the policy focuses on those numbers but noted there will be under- resourced building incentives and early adopter incentives. See fcgov.com/IDAP for more information. A Board member asked if staff has any sense of how the next four years of federal policy may impact the regional make up of energy consumption and production. Bailey replied staff is not necessarily concerned about how production will be impacted. In terms of federal dollars that support building efficiency, there is some room for optimism in terms of BPS as many high-level Republicans have constituents who have benefitted from the carrots in the Inflation Reduction Act dollars. Chair Welsh asked if there are similar programs for smaller residential buildings. Bailey replied the City has a number of programs, including the EPIC Homes program which targets residential buildings. Vice Chair Houdashelt asked if it is anticipated that this will be the first step in BPS and whether buildings will ultimately be required to be more energy efficient over time. Bailey replied most BPS policies are created over a longer period of time with interim steps along the way and noted the methodological approach used for the final 2030 targets is the approach that would have been used to set an interim target. Bailey noted there is a 2050 carbon neutral goal for Fort Collins and stated staff would like to take the question to Council as to whether a regulatory pathway like BPS would be appropriate to enforce that goal. Chair Welsh asked if Bailey is seeking specific support from the Board prior to the work session. Bailey replied staff would appreciate a memo if it would be feasible for the Board. Chair Welsh stated it could be difficult to have a memo drafted and approved by the date of the work session but noted the Board could find a more tangible way to support the effort in the future. Members discussed drafting a short memo now indicating the Board’s support for keeping BPS on its original schedule. (**Secretary’s Note: The Board went on to discuss some Other Business items prior to returning to this topic.) Members discussed wording for a short memo expressing support for maintaining 4 12/16/2024 - Minutes the established timeframe for BPS adoption given concerns about air quality impacts and not achieving 2030 greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals should adoption be delayed. Schmidt made a motion, seconded by Johnson, to approve the memo language. The motion was adopted unanimously. Lujan de Albers stated she would submit the memo to Council in the coming days. b. Public Outreach Chair Welsh stated he recently met with Dawson Metcalf, Chair of the Natural Resources Advisory Board, Ross Cunniff, Chair of the Land Conservation and Stewardship Board, and Councilmember Kelly Ohlson, during which Councilmember Ohlson announced he would not be seeking reelection in the fall; therefore, the Board will be getting a new Council liaison at that time. Chair Welsh stated he broached the idea of the Board seeking some latitude in conducting or supporting education and outreach efforts and Councilmember Ohlson seemed receptive to the idea. Chair Welsh stated he also noted it may be easier to direct staff to conduct more education efforts rather than change the Code to allow for the Board to conduct those efforts. He stated the next logical step is to meet with the City’s new education and outreach staff member at the January meeting to see what is planned from that perspective. 8. OTHER BUSINESS a. Board Member Reports A Board Member reported on attending the American Geophysical. Union conference in Washington, D.C. and on being on a panel of eight people, three of whom were from Fort Collins. Vice Chair Houdashelt reported on a new watch technology that can identify and record exposure to various air pollutants throughout the day. He noted the watches themselves are costly and payment is required for analysis. Members discussed other similar items. Chair Welsh reported on the Air Quality Monitoring Advisory Committee meeting which was an interactive event with an artist whose topic is environmental pollution. b. Electing a Vice Chair Chair Welsh asked Vice Chair Houdashelt if he would be willing to remain in the position until after new members are on board. Vice Chair Houdashelt replied in the affirmative. c. Rescheduling January and February Meetings Members discussed rescheduling the January meeting to the 27th and the February meeting to the 24th. Cheeseman made a motion, seconded by Gorske, to move the January meeting to the 27th. The motion was adopted unanimously. 5 12/16/2024 - Minutes Gorske made a motion, seconded by Cheeseman, to move the February meeting to the 24th. The motion was adopted unanimously. d. Board Comments on the Draft Natural Areas Strategic Framework and the Natural Areas Department’s Long-Range Plan Members discussed the degree of alignment of this item with the Board’s Work Plan and discussed planned presentations for upcoming meetings. Members also discussed whether the Board should weigh in on Platte River Power Authority’s new planned gas-fired power plant. Vice Chair Houdashelt noted there have been calls for an independent third-party review of the plant. Lujan de Albers stated she would explore who may be the best party to present on the topic from an objective standpoint. e. Six Month Calendar Review Lujan de Albers stated the Board will do some planning in January based off the 2025 Work Plan. She noted agenda items on Council’s Six-Month Calendar related to air quality outside of the Building Performance Standards work session, and she commented on other items on the Calendar that may be of interest. Members discussed the possibility of meeting with other Boards during the coming year. f. Revisit Action Items from Previous Meetings and Preview of Next Meeting 9. ADJOURNMENT ● 7:38 pm Minutes approved by a vote of the Board on 1/27/2025