Cities Honored at Second-Annual Culmination Event for South Bay Energy and Climate Recognition Program 

GARDENA, CALIF., December 4, 2024 – The South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG) in partnership with the Southern California Regional Energy Network (SoCalREN), recognized South Bay cities for their efforts in pursuing energy-efficiency initiatives and sustainability-related tasks over the past year as part of the second annual “South Bay Energy and Climate Recognition Program.” While all cities received recognition for their efforts, seven cities took home gold-level awards this year: Carson, El Segundo, Gardena, Hawthorne, Manhattan Beach, Rolling Hills Estates and Torrance.  

Highlights of steps taken by gold-level cities to earn this distinction include 

  •  Carson – Installed more than 150 electric vehicle charging ports at 13 city sites, joined the Clean Power Alliance, a community choice aggregator that allows local government to procure cleaner power for its community, and replaced gas water heaters with more energy-efficient heat pump water heaters.  
  • El Segundo – Retrofitted and replaced city hall heating, cooling and air conditioning units (HVAC), operated an environmental committee which advises the city council on sustainable actions, and replaced three pool heaters. 
  • Gardena – Purchased renewable gas for transportation, made HVAC and lighting upgrades at its community center, and made LED lightbulb replacements at Rowley Park. 
  • Hawthorne – Planted 80 trees, installed LED sports field lighting at Jim Thorpe Park, upgraded police department lighting to LEDs.   
  • Manhattan Beach – Worked to obtain certification as a Green Business through the California Green Business Network, promoted sustainability online, and hosted a sustainability forum for residents. 
  • Rolling Hills Estates – Implemented the Solar App+, an automated residential solar permitting system, hosted an Earth Day celebration, facilitated an environmental advisory committee to guide the city council on sustainable activities.  
  • Torrance – Maintained a community garden, conducted a coastal clean-up day, and promoted water conservation.  

In addition, Hermosa Beach, Inglewood, Lomita, Rancho Palos Verdes and Rolling Hills reached silver-level achievement. Lawndale, Palos Verdes Estates and Redondo Beach earned bronze-level achievement. 

The cities of Carson, Gardena, Rolling Hills Estates and Torrance earned points toward their gold status by receiving 2024 recognition by the Institute of Local Government’s Beacon Award Program, which recognizes cities for their reductions in energy use or greenhouse gas emissions. The City of Carson earned the highest award in the Beacon program, a Platinum Vanguard Beacon Award. The SBCCOG assisted these cities with gathering and documenting data such as greenhouse gas emissions and facilitating meetings with the ILG to achieve these distinctions.  

Participating cities were honored at a luncheon at the Nakaoka Community Center in Gardena. Robert Fortunato, president of ForStrategy Consulting and owner/builder of the award-winning Green Idea House in Hermosa Beach, was the keynote speaker. The Green Idea House is one of the first affordable, net-zero energy, zero carbon case study houses made with standard construction materials and off-the-shelf technologies.  

“Through the SBCCOG’s South Bay Environmental Services Center program, it has been our mission for more than two decades to implement programs to help our cities save energy and water and reduce waste in our communities,” said Rodney Tanaka, Gardena mayor pro tem and chair of the SBCCOG. “We have continued our work this year in helping cities update their greenhouse gas emission (GHG) inventories and ultimately their climate action plans. The Energy and Climate Recognition Program adds some friendly competition to engage our cities in the process. It’s inspiring to learn about the creative ways they met the challenge.” 

To participate, cities were required to be enrolled in the SoCalREN—a program administered by Los Angeles County to provide energy-saving services to residents, businesses and public agencies served by Southern California Edison (SCE) and/or Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas). Cities’ progress was tracked through a point system. To earn points, cities had to complete at least one activity within the categories of climate action, education and technical assistance. Cities reached gold-level achievement by earning 12 to 15 points, silver-level by earning eight to 11 points, and bronze-level achievement by earning three to seven points. Point-earning activities included the following: 

  • Participating in a SoCalREN energy program 
  • Purchasing clean power  
  • Updating their city’s GHG inventories 
  • Implementing on-site, renewable energy (solar power, hydropower etc.)  
  • Installing energy-efficient lighting and HVAC replacement in municipal facilities 
  • Complying with Assembly Bill 802, which requires energy benchmarking and publicly disclosing building energy use  
  • Showing quantified energy savings in municipal facilities 
  • Replacing turf (grass) at municipal facilities with more drought-tolerant native, plants 
  • Hosting beach clean-ups, Earth Day events, gardening events and more 
  • Promoting sustainable practices online 

In 2022, the California Air Resources Board released its updated proposal to implement the most ambitious climate action of any jurisdiction in the world, taking unprecedented steps to drastically slash pollution and accelerate the transition to clean energy. The state has set the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045. The rewards program is designed to help cities do their part to meet this goal one sustainable step at a time.  

To learn more about the program, visit https://cdn.southbaycities.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/07132259/Recognition_Program_Guidelines_02.08.24.pdf 

ABOUT SOUTH BAY CITIES COUNCIL OF GOVERMENTS 

The South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG) is a joint powers government agency of 16 cities and the County of Los Angeles which share the goal of maximizing the quality of life and productivity of the subregion. Within this structure, cities and Los Angeles County maintain the qualities and characteristics that make them unique and independent, while also coming together collectively to address issues of common interest for a greater good of the communities through fostering cooperation, collaboration and innovation. For more information about the SBCCOG visit southbaycities.org.  

 ABOUT SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA REGIONAL NETWORK 

The County of Los Angeles administers the Southern California Regional Energy Network (SoCalREN) to bring together a wide variety of services with one common goal: achieving unprecedented levels of energy savings throughout Southern California. Authorized in 2012 by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), the SoCalREN provides services to residents, businesses, and public agencies throughout the areas served by Southern California Edison (SCE) and/or SoCalGas®. For more information about the SoCalREN, visit socalren.org. 

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