Fremont City Council Meeting: 10/10/23 07:00 PM
3300 Capitol Avenue Div/Dept: Community Development
Fremont, CA 94538 Category: Plans, Policies and Studies
SCHEDULED
Sponsors:
COUNCIL STAFF REPORT (ID # 4978) DOC ID: 4978
Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 1
CLIMATE READY FREMONT PLAN – Adoption of the Final Draft of the Climate Action Plan (CAP) Update and supporting Addendum to the Previously Certified Environmental Impact Report (EIR) (SCH No. 2010082060) Prepared for the Fremont General Plan Update Pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).
Contact Persons:
Name: Rachel DiFranco Dan Schoenholz
Title: Sustainability Manager Community Development Director Div/Dept: Community Development Community Development
Phone: 510-494-4451 510-494-4438
E-Mail: [email protected] [email protected]
Executive Summary: The City of Fremont has prepared an update to its Climate Action Plan (CAP), entitled Climate Ready Fremont, to direct local actions that reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the atmosphere with the goal of achieving a 55 percent GHG emission reduction by 2030 and carbon neutrality by or before 2045. Through implementation of the City’s first Climate Action Plan adopted in 2012, Fremont achieved a 24 percent GHG emission reduction by the year 2018. The new Climate Ready Fremont plan, which will replace the City’s 2012 Climate Action Plan, provides a series of strategies, measures, and actions to be undertaken at both a community-wide level and within City operations that together are projected to result in an additional 40 percent reduction in GHG emissions from 2018 levels by the year 2030.
On June 20, 2023, staff presented a draft of Climate Ready Fremont as recommended by the Environmental Sustainability Commission (ESC) to Fremont City Council for its comments. Council directed staff to release the draft Climate Ready Fremont plan to the public for its review and comments. The final draft of Climate Ready Fremont attached to this report incorporates relevant comments received from the ESC and City Council, as well as feedback received from the public via the City’s MyFremont public engagement platform .
To support the adoption and implementation of the Climate Ready Fremont plan, the City has further prepared an addendum to the Fremont General Plan 2035 Final Environmental Impact Report (General Plan Update EIR) in accordance with California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines. The attached addendum supports Climate Ready Fremont as a “qualified CAP” from which future development projects can tier and/or incorporate by reference as the basis for the analysis of potential impacts due to GHG emissions.
Staff recommends City Council adopt the final Climate Ready Fremont plan and supporting Addendum to the Fremont General Plan Update EIR, and direct staff to begin implementation of the plan.
BACKGROUND: Fremont adopted its first Climate Action Plan (CAP) in 2012 to serve as a roadmap for achieving the sustainability vision of the General Plan through the implementation of local measures that together would reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25 percent from a 2005 baseline level by the year 2020. Adoption of the first Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 2
CAP accelerated the City’s efforts related to energy and water use efficiency, renewable energy deployment, clean and multimodal transportation infrastructure, waste reduction and pollution prevention, and sustainable land use planning. Through a combination of the City’s local implementation efforts paired with technology advancements and state and federal policy changes, the City achieved a 24 percent GHG reduction in GHG emissions by the year 2018.
2019 Carbon Neutrality Resolution
Recognizing the need to update Fremont’s GHG target in alignment with state climate policy and international science-based climate targets beyond the year 2020, the Environmental Sustainability Commission recommended, and Council adopted a Carbon Neutrality Resolution in 2019. The Resolution set a mid-term goal of achieving a 55 percent GHG emission reduction from a 2005 baseline level by the year 2030 and a long-term goal of becoming carbon neutral no later than 2045. With the adoption of the Carbon Neutrality Resolution, Fremont also established a Post-Carbon Community Framework that presented a series of guiding values and strategies for achieving carbon neutrality; these have been incorporated into the strategies, measures, and actions presented in the CAP Update.
Community Engagement Efforts for the CAP Update
Beginning in early 2020, staff initiated a yearlong community outreach and engagement effort to solicit input from community stakeholders, the business community, and members of the public. This outreach helped staff to better understand community concerns regarding climate change and gauge community interests related to potential actions that Fremont could undertake to reduce its GHG emissions and increase its climate resiliency. Staff also shared messaging regarding the CAP Update process in City newsletters, on social media, through email messages, and on a dedicated City webpage. All outreach was conducted virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A summary of these community engagement efforts is attached to this report as Exhibit C.
CAP Update Process
Through a request for proposals process, staff selected Ascent Environmental, Inc. (Ascent) as the technical consultant to support the City’s Climate Action Plan Update process. Since June 2020, Ascent has supported City staff to:
• Conduct GHG emissions inventories and forecasts;
• Identify, prioritize, and quantify GHG reduction, climate adaptation, and resiliency measures;
• Develop administrative, public, and final drafts of the CAP Update; • Provide California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) documentation, including an addendum to the General Plan Environmental Impact Report (EIR); and • Prepare a staff-level CAP consistency checklist for project-level CEQA review.
Throughout 2021 and 2022, staff worked closely with Ascent to conduct greenhouse gas emission reduction analysis, develop and refine the CAP Update measure list, and prepare draft versions of the plan. Staff provided ongoing updates to and solicited feedback from ESC on its progress.
Climate Ready Fremont Plan:
On June 1, 2023 staff presented a public draft of the CAP Update to ESC for its review, comments, and recommendation (in public draft form) to the City Council. On June 20, Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 3
2023, staff presented the public draft to City Council, along with a summary of the comments received from the ESC. Council provided additional comments and approved staff to utilize the City’s MyFremont engagement platform to receive public feedback on Climate Ready Fremont. Over a forty-day period, MyFremont received a total of 77 comments from the public, a summary of which is attached to this report as Exhibit D. Staff reviewed and incorporated relevant comments received from the ESC, Fremont City Council, and the public into a revised final draft. A summary of changes made to Climate Ready Fremont based on this feedback is also attached to this report as Exhibit E. At the September 7, 2023 ESC meeting, the ESC reviewed the final draft and voted unanimously (4-0 with two members absent) to recommend the CAP Update to City Council for adoption.
DISCUSSION/ANALYSIS: The CAP Update, titled Climate Ready Fremont, identifies sustainable and adaptive infrastructure, technologies, policies, and programs that the City will implement to achieve the GHG emission reduction targets envisioned within the Carbon Neutrality Resolution and Post-Carbon Community Framework. Climate Ready Fremont’s vision is not only to address climate change, but also improve quality of life, promote equity, and bolster resiliency across the community. To achieve this vision, Climate Ready Fremont presents measures that both reduce GHG emissions from local activities to achieve GHG reduction targets and build community resilience to prepare for and adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Alignment with Statewide Climate Policy
The GHG emissions reduction targets within Climate Ready Fremont are consistent with the Council’s adopted emission targets, which in turn are consistent with statewide GHG emissions targets. As directed by the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2016 (Senate Bill 32) and the California Climate Crisis Act of 2022 (Assembly Bill 1279), the State of California aims to achieve net zero GHG emissions (i.e. carbon neutrality) no later than 2045. California’s targets are furthermore in line with the scientifically established levels needed to limit the rise in global temperature to no more than 2 degrees Celsius (°C) | 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (°F) above pre-industrial levels, goals captured by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) Paris Agreement of 2015. While the actions of a single city alone will not solve the climate crisis, Fremont’s climate action targets can make a positive impact through local leadership and cumulative local action.
GHG Forecast and Reduction Targets
Climate Ready Fremont forecasts future emissions for the years 2030 and 2045, which align with the state’s GHG reduction target years established in key legislation and policies.
Chapter 2 of Climate Ready Fremont presents a future emissions forecast, termed the “No Local Action Scenario,” that represents the absolute minimum emissions reductions that could be achieved by currently adopted state and federal legislation and regulations. In order to achieve the City’s mid-term GHG reduction target of 55 percent by 2030 from a 2005 baseline year (equivalent to a 30 percent reduction from 2018 GHG emission levels), Fremont must undertake additional GHG reduction efforts at the local level.
Through a series of local strategies, measures, and actions, Climate Ready Fremont aims to achieve GHG reductions to close the “Local Emissions Gap” between the “No Local Action Scenario” and the City’s adopted GHG reduction targets. Chapter 3 of Climate Ready Fremont presents mitigation and adaptation strategies, measures, and actions that, i f implemented, would result in the City surpassing its mid-term GHG reduction target by achieving a 40 percent GHG reduction from 2018 levels by 2030. However, the City is still Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 4
projected to fall short of achieving carbon neutrality by 2045 based on the local implementation measures presented in Chapter 3. That said, new technological advances and/or regional, state, and federal level policy changes could have a significant impact on Fremont’s emissions over time, necessitating another update to Climate Ready Fremont beyond the year 2030.
“Game Plan” Priority Implementation Actions
The Climate Ready Fremont “Game Plan,” found within Chapter 4 of the plan, presents a series of short-term priority actions that staff will focus on implementing within the first three years of plan adoption. Priority actions identified in the Game Plan are those that staff identified as being feasible to implement in the next few years due to their GHG reduction impacts, cost-effectiveness, (low) up-front cost or availability of funding, technological feasibility, existing policy support, ease of implementation, community support, and additional co-benefits.
Some noteworthy year one implementation actions within the Game Plan include:
Community-level:
• Propose an ordinance to establish Ava (formerly East Bay) Community Energy’s Renewable 100 as the default clean power service plan for all Fremont residents and businesses.
• Propose reach codes for building electrification, EV readiness, and green building requirements in new residential and nonresidential construction and retrofits. • Evaluate the plastic waste/reuse model ordinance being developed by StopWaste. • Achieve 100% school participation in the Safe Routes to Schools Program. • Implement a pilot project to add organics containers throughout Central Park. • Begin tree plantings in targeted neighborhoods with lower urban tree canopy and in underserved areas, with a goal of 800 trees annually.
• Launch a Climate Ready Fremont online dashboard for tracking and reporting key metrics and action implementation efforts.
City operations:
• Propose an all-electric/zero net energy design requirement for all new City facilities. • Begin replacing existing gas-powered HVAC units at City facilities with electric-source heat pumps wherever feasible.
• Begin replacing conventional City fleet vehicles with electric vehicles (EVs) according to City vehicle replacement schedule and installing EV charging infrastructure. • Expand reusable food ware options at community-facing City services and programming.
• Conduct a waste audit of City facilities and prioritize efforts to increase waste diversion at the highest waste generation facilities.
• Expand the application of compost/mulch on landscapes at City facilities to improve water retention and support carbon sequestration.
• Establish an interdepartmental green purchasing training and champions program.
Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 5
It should be noted that, as has been the case with the first CAP, some measures included in the plan may be modified or eliminated during implementation based on measure-specific analysis, public input, or court decisions. Furthermore, there will likely be efforts that the City decides to undertake that were not envisioned within Climate Ready Fremont, but make sense to pursue due to funding availability, partnership opportunities, or ease of implementation.
CEQA Streamlining
Implementation of Climate Ready Fremont will require that new development is constructed with more sustainable and low-carbon features than existing development. To support adoption and implementation, Climate Ready Fremont plan is presented in conjunction with an addendum to the City’s certified General Plan Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in accordance with Sections 15162-15164 of the CEQA Guidelines. The Addendum to the General Plan Update EIR for the Fremont CAP Update includes an evaluation of specific GHG reduction and climate change adaptation measures and strategies and demonstrates that Climate Ready Fremont would not result in any new or substantially more severe environmental impacts from those identified in the General Plan Update EIR. This analysis establishes Climate Ready Fremont as a CEQA “qualified” CAP.
Under the requirements for a GHG reduction plan set forth in CEQA Guidelines Section 15183.5(b)(1), new development projects that are consistent with the growth projections and applicable GHG reduction measures in a qualified CAP are eligible for CEQA streamlining. Under these provisions, a project that is subject to discretionary review and is consistent with the City’s General Plan growth projections will be able to show consistency with applicable GHG reduction measures in Climate Ready Fremont and can tier from and/or incorporate by reference Climate Ready Fremont’s programmatic review of GHG impacts in their cumulative impact analysis.
FISCAL IMPACT: The City will incur costs to implement the measures included in Climate Ready Fremont. These include initial start-up, ongoing administration, staffing, and enforcement costs. Many of these costs are already budgeted: for example, Sustainability Division staff will lead implementation of many measures as part of their annual work program; and the Capital Budget includes an appropriation to facilitate the conversion of the City’s fleet to EVs. Some measures, such as electrifying City buildings, will likely result in a increases in the cost of individual construction/rehab projects, at least in the short term until all-electric projects achieve cost parity with conventional construction. It should be noted that some measures, such as partnering with Ava Community Energy to install solar/battery microgrids at City facilities, will likely save the City money while also contributing to emission reductions.
Community-facing measures will also have varying fiscal impacts. For example, as with all- electric requirements imposed on City buildings, an all-electric requirement on new construction will likely result in increases in the cost of construction in the short term.
Changing the default electricity plan for Fremont customers to “Renewable 100” will result in increased utility costs for those who choose to remain on that rate plan. Other measures, such as the City partnering with Ava Community Energy to establish EV fast-charging hubs on City property, will have no fiscal impact to residents or businesses but will provide an important charging option for EV owners.
Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 6
Fiscal impacts related to individual implementation measures that are not yet adopted or that require a new appropriation will be analyzed and provided to Council as those measures are considered. In all cases, staff will be proactive in seeking cost-effective implementation and strategic funding opportunities and developing partnerships to lessen those impacts.
It should be noted that outside funding opportunities such as rebates, grants, credits, financing, technical assistance, and green jobs training are available from a variety of partner organizations, including local utilities, regional regulatory agencies, joint power authorities, and state and federal agencies. However, it should also be noted that continued City funding for capital improvements, community programs, and operations and maintenance will be key to fully implementing Climate Ready Fremont.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW: As proposed, Climate Ready Fremont would not change any of the conclusions of Fremont General Plan 2035 Final Environmental Impact Report (General Plan Update EIR) (State Clearinghouse No. 20100820060), and none of circumstances requiring preparation of a subsequent EIR under CEQA Guidelines Sec 15162 are present. In accordance with CEQA Guidelines Sec 15162-15164, the City has prepared an addendum to the General Plan Update EIR that demonstrates that the proposed CAP Update would not result in new significant environmental effects or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified significant environmental effects, and that no new information of substantial importance has been identified that suggests the potential for the CAP Update to result in significant or substantially more severe effects not discussed in the General Plan Update EIR.
Climate Ready Fremont meets the requirements under Section 15183.5(b)(1) of the State CEQA Guidelines as a qualified plan for the reduction of GHG emissions for use in cumulative impact analysis pertaining to new development projects. As a qualified CAP, project-specific environmental documents, if eligible, will be able to tier from and/or incorporate by reference Climate Ready Fremont’s programmatic review of GHG impacts in their cumulative impact analyses.
ATTACHMENTS:
• Draft Resolution to Adopt the Climate Action Plan Update • Exhibit A_Climate Ready Fremont_Climate Action Plan Update • Exhibit B_Addendum to the Fremont General Plan Update EIR for the CAP Update • Exhibit C_Summary of CAP Community Outreach Conducted • Exhibit D_Summary of Comments Received on MyFremont Forum • Exhibit E_Summary of Edits Made to Climate Ready Fremont Plan
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Find that (a) none of circumstances requiring preparation of a subsequent EIR under CEQA Guidelines Sec 15162 are present in the proposed CAP Update; (b) the proposed CAP Update would not result in new significant environmental effects or a substantial increase in the severity of previously identified significant environmental effects; and (c) no new information of substantial importance has been identified that suggests the potential for the CAP Update to result in significant or substantially more severe effects not discussed in the General Plan Update EIR.
Council Staff Report (ID # 4978) Meeting of October 10, 2023 Updated: 10/5/2023 5:50 PM by Susan Gauthier Page 7
2. Adopt a resolution to adopt the Climate Ready Fremont CAP Update and supporting Addendum to the Fremont General Plan Update EIR and to direct staff to begin implementation of the plan.