Category Archives: ECOS Updates

2023 Annual Highlights

December 21, 2023

Dear ECOS Community,

ECOS and our members and partners accomplished a lot this year and our advocacy mattered.

This year we celebrated the 50th Anniversary of ECOS at our Environmentalist Awards on Dec. 1st at the State Railroad Museum. We send heartfelt thanks to our sponsors; we could not do our work without you. We also thank our ECOS team that made it happen. See photos and more information on the last page of our Annual Highlights report.

Throughout our history, ECOS has addressed environmental challenges in our region, and contributed to several successful planning actions, three of which remain a focus of ECOS today – the Sacramento Area Council of Governments Blueprint, the Sacramento County Urban Services Boundary, and the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan. Read about them in the report.

For more perspective on the period 1970 to today, see our video, ECOS Past & Present – Key Events, and History of ECOS.

Download ECOS’ 2023 Annual Highlights

Much work lies ahead. Please join our ranks, donate, or become a member here.

Best wishes for the new year.

Susan Herre

President of the Board of Directors

2040 General Plan Update: Missing Middle Housing & Maximum Floor Area Ratio

On November 28, 2023, ECOS submitted a letter of support for the City of Sacramento’s proposal for the missing middle housing ordinance as part of the General Plan Update. Below is an excerpt from our letter.

For over 50 years, ECOS has urged our region to increase infill housing as opposed to sprawl development, in order to preserve habitat and make our air healthier to breathe. More recently it has become clear that this is needed to limit greenhouse gas emissions that jeopardize the future of our species, and to deal with our #1 local issue: the lack of affordable housing and concomitant homelessness. For these reasons, ECOS has consistently promoted investment in public transit and light rail, and the development of transit-oriented infill development. Additionally, ECOS recognizes that our past discriminatory housing policy has caused a development pattern that must be adjusted to promote environmental justice and equity.

Click here to read our letter in full.

SacRT Mobility Hub Implementation Plan application

The Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) supports the SacRT Mobility Hub Implementation Plan application for the FY2022-23 Planning and Capacity Building grant program. The application is submitted by Civic Thread in partnership with Sacramento Regional Transit District (SacRT) and Sacramento Building Healthy Communities (Sac BHC). On October 25, 2023, ECOS submitted a letter of support for this application.

Click here to read our letter of support for this application.

ECOS Climate Committee meeting 12/21/2023

Thursday, December 21, 2023 – 6 PM start (Zoom)
Link to join: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/6656164155
To phone in: 669-900-6833, Meeting ID: 665 616 4155

6:00 PM: Welcome and Introductions

6:10 PM: Alberto Ayala, Executive Director, Sacramento Metro Air Quality Management District (AQMD) – will discuss applying for federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG), and the recent COP28 meeting in Dubai.

  • The AQMD is working with agencies in our 7-county Sacramento region to develop a regional greenhouse gas (GHG) plan to include all desired climate pollution reduction strategies. The CPRG program provides $5 billion in grants to develop and implement ambitious plans for reducing GHG emissions, authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act; pre-proposals are due Feb. 1. At a recent joint meeting of SACOG, SMUD, SMAQMD, and SacRT boards, Alberto discussed the idea of converting biomass utilization (from agriculture and forest thinnings) to green hydrogen fuel and sequestered biochar.
  • At COP28, the final global agreement calls for transitioning away from fossil fuels.

7:00 PM: Updates and Announcements

Caltrans started construction on the I-80 Yolo Causeway between Sacramento and Davis. Caltrans released a draft EIR (Environmental Impact Report) for the larger project: adding lanes to the causeway. Comments are due January 5.

Sacramento County: “Notice of Preparation” released for “Subsequent Environmental Impact Report” for a revised Climate Action Plan: January 10 meeting to discuss; comments due Jan. 31. Also, their Climate Emergency Mobilization Task Force is preparing to send recommendations to the Board of Supervisors for building electrification, air quality, and transportation.

Sacramento City: moving ahead with existing building electrification, and a Climate Action & Adaptation Plan. The City Council voted to move ahead with a Missing Middle Housing approach that would eliminate single-family zoning in its 2040 General Plan.

Click here to view the agenda in PDF.

Reducing Carbon in the Built Environment

ECOS MTG/Board – Wednesday, November 29, 2023

Click here to view the slides from this meeting’s presentation.

LINK to join: ECOS ZOOM 6656164155 or call: 1 669 900 6833, Mtg ID: 665 616 4155

6:00 pm Welcome – Susan Herre, Board President

6:15 pm Presentation and discussion: Reducing Carbon in the Built Environment

7:00 pm ECOS Board Meeting + Annual Elections

8:00 pm Adjourn

REDUCING CARBON IN THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT (Eligible for one hour of continuing education learning units under CA Architects Board – certificates will be issued by ECOS)

Joel Swift AIA will lead the discussion through key concepts and new analytic tools used by engineers, architects, material suppliers and contractors. Chris Chatto AIA will present several projects that illustrate how these tools and concepts can achieve significant reductions in embodied carbon. Ida Clair AIA will discuss how the State of California is including embodied carbon analysis in building codes starting in 2024. Before the session, see the Excerpt from Reducing Carbon in the Built Environment.