Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutAir Quality Advisory Board - Minutes - 07/20/2015MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS AIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD Date: Monday, July 20, 2015 Location: Community Room, 215 N. Mason Street Time: 5:30–8:00pm For Reference John Shenot, Chair Ross Cunniff, Council Liaison 970-420-7398 Melissa Hovey, Staff Liaison 970-221-6813 Board Members Present Board Members Absent John Shenot, Chair Vara Vissa Rich Fisher Robert Kirkpatrick Tom Griggs Gregory Miller Mark Houdashelt Jim Dennison (left 7:00) Staff Present Staff Absent Dianne Tjalkens, Admin/Board Support Melissa Hovey, Senior Environmental Planner Lucinda Smith, Environmental Services Director Councilmembers Present Guests Call to order: 5:41pm Public Comments: None Review and Approval of Minutes: Tom moved and Mark seconded a motion to approve the May 2015 AQAB minutes as amended. Motion passed unanimously, 5-0-0. Correction: Change John Shenot in list of members present to Chair. Tom moved and Mark seconded a motion to approve the June 2015 AQAB minutes as amended. Motion passed unanimously, 5-0-0. Corrections: Change John Shenot in list of members present to Chair; Page 3, agenda item 2, John and Melissa (not Tom) Staff Updates: Lucinda let the board know that Melissa has taken another job in DC and her last day will be August 7. Job opening has been posted on City website and is open through August 7. Lucinda will be interim staff liaison. New hire should start in October. Staff changes may have impact on timeline of fugitive dust manual. • Institutional memory in programs that helps give us guidance. If hire from outside will make it harder for the board to continue its work. • Open to internal candidates as well, though Melissa’s level of expertise is uncommon. Page 1 Fugitive Dust Update Jim has attended 2 of the 4 working group meetings. Attendees were primarily affected stakeholders (professionals), only one citizen. Unbalanced representation and opinion. One attendee questioned whether City staff should be doing assessments of dust creating activities due to interest in information. Jim does not doubt objectivity of staff person. Trying to find operators to implement control method to test before and after. Using dust meter to test levels. Did assessment on rolling infield and crushing concrete. Control measures had significant impact on levels. Continuing to collect observations around as many activities as possible, followed by a report. Pilot study to determine if control measures are efficacious and learn time and cost of implementation. Last meeting only 4 of 13 people attended. Draft guidance manual is fairly simple. Talked about language in ordinance—some is confusing (does it apply to conditions where visible at fence line or are some things mandatory no matter what? Do you have to shut down in winds over 30MPH? etc.). Group made recommendations to ordinance. Need to clear changes with City Attorney. Never got to look at the manual as a group. Two more meetings scheduled, but need much more time to review all activities in manual. • Matt Zoccali—Utilities has started public outreach for proposal that would require permits for grading, erosion, and sediment control. Overlap with dust control ordinance. To coordinate/collaborate, may impact fugitive dust timeline. • People who will be regulated are not interested in consensus as it would lead to no ordinance. What is value of taking time to do it right versus acknowledging not getting it entirely right the first time, but on books? Tradeoffs. • Affected parties are coming around. Working well to have committee. Melissa went to see all of these people and incorporated their input. Affecting compromise. Will get something on books that is better than nothing. Would be good to do cost-benefit analysis. • Could we segregate items that all can clearly agree with and set aside contentious items for later? o Need to see if anyone attends next meeting. • If delayed, what is AQAB role? o Would have presentation at AQAB meeting with opportunity for comment before it goes to Council. o Board should refresh recommendation if ordinance or manual changes. ACTION ITEM: Jim will email fugitive dust working group dates/timeline to board. AGENDA ITEM 1: Energy Policy Update Board members shared ideas and opinions about the draft Energy Policy update and developed preliminary AQAB advice on the update. AQAB members will finalize advice on the Energy Policy Update prior to Council action in September. Objectives: 1. Create list of questions for Energy Board and staff so they can be prepared to answer at August AQAB meeting. 2. Build framework for comments based on ideas/opinions that come out of this meeting. 3. Break comments into themes. Comments/Q&A • Connection with CAP is categorically the same. Three things: 1. A lot of good things that came out of CAP CAC and consultant that could be integrated into this document that are not. 2. How do the three groupings fit together? Need linkage between topic areas. 3. Priorities: What can we do now versus sequentially? Cost/time. • Mark’s themes: 1. Doesn’t tie closely enough with CAP, and not as aggressive as CAP. Focused on 2020 goal, not 2030. Particularly should be more aggressive in energy efficiency. Page 2 2. Hard to judge ambition as current numbers are not presented. More information/background. 3. Prioritize infrastructure, net zero buildings, etc. so don’t have to upgrade later. 4. Electric vehicles are mentioned but not cohesive. Missed in places. Need more ways to support electric vehicles. 5. Buildings: Need suggestions about energy reporting. • Platte River changes should have been considered. Clean Energy Collective has a waiting list. Things already happening. • What is role of Energy Policy? Is this all of it? We see a lot of detailed plans. Energy Policy is not detailed. Ask them to clarify. How much detail is appropriate? Would shape recommendations to Council. o Air Quality Plan was written by staff. Energy Policy was written by Energy Board. Not implementation plan, but goals and objectives.  Will an implementation plan come later? • John’s Themes: o Vision statement should have leadership element. o Energy Policy reads like a climate policy. Climate is one aspect of energy policy. Should reconsider tone and balance throughout document. Safe, reliable, affordable electricity is as important. o Energy Characterization section is about GHG. Should show how much we use, what we use it for, and where it comes from instead. o Ambition issues. o More attention to other pollutants. • Policy versus plan. Will this turn into action? o Ambition/aggressiveness of draft policy: all question if sufficient to get on path to GHG goals. Level of detail missing. o Document should last through 2020. Not specific enough for that timeframe. Not sure what Council is looking for, though. o Helpful to know history, or better to learn what it should be? Broader than it has been. 2009 document was short. Policy, not implementation. Implementation plan developed by staff and consultants based on policy direction. Sets targets. o Visioning document with details on what will be important over next five years. Visioning aims high. Leadership from community leaders, not just City is important to motivate people to action. Criteria pollutants should be mentioned co-equally. Add strategies the City could pursue toward energy efficiency, such as economic incentives, engineering, etc. that could be embellished upon in plan. • Surprised at how much emphasis on GHG reductions, rather than energy. Should be stated upfront if that is top priority. General public might not make connection to CAP. o If more focus on energy itself as component of larger CAP, there would be more detail about how to get to goal. Need differentiation from CAP. o Document has graphical representation of motivations for the policy, but very little on those topics in remainder of document. At best reinforces narrative that only doing these things to reduce GHG, which is hurtful stereotype. Energy efficiency is good for community economically. • Suggesting substantial rewrite? o Okay in policy objectives. Vision and motivation sections revisions/additions to include safe, affordable, reliable electricity.  Do they not emphasize because already have those things?  Energy Board has been working on policy for a long time. Presented longer version to CAC, which had more details on safety and reliability. Has been pared down. Will find receptive audience. Energy Board very interested in safety, reliability, security, etc., not just climate and environmental. • Agree this looks like partial energy plan. Concerned about it being adequate as a plan or policy. For a policy document has some specific milestones. Most interested that it comes to fruition in a detailed Page 3 plan. This is pseudo-plan. Action plan should come out for public comment. Revolutionary change in energy happening now. Critical that community is in support of changes. o Historically planning has been done by Utilities staff, not including public review. o Does this have targets and milestones that make it robust enough for staff to use to create implementation plan? o Not clear whether this document actually guides Utilities.  Should be a report card. • There is annual Energy Policy Report. 15 page document plus 2 page infographic. Utilities uses policy benchmarks as guide for work plan and reports on them. ACTION ITEM: Based on member comments, John will draft memo to Energy Board and circulate via email for review. AGENDA ITEM 4: Updates and Announcements Open Seat on AQAB Calling for applications in August and September. Will have seat filled in January or February. Climate Action Plan Implementation Executive team: Jeff Mihelich, Kevin Gertig, Jackie Kozak-Thiel, and Mike Beckstead, meeting every other week for 90 minutes. Lucinda is on team as liaison. Core team of 15 staff who lead 10 implementation teams: energy efficiency, renewables, transportation, solid waste reduction, land use and water, adaptation, climate messaging, innovative financing, metrics, and pilot districts. 5-10 people on each team. Putting together work plan templates, review by Executive team, Work Session September 8. Five mid-cycle BFO offers in support of CAP. Looking toward having technical experts and key community members on team. May also create high level advisory committee. Transportation Board Meeting with Regional Air Quality Council General introduction to Regional Air Quality Council, mainly about goals they have set and how achieving them. Only attended presentation section of meeting. No suggested action/informational only. Environmental Services Department Strategic Plan The ESD Strategic Plan just starting to go public. Will be adopted by Council. September 22 Work Session. General document, with five theme areas. Time frame is 10 years for goals and five years for strategies. Staff would appreciate AQAB input. • Suggest reviewing between meetings, with short presentation and feedback at board meeting. Plan on drafting recommendation. • Schedule for completion? o End of year. Organized into themes, one is climate and air quality. Seeking feedback on what might be missing. Council adoption is not scheduled. ACTION ITEM: Lucinda will email draft ESD Strategic Plan when it is complete. ACTION ITEM: John will schedule ESD Strategic Plan presentation. AGENDA ITEM 2: Downtown Plan/Old Town Neighborhoods Plan Board members discussed how to engage in the process so that development plans take full consideration of indoor and outdoor air quality and climate change impacts. When City is doing planning efforts around land use and transportation, staff typically comes to the board late in the process asking for input when it is too late to affect outcome. However, not too late to provide Page 4 input to this major planning effort. Opportunity to decide if and how the board can provide input in earlier stages of the planning processes. Comments/Q&A • Mark attended public session on Downtown Plan. Stations were set up for each theme area where citizens could learn and give input. Described boundary and districts within, broke down schedule (in visioning process now), had presentation by consultants on demographics, trends, etc. Session on preferences survey. Talked to staff person about how board could give input; she was unsure, but staff could give presentation and discuss further. Also working on Old Town Neighborhoods Plan that is related, but focuses on residential. Could have input on transportation, parking, urban design, etc., anything that affects GHG and/or criteria pollutants. • Transportation section highlighted parking, bikes and pedestrians. • A lot of the presentation and survey were about buildings and aesthetics. Asked for input on sculptures/artwork, not so much on energy and environment. • Have placeholder on August agenda for presentation. • What is status of transportation air quality impact manual? o Melissa was too busy and was going to focus on it in the fall. The City needs to encumber the funding by the end of this calendar year.  That product would be a good tool in this application. Truck traffic, Max, bike, and pedestrian use is the focus.  No hope of having manual done in time for this plan. o Make implementers aware of opportunities. o If like older plan, implementation activities were projects. Need manual for actual projects. o When does RFP have to go out?  End of October. o Give input by September.  Have had thought put into content.  Find out from Melissa what is still needed.  Board should be more proactive with this manual.  Board cannot write RFP. • But can tell staff what should be in RFP instead of waiting for a draft. • Urban Design: Can be proactive in suggestions about green buildings. Transportation: can talk about alternative vehicles, infrastructure, and other ways to reduce pollutants. o Between meetings can make list of recommendations.  Idea development committees for sections of plan. Could have influence through those committees.  Come up with suggestions/recommendations to communicate to committees or planners with what AQAB will be looking for in this planning effort to have positive air quality impact the board can support. o Committee meetings not open to the public. September to December could weigh in directly to staff: Cameron Gloss or Tony Raeker. Raise perspective in stages of process so ideas are incorporated.  Ask for presentation, suggest board will want to give input in choices and strategies phase, and find out best way to do that. At later meeting, in plan development can see choices and weigh in on next phase. • Let presenter know what looking for: where they are, what is next, and how can board plug in. ACTION ITEM: John will develop agenda items. AGENDA ITEM 4: Future Actions and Agenda Items Review of City Council 6 Month Agenda Planning Calendar • Not discussed. Page 5 August Agenda • Environmental Services Strategic Plan. Meeting Adjourned: 8:00pm Next Meeting: August 17 Page 6