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Addendum to 'y Qt UriC~ty Resolution of the City of University City for Community Sustainability FO FO Date: September 21, 2009 To: City Council From: Petree A. Eastman Re: Background for Sustainability Resolution Introduction This addendum is intended to provide background information in support of the "Resolution of the City of University City for Community Sustainability" recommended for adoption by the Green Practices Committee. It is Committee's goal for the Resolution to set a new course on the means and methods by which the City conducts its business and to serve as an example to the community. It is important to note that the actions called for in the resolution are primarily pre-plan evaluative measures necessary to the recommendations the Committee will ultimately make in developing the sustainability plan. They are first steps; these do not constitute the plan itself In order to make the best decisions to reduce the community and the City's ecological footprint (carbon, methane, water, and natural resource use), some preliminary evaluative measures must be taken. It is a typical planning approach (evaluate, plan, implement, evaluate). Thus it is standard protocol to assess the existing carbon footprint of the city in order make specific sustainability decisions and then measure the impact of actions taken. There are two primary measurements that must be assessed: the greenhouse gas (GHG) inventory and energy audits of city facilities. The first will look at the City's greenhouse gas emissions, as well as the community's. A subset of the first is to have energy audits conducted at each of the City's facilities. Through knowledge of the sources of our emissions and energy usage, better and more informed decisions about capital improvements, behavior changes and policy can be made. Based on data about where we are currently, the ultimate goal of the Green Practices Committee is to devise a sustainability plan that leads our community to have zero impact on the earth. The additional measures discussed in the proposed resolution are known subject areas that will have to be addressed regardless of the baseline data. Street lighting is by far the highest energy cost to the City and may be the area single greatest savings that can be made. Likewise, buildings of all types are a primary source of carbon emissions and so an update of our zoning and building code to a "green" code is in order. The Green Practices Committee is seeking endorsement of these measures through the proposed Resolution. Below is more information about each of these measures and estimated cost to execute. Greenhouse Gas Inventory 3