David Hines likes data. And it’s a good thing since he has spent nearly a year as the CivicSpark fellow for the South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG) collecting and analyzing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions figures for the entire South Bay subregion. The end game is to determine if cities have met goals established in the South Bay Climate Action Plan (CAP), developed and approved by the SBCCOG in 2018.

“How dramatic the reductions were in emissions across all of our cities is staggering,” Hines said. “There have been significant reductions, especially in buildings. Energy and gas use for commercial, residential and industrial facilities have substantially decreased.”

THE PLAN FOR REDUCING GHG EMISSIONS
Following heightened concern at the state and federal levels of the growing effects of climate change, in 2006 the state passed Assembly Bill 32, requiring California to reduce overall GHG emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and to 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. This served as the impetus for the SBCCOG to work with its 15 member cities to complete GHG inventories for 2005 and 2007, paid for by a special assessment.

SBCCOG staff collected and entered the figures using the ClearPath tool (icleiusa.org/clearpath) from ICLEI – Local Government for Sustainability, which converts statistics into emissions data based on industry standard protocols. Updates were conducted for 2011 and 2012, funded by Southern California Edison (SCE) and SoCalGas. Using a 2005 baseline carbon footprint, the SBCCOG then worked with individual cities to develop CAPs to help them set goals and adopt strategies for reducing their GHGs and then developed a subregional CAP for the entire South Bay.

GHG GOALS AND FINDINGS
The goals established by the South Bay CAP were two-fold: 1) reduce emissions by 15% of 2005 levels by 2020 and 2) reduce emissions to 49% of 2005 levels by 2035. Hines’ findings, presented to the SBCCOG in July, reveal that the South Bay has cleared the first goal and is within short reach of the second. The new data will be used to update the South Bay CAP and its progress in attaining a netzero carbon footprint.

Hines analyzed the GHG data in six emission sectors: transportation, residential, commercial, waste, wastewater and fugitive (leaks or other irregular releases of gases or vapors from appliances or other equipment). While the emissions goal year was based on reductions from 2005 to 2020, due to COVID-19, 2020 was an atypical year, so 2019 data was used. During that span commercial energy had the most significant drop—down 64.8% from 2005 to 2019. Transportation—the largest emissions sector—had a reduction of 16.9% from 2005 to 2019. The annual reductions are equal to the preservation of 3.7 million acres of forest (about the size of Connecticut).

HOW CITIES REDUCED THEIR GHGS
The report attributes the reductions to three main factors: 1) adoption of renewable energy (energy powered by sources like solar, wind or hydroelectric power, etc.), 2) energy efficiency (improving building insulation, transitioning to LED lights and advancements made in energy-efficient appliances) and 3) electric vehicle adoption.

“Because the state has implemented laws to regulate transportation and energy use, the state has a cleaner electric vehicle fleet mix. Utilities must also provide more renewable energy generation, instead of buying coal from out of state for example,” said Kim Fuentes, deputy executive director of the SBCCOG. “Because of those two factors we’ve seen huge reductions in GHGs over the last seven years, since our last inventory was completed.”

SCE renewable energy use totals jumped from 17% in 2005 to 35.1% in 2019. In California, electric vehicle sales went from practically nonexistent in 2005 to more than 200,000 in 2020, making up more than 10% of new car purchases.

Source: bit.ly/GreenHouseGasEquivalencies

To reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Hermosa Beach has added solar roof panels to municipal buildings, such as the Hermosa Beach Community Center.

Additionally in recent years, cities including Carson, Hawthorne, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach and Rolling Hills Estates have joined the Clean Power Alliance (CPA), a community choice aggregator (CCA). A CCA allows local government to procure cleaner power for its community. Through CPA membership, depending on the chosen plan, up to 100% clean power can be purchased by member cities through SCE. Residents of CPA cities are automatically opted in unless they choose to opt out.

As an example, Hermosa Beach signed on to CPA’s 100% plan. The city also took additional steps toward energy net zero, such as replacing one-third of the city’s government cars with electric vehicles, adding solar roof panels to municipal buildings including the Hermosa Beach Community Center, and converting SCE streetlights to LEDs. It will convert its historic Clark Building from gas to electricity later this year, which will bring the city closer to its 2035 goal.

TAKING IT A STEP FURTHER
Since the South Bay CAP adoption, the SBCCOG has worked to implement the plan’s strategies by leveraging partnerships to obtain funding for programs, such as energy equipment upgrades for municipal facilities, residents, businesses and community members. One such partnership is with the Southern California Regional Energy Network (SoCalREN) which promotes energy efficiency in public agencies. Through the SoCalREN, the SBCCOG has employed the help of CivicSpark fellows to catalog energy-using equipment at municipal buildings to identify additional energy-saving opportunities and resources to implement recommended changes.

“This is very tedious work and requires expertise that we just don’t have,” said Doug Krauss, environmental programs manager for the City of Hermosa Beach. “Without this program we would have to hire consultants, so we are very grateful to the SBCCOG for conducting this exercise.”

In partnership with the SoCalREN, last year the SBCCOG launched the first annual South Bay Energy and Climate Recognition Program, which enables cities to earn bronze, silver and gold status, based on actions they take to become more sustainable.

David Hines (right), one of the SBCCOG’s CivicSpark fellows, and SBCCOG intern Angela Delgado, studies greenhouse gas data collected from South Bay cities. Delgado is majoring in physics and environmental studies at Bowdin College. Delgado’s internship is funded by an undergraduate research grant.

“All of these steps are pushing us further and further toward reduced emissions,” said Fuentes.

Hines, a recent graduate of Northwestern University, with a Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering, picked up the three-year GHG inventory project where the SBCCOG’s previous CivicSpark fellows—Anne Youngdahl followed by Lauren Estrella—had left off.

CivicSpark is an AmeriCorps program dedicated to building the capacity of local governments and communities to address emerging environmental and social equity resilience challenges, such as climate change. During their 11-month service year, CivicSpark fellows complete research, planning or implementation of projects that provide the support public agencies need to advance their resilience initiatives.

“Fellows really are the future for achieving sustainable communities,” said Fuentes. “Without their contributions, this critical work simply would not be possible.”

With Hines’ fellowship ending, he hopes to continue to employ the skills he has gained in emissions reporting as he enters the workforce. •

To learn more about the SBCCOG’s climate action planning work, visit southbaycities. org/sustainable-south-bay/#climate.