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Home My WebLink AboutAir Quality Advisory Board - Minutes - 05/15/2017Page 1 MINUTES CITY OF FORT COLLINS AIR QUALITY ADVISORY BOARD DRAFT Date: Monday, May 15, 2017 Location: Colorado River Room, 222 Laporte Ave. Time: 5:30–8:00pm For Reference Mark Houdashelt, Chair Ross Cunniff, Council Liaison 970-420-7398 Cassie Archuleta, Staff Liaison 970-416-2648 Board Members Present Board Members Absent Mark Houdashelt, Chair Jim Dennison Gregory Miller Robert Kirkpatrick Harry Edwards Chris Wood Vara Vissa, Vice-Chair Tom Griggs Staff Present Cassie Archuleta, Staff Liaison Christine Macrina, Boards and Commissions Coordinator Randy Reuscher, Utility Rate Analyst Lance Smith, Utility Strategic Financial Director Justin Fields, Utility Rate Analyst Guests Genevieve Lariviere, Citizen Greg Clark, Citizen Kathy Clark, Citizen Call to order: 5:35 pm Public Comments  Greg Clark introduced himself as a consultant with an emission monitoring startup in Wyoming and described some of the monitoring work he is involved with related to ozone and ozone causing emissions in Pinedale, Wyoming. Greg also indicated he has applied for a position on the AQAB. Approval of Minutes Greg moved and Harry seconded a motion to approve the March minutes as amended. Motion passed unanimously, 6-0-0. Chris moved and Tom seconded a motion to approve the April minutes as amended. Motion passed unanimously, 6-0-0. Page 2 AGENDA ITEM 1: Board Administration Updates Christine Macrina, Boards and Commissions Coordinator, presented a brief overview regarding the new volunteer time tracking database and a summary of the results of the Boards and Commissions Participation Questionnaire. Christine introduced Engage, a new volunteer management system being implemented by the City. After each AQAB meeting, 2.5 hours will be logged for Board members and an email notification will be sent. Engage will allow users to see time changes in meetings and events, accrued hours, anniversaries, and more. Christine also showed the results from the Boards and Commissions Participation Questionnaire. The purpose of the survey was to assess the diversity of members on the City’s boards and commissions (B&C’s). The questionnaire was completed by 48% of B&C members. Results of the questionnaire show nearly equal representation of men and women in B&C’s. Members are 92.5% white, and most members have an income over $100k/yr. Over half of B&C members have been residents of Fort Collins for 20 years or longer. 88% of members have a bachelor’s degree or higher. The City would like to create a mentorship program for incoming or potential members to encourage more diversity. Discussion  The survey asks how long you have been a resident – what if you move away and move back? What is the intent of that question? o Intended to figure out if long-term residents have more community involvement. Mirrored the demographic questions in the census, so results can be readily compared to other places.  What are your diversity improvement methods? Collaboration with schools, HOAs? o Have not targeted HOAs. In-person visits. Knocked on doors in underrepresented areas. Figuring out the challenges, such as commute distance. Looking at future generations as well. AGENDA ITEM 2: Time of Use Electric Rates Randy Reusher, Utility Rate Analyst, provided an update regarding the 12-month residential electric time-of- use (TOU) pilot study. The Board considered a recommendation to Council regarding next steps. Randy presented the results of a Time-of-Use (TOU) electric rate pilot study conducted last Fall. Objectives of pilot study: 1) Determine energy conservation impacts. The TOU rate showed a 2.5% reduction in energy consumption. 2) Measure potential demand reductions. There was a 7.5% reduction in coincident peak-hour demand during summer, and a 0.4% shift in demand. 3) Gauge customer preference for different rate structures. Utilities surveyed 7,200 people, with four questions about energy consumption, rate structure and knowledge, and energy conservation. 4) Ensure revenue requirements are met. There were three different customer groups with measured revenue impacts, including all-electric homes and solar net-metering groups. Randy showed a graph listing the cost savings for customer groups with TOU versus tiered rate systems. Staff recommendations: Transition to a standard TOU rate for residential customers, including residential demand rate and solar-net metering customers. Upcoming timeline includes a June 13th (this has now been moved to July 11th) work session followed by a 6-month outreach/communication plan. Aiming for TOU deployment to all residential customers in 2018. Discussion  Do the impacts describe Platte River Power Authority (PRPA) reduction, and not Fort Collins usage/consumption? Page 3 o Yes. Looking at regional production because it is difficult to track which power plant is reducing its emissions.  What other cities in Colorado use a TOU rate structure? o Nearly a third of cities in Colorado offer a TOU rate. Nationwide, over 4 million households. Colorado Springs offers it, maybe Gunnison. Xcel and Poudre Valley REA offer it.  How do the reported reductions line up with Climate Action Plan (CAP) 2020 goals? o Reducing GHG emissions, promoting electric vehicle use. Expecting a 2.5% reduction in residential energy consumption, which accounts for 40% of total load in Ft. Collins. This equates to about a 1% reduction in total energy use overall city-wide. o CAP 2020 projections did not consider TOU. This could be an addition.  Are the peak hours fixed? o Yes. Summer hours (May-September) are 2-7pm. Winter hours (October-April) are 5-9pm.  Is there a way to increase savings? o For tiered rates, reduce energy use. For TOU, reduce overall energy consumption AND avoid use during peak hours.  Is there a base, fixed energy use, even when a customer isn’t home? o Yes, refrigerators, and similar appliances contribute to base use. The average Fort Collins citizen uses 700 kWh/month.  Do people know how much they consume and how they can conserve? o Higher energy users can be incentivized through rebates and other programs. Online customer tips are available to educate customers.  Would the tiered system be more fair and equitable than TOU? If you have a large home or if you choose to have more kids, you should pay a higher rate. o Conversely, the more people in a household, the more efficient on a per-person basis. People in an inefficient house may not be able to afford more kWh.  Once implemented, will there be further study about a different pricing structure? o Could adjust prices later, and peak hours may shift. Chris moved and Greg seconded a motion stating that: The AQAB supports the TOU rate structure and would encourage additional outreach so that customers are well-informed about their opportunities to reduce their energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Motion passed unanimously, 6-0-0. Board Updates  Mark attended the Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC) o June 28th Pitch Night Innovate Fort Collins  Mark attended The Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting o State of Colorado redefined electric bicycles and the BAC may explore how will this affect the City’s policies  Mark attended the Energy Board meeting  Vara attended the organics recycling town hall. She said she was expecting them to announce action, but it was just more research. She wondered what barriers are preventing them from moving forward. o Council directed them to come up with options, not a decision or program. o Vara argued that the City isn’t involved enough. Staff Updates  Staff updated the AQAB on the Issues Index topics, and Board priorities were discussed in relation to updating the 5-year Air Quality Plan. o It was determined that the issue index was not a good measure of Board priorities, but rather a place to track topic updates and involvement. o Mark indicated that he is not comfortable making too many topics high priority for the Board. Page 4 Staff Follow-Up: Cassie will begin formalizing ways for the Board to evaluate their air quality related priorities for inclusion in the Air Quality Plan. Future Actions and Agenda Items  June meeting o Update on Carbon Inventory o AQ Survey Final Report- Options: distribute report or have someone present the results. o Update on Council Retreat Items Staff Follow-Up: Cassie will ask if the Climate Team can talk about more than just the Carbon Inventory at the June meeting, look up what is being considered for midterm budget offers. Vara moved to adjourn. Meeting Adjourned: 8:09 pm Next Meeting: June 19, 2017 ______________________________ Signed by Chair