Please join the Center for Community Innovation/ Urban Displacement Project team from 11am-noon PDT on Tuesday, May 25 to hear the latest on our statewide climate change mitigation investments and displacement research.
This research was funded by the California Strategic Growth Council and was conducted in partnership with Asian Pacific Environmental Network, California Housing Partnership Corporation, Leadership Counsel for Justice and Accountability, Public Advocates, and Public Counsel.
In this webinar, our team will share Bay Area-specific quantitative research findings and will engage participants in a discussion about how our research findings might inform coordinated anti-displacement and sustainability policies, programs, and investments.
Please register in advance for this webinar using this link:
https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0kdOCorT4iGtAMsCbQrFjcyvnb-w3p9awn
Questions? Contact:
Renee Roy Elias, Ph.D. krroy[at]berkeley[dot]edu
Executive Director, Center for Community Innovation
University of California, Berkeley
Monthly Archives: May 2021
Development of the 2020 Urban Water Management Plan
On May 5, 2021, the Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS), the Sierra Club Sacramento Group and the League of Women Voters of Sacramento County submitted a joint letter to a number of local water agencies summarizing our comments on the current development of the 2020 Urban Water Management Plan. Below is the opening of our letter.
The development of the 2020 Urban Water Management Plan (UWMP) including the Water Shortage Contingency Plan (WSCP) lacks a full, open, and meaningful public participation process. State law provides a minimum 14-day public notice prior to the adoption hearing. but in view of the fact that the U.S. Drought Monitor, a weekly hydrological analysis by the federal government, shows 93% of California in either “severe,” “extreme” or exceptional” drought, this suggests a public voice is more important now than ever.
Communities throughout the region are concerned about the availability of water for drinking, the environment and affordability issues. Climate change magnifies these concerns. The assumptions and projections documented in the Urban Water Management Plans, and the specific conservation and efficiency programs planned are of great interest to the community.
Support for SACOG’s “Green Means Go” budget request
May 3, 2021
The Honorable Nancy Skinner, Chair, Senate Budget Committee
The Honorable Phil Ting, Chair, Assembly Budget Committee
RE: Support for SACOG’s Green Means Go state budget allocation
Dear Chairs Skinner and Ting,
The Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) supports Senator Pan’s request for the Sacramento Area Council of Government’s (SACOG) state budget allocation of $100 million dollars to implement the first year of its Green Means Go pilot program.
By accelerating infill development through infrastructure investments in centers, transit nodes, and commercial corridors in established communities, Green Means Go will help SACOG implement its Sustainable Communities Strategy and achieve the GHG emission reduction target of 19 percent per capita, set in 2018 by the California Air Resources Board pursuant to SB375.
SACOG has identified infill areas or “Green Zones” in 23 of the 28 jurisdictions in its six-county region. The local jurisdictions are ready to partner with the State to invest in infrastructure, such as water and sewer lines, to facilitate infill development. This kind of development can revitalize existing urban areas, and with transit service nearby and a mix of residential and commercial uses, can reduce driving, and therefore, vehicle miles traveled and GHG emissions. Green Means Go can increase housing availability and affordability without loss of habitat or agricultural land.
SACOG estimates the capacity of the identified infill areas or Green Zones at 84,000 dwelling units. To meet the challenge of climate change, it is critical to begin infrastructure work in the Green Zones, so that infill development can be the land use pattern of choice during this decade. Referring to the Regional Housing Need Allocation for 2021-2029 (RHNA, Sacramento County’s 21,722 dwelling unit RHNA could became mainly infill, and Sacramento City’s 45,000 dwelling unit RHNA similarly. This would shift the region’s development trajectory and put us on a more sustainable path. The state budget allocation of $100 million dollars to implement the first year of Green Means Go would give infill a chance.
Infill development is costly, and our region is behind coastal and other metropolitan areas in creating it. Local jurisdictions must provide the infrastructure upgrades to set the stage for infill development, and they need additional funding to do it. State funding is vital for this purpose, and we ask you to include the allocation of $100 million dollars in this year’s budget for the first year of the Green Means Go pilot program.
Sincerely yours,
Ralph Propper
ECOS President
cc: The Honorable Richard Pan, California State Senate
The Honorable Kevin McCarty, California State Assembly
Keely Bosler, Director, California Department of Finance
James Corless, SACOG Executive Director
California’s Latest Drought in 4 Charts
Alvar Escriva-Bou, Jeffrey Mount, Michael Dettinger | May 3, 2021 | Public Policy Institute of California
California is grappling with drought again, facing many of the same conditions and challenges that were features of the 2012–16 drought—including stressed ecosystems, depleted reservoirs, hard-hit farms and rural communities, threats to urban water supplies, and the potential for extensive wildfires. Knowing what’s different and what’s similar to our last major drought can help us better prepare the most vulnerable sectors for ongoing dry times.
To put this drought in context, this is only its second year. Historically, droughts have lasted up to six years. Our most recent one lasted five. We cannot know if this drought will break next year or four years from now, but we should plan for continuing drought.
https://www.ppic.org/blog/californias-latest-drought-in-4-charts/
Click here to read the full article.
California’s Wildfire Season Is Off to an Early Start
By Olivia Rosane | May 4, 2021 | EcoWatch
Fire season in California usually starts in summer and extends through the fall, according to The Guardian. However, the climate crisis has upended weather patterns in the state, which is now suffering from drought conditions. Much of California, including the north, is experiencing its driest wet season in more than 40 years; Sacramento experienced its driest on record in April, NWS said.
https://www.ecowatch.com/california-wildfires-2021-2652873703.html
Sac City Building Electrification Ordinance
On May 4, 2021, the Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) sent the following in an email to the City of Sacramento’s Law and Legislation Committee regarding a Building Electrification Ordinance.
Dear City Council members Eric, Katie, Jeff, and Jay,
The Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) supports the proposed New Building Electrification Ordinance, to be considered today by the Sacramento Law and Legislation Committee. ECOS believes that the proposed ordinance is necessary for the City to take appropriate action to be a leader in the development of technology that all cities will need before long, as the threat of climate change becomes increasingly obvious to all. It will benefit the City to be a leader, as we strive to develop a world-class economy.
We note that the proposed ordinance is generally consistent with the recommendation from the Mayors’ Climate Commission. It would require new buildings, with permit applications filed on or after January 1, 2023, to be all electric. Buildings that are four stories or more, with building permit applications filed on or after January 1, 2026, would be all electric. We note that staff has added time limited exemptions for food establishments for cooking equipment only, and for manufacturing process loads within a manufacturing or industrial facility. The revised ordinance also includes more detail on the process for obtaining an infeasibility waiver. We hope that the Committee agrees that, with these changes, it can support the proposed ordinance.
Ralph Propper, ECOS President
Update: Good News!
After we sent our letter, at their meeting later the same day, the Sac City Law and Legislation Committee voted to recommend that the proposed New Building Electrification ordinance move forward to the full Council. The vote was 3:1 (with Schenirer, Harris, and Guerra voting for, and Valenzuela voting against). The Committee also directed the staff to do further outreach between now and the council meeting.
We want to express a huge thank you to those of you who took the time to write support letters on behalf of yourself and your organizations. It made a big difference as the opposition is strong, especially from restaurants.
The item is tentatively scheduled for the May 25 council meeting. It’s important that we continue to express our support between now and then.
Photo by Pixabay https://www.pexels.com/photo/time-lapse-photography-of-blue-lights-373543/