Annapolis, MD Energy Efficiency Task Force Recommendations
Type: Resolution
Status: Adopted on 10/9/06
Source File: http://www.ci.annapolis.md.us/upload/images/government/council/Adopted/R3806.pdf
Text:
RESOLUTION NO. R-38-06
A RESOLUTION concerning Recommendations of the City of Annapolis Energy Efficiency Task Force
WHEREAS, the Annapolis City Council adopted R-31-05 on October 10, 2005, which established the City of Annapolis Energy Efficiency Task Force to study the application and recommend the implementation of energy efficient standards for the city to reduce costs, reduce energy consumption, and to reduce our reliance upon foreign petroleum; and
WHEREAS, the Energy Efficiency Task Force met for six consecutive months, gathered information and discussed energy efficiency standards and their implementation by the City government; and
WHEREAS, the Energy Efficiency Task Force developed recommendations for the City to reduce costs, energy consumption and reliance upon petroleum.
NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED BY THE ANNAPOLIS CITY COUNCIL that the following recommendations of the City of Annapolis Energy Efficiency Task Force are hereby adopted which guide the energy policy of the City of Annapolis.
Energy Efficiency Task Force Recommendations
1. Comprehensive Municipal Energy Audit
- a. Undertake a comprehensive energy audit of all public owned or leased facilities.
- b. Conduct a baseline emissions inventory and forecast. Based on energy consumption and waste generation, the city calculates greenhouse gas emissions for a base year (e.g., 2000) and for a forecast year. The inventory and forecast provide a benchmark against which the city can measure progress.
- c. Commit to 10% reduction in energy use of all public owned or leased facilities within 5 years of establishing an emissions baseline and 15% by 2020.
2.Energy Performance Contracting
- a. Enter into an agreement with an energy service company which identifies and evaluates energy-saving opportunities and recommends a package of improvements which are paid for through the resulting savings.
3.Distributed Energy Resources
- a. Install on-site energy generation wherever practical (solar, wind, geothermal) for every public facility. Energy generated on-site will be adequate to supply total energy requirement (e.g., stop lights, area or street lights, bus shelters) or will be fed back into the electrical grid to lower overall energy costs.
- b. Public benefits: lower cost/kw; deferral of capital costs for construction of power plants and substations; reduced net pollution emissions; stand-alone installations not connected to the power grid are unaffected by power outages.
4. Provide Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) green building design checklist and green building fact sheet for all private building permit applications to raise awareness of green building standards in the private sector.
- a "Green building" is a movement within building design and construction which incorporates the following concepts: using natural resources efficiently; considering the impact of buildings on the local, regional and global environment; reducing building footprint size; allowing ecosystems to function naturally; conserving and reusing water; treating storm water on-site; maximizing the use of local materials; optimizing energy performance by installing energy efficient equipment and systems; optimizing climatic conditions through site orientation and design; integrating natural day-lighting and ventilation; minimizing construction waste by reducing, reusing and recycling materials during all phases of construction and deconstruction, incorporating low VOC materials and design concepts that lend to a healthy work environment.
5. Adopt LEED building standards for all new public facilities and renovations of existing public buildings with a minimum standard of Silver Certification.
- a. LEED standards define Silver, Gol and Platinum Certifications
- b. Energy efficient buildings provide significant energy cost savings
- c. Green buildings reduce waste management costs, air and water pollution.
- d. Green buildings produce operating cost savings.
- e. Green buildings provide improved and healthier working environments.
- f. Widespread application of green building practices can produce economic development potential by fostering new markets for green products and technologies
- g. LEED saves time and resources by providing a comprehensive set of tools for local application and use.
- h. LEED avoids the need to establish local certification bodies.
- i. LEED allows benchmarking with other LEED jurisdictions.
6. Apply existing green purchasing standards vigorously for all City departments.
- a. Purchase only Energy Star equipment and appliances for City use.
- b. Evaluate opportunities to increase pump efficiency in water and wastewater systems.
7. Investigate incentives for the private sector to include green building standards in new construction. For example:
- a. Property tax credits
- b. Reduced permit fees
- c. Increased zoning density
- d. Apply a fee/sq ft for non-green building projects that can be diverted to low income housing, outreach education promoting green building, etc.
8. Education program
- a. Provide for training of government staff in LEED methodology which can be provided by the US Green Building Council, Green Building Institute, American Institute of Architects, or other similar group.
- b. Develop a green building outreach program for the professional building community.
9. Transportation
- a. Commit to purchasing hybrid, alternative energy source or other energy efficient vehicles to account for a minimum of 25% of the city's fleet
- b. Convert City vehicles to biodiesel wherever possible and establish a fueling facility.
- c. Developments that are required to submit traffic impact studies will include impacts on the city's current transportation infrastructure and will provide mitigation such as financial transit subsidies, promotion of car pooling and telecommuting, sale of transit passes.
- d. Annapolis Transit will identify the needs of residents within new development and adjust routes accordingly.
- e. Promote transportation options such as bicycle trails, commute trip reduction programs, incentives for car pooling and public transit.
- f. Explore water based transit options, such as water taxis and ferries.
10. Purchase green energy through regional purchasing agreements
- a. Purchase 20% of the City's total energy needs from renewable sources by the 3 year 2020. Renewable energy sources are: solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, small hydro power, and fuel cell.
11. Increase recycling rates in City operations and in the residential and commercial communities.
- a. Products made from recycled materials as opposed to virgin materials generally require less energy for manufacture.
- b. Reduced waste equates to a reduction in trips to the landfill which reduces vehicle emissions.
12. Maintain healthy urban forests and promote tree planting to increase shading and to absorb CO2.
- a. Trees absorb carbon dioxide and discharge oxygen as part of their natural growing process.
- b. Shaded areas have lower temperatures, reducing the urban heat island effect and the production of ground level ozone.
- c. Increase the urban forest canopy to 50% of the City's land area by 2036.