23
TAKING STOCK: Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Hamilton Planning and Economic Development Department, City of Hamilton
TAKING STOCK:Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Hamilton
Planning and Economic Development Department, City of Hamilton
TWO POSSIBLE FUTURES: The Choice is Ours
It is 2060Coney Island is permanently under water. A quarter of the Earth’s species are extinct. Water scarcity and raging forest fi res have forced millions to migrate. Flooding has displaced billions more from their homes along rivers and coastlines around the world.
Here in Hamiltonthe temperature tops 30ºC close to 50 days each year. Severe storms, at one time thought to happen once a century, are an annual event. The city’s infrastructure takes a constant beating, power outages are routine and it’s almost impossible to get property insurance for homes and businesses. Hamilton winters are too warm to produce maple syrup. Our grandchildren have never heard of pond hockey.
WHAT IS CLIMATE CHANGE?Climate change is the long-term change in average weather patterns caused by the release of greenhouse gases (GHGs) such as carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O) into the atmosphere.
PAGE 1
2060...take twoGlobal climate treaties and citizen eff orts have prevented climate change’s most drastic impacts. Energy harnessed from renewable sources is used to power homes and workplaces. People live in technologically sophisticated mega-cities, travelling and communicating in a virtual world. Most of the planet’s citizens, including those in the wealthiest countries, have adopted a “less is more” philosophy.
Here in Hamiltonwe throw a big party every January to celebrate Hamilton’s Climate Contract, signed in 2012. We’ve seen a lot of changes since that important date. We live in dense, well-serviced neighbourhoods. We walk and wheel along safe, scenic routes for most daily travel and easily connect with fast and convenient transit systems. Most of our food comes from community gardens and highly protected agricultural land within Hamilton’s boundaries. Our homes are super-effi cient multi-purpose hubs where we work, shop, grow food, raise families, and relax. We reduce, reuse, share and repair our consumer purchases so well that garbage and recycling pick-up is four times a year.
Key employers are in the information, technology, creative and service sectors. Businesses that have invested in low carbon practices are fl ourishing. People live well on 20 to 25 hours of work a week. Quality of life is our number one concern and we compete with other cities for the highest ranking on the World Well-being Index.
Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases in global
average air temperatures, wide-spead melting of snow and ice, and
rising global average sea level.(Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change 2007)
Read the fi ll GHG Inventory report online at:
www.hamilton.ca/ghginventory
Read the Corporate Air Quality and Climate Change Plans at:
www.hamilton.ca/climatechange
Talk Back!We are looking for feedback on the
GHG Inventoryand want community members and
sector reps. to get involved!Email:
“”
TWO POSSIBLE FUTURES. TWO DRASTICALLY DIFFERENT OUTCOMES. HOW AND WHEN WE REDUCE OUR GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS WILL MAKE THE DIFFERENCE. WHICH FUTURE WILL WE CHOOSE?
PAGE 2
About Hamilton’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory
It is 2008Hamilton City Council has endorsed its Corporate Air Quality and Climate Change Plan Phase II and has made a commitment to reduce its municipal greenhouse gas emissions by 10% by 2012 and by 20% by 2020, using the levels of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in 2005 as the starting point for measuring progress.
BUT THERE IS A CHALLENGENo one has a full picture of the greenhouse gases that were released by City operations in 2005, making it hard to determine progress on targets. Further more, City operations are only a small piece of Hamilton’s overall emission picture. The greenhouse gases released by the community in our daily activities, including personal transportation, goods movement, heating and cooling of buildings, electricity use at work and home, and manufacturing, will need to be counted, too.
WE NEED A GHG INVENTORYA municipally-supported community process to set community GHG emission targets has yet to happen. Rather than wait, City planners decide to use the targets adopted for municipal operations (10% by 2012 and 20% by 2020) for now, knowing the targets and timelines can be changed once the community is involved.
PAGE 3
In 2009the City of Hamilton hires Stantec as the external consultant to conduct the inventory, which is fi nalized in October 2009 and received by Council in November 2009.
THIS SUMMARYProvides key highlights from the full GHG Inventory. It provides a snapshot of:• our municipal and community GHG emissions by 2020 if we continue
with “business as usual”• sector-by-sector municipal (2005, 2007) and community (2006, 2008)
GHG emissions• next steps for the municipality and a plan to get the community involved
We see this summary as a way to build momentum, engage people, start discussions, and take action on climate change in Hamilton.
PAGE 4
Hamilton’s GHG Inventory Is...
A REALLY BIG REPORT.Weighing in at a whopping 152 pages, the full inventory is crammed with data, tables and fi gures, including information on criteria air contaminants (air pollutants other than GHGs) and an analysis of greenhouse gas credit options, neither of which are included in this summary. This summary focuses only on the GHG inventory and emission forecasts.
A REQUIREMENT UNDER THE PARTNERS FOR CLIMATE PROTECTION (PCP) PROGRAM.The Region of Hamilton-Wentworth signed onto this Canada-wide program, previously known as the 20% Club, in 1996. As a result, we are committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and acting on climate change. There are fi ve “milestones” that a municipality must achieve in the PCP program. Two of these are achieved by the inventory: the setting of emission targets and the GHG inventory itself, which must include an emission forecast. Find out more about PCP at: www.sustainablecommunities.fcm.ca/partners-for-climate-protection/
A CALL TO ACTION.Hamilton’s GHG inventory not only calculates the GHG emissions that the City’s municipal operations and the community as a whole produce, but forecasts these emissions to 2020. If we continue with “business as usual,” we will fall alarmingly short of our emissions targets.
NOT A PERFECT DOCUMENTIn fact, one of its most signifi cant limitations is that it only considers the GHG emissions we directly produce within Hamilton city limits*. The emissions from our consumption, apart from the fuel we burn or electricity we use, are not included. For example, the inventory doesn’t consider the emissions from growing and transporting the South African grapes that are sold in Hamilton’s
PAGE 5
stores. It includes the emissions released from the tailpipes of our cars (within Hamilton, at least) but not the emissions from the petroleum or auto manufacturing industries. The Story of Stuff (www.storyofstuff .org) gives a great description of the global impacts of production and consumption and shows why our GHG inventory is not a full picture of our emissions. Even within the Hamilton specifi c data used to develop the inventory, there are information gaps, estimates and assumptions, some of which are noted in this summary. The inventory will be improved over time, as municipal data collection is refi ned and the community provides input. For now, it’s a place to start.* the inventory does consider emissions from the production of electricity, which is a GHG source outside Hamilton.
TECH TALK...WHAT IS CO2e?“CO2e” stands for “carbon dioxide equivalent.” Since carbon dioxide (CO2) is the most abundant GHG released, it is used as the standard unit of GHG measurement. Quantities of other GHGs, like methane (CH4) and nitrous oxide (N2O), are converted to units of CO2e, the amount of CO2 that would have the same global warming potential as the amount of CH4 or N2O that was released. When there’s more than one greenhouse gas and each gas has a diff erent global warming potential, CO2e is a way of making sure we’re comparing apples to apples.
HOW ARE GREENHOUSE GASES MEASURED?GHGs are measured in metric tonnes. One tonne (t) of GHGs would fi ll a two-storey, three bedroom house.
WHAT’S A “BUSINESS AS USUAL” GHG EMISSIONS FORCAST?• It’s a prediction of future GHG emissions based on three assumptions:• Substantial population and commercial growth will happen as predicted
by City planning documents, including GRIDS• There are no meaningful changes to policies and initiatives in any sector
after 2008 that would reduce emissions and• The provincial electricity mix does not change from 2007.
PAGE 6
THE BIG PICTURE: Municipal Emissions to 2020
PAGE 7
MUNICIPALITIES HAVE AN IMPORTANT ROLE TO PLAY.According to the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), approximately 44% of Canada’s greenhouse gas emissions are under the direct or indirect control of municipal governments. Read FCM’s December 2009 report “Act Locally: The Municipal Role in Fighting Climate Change” at www.fcm.ca.
MUNICIPAL GHG EMISSION SOURCES THAT WERE CONSIDERED IN THE INVENTORY• City-owned buildings• small engines• vehicle fl eet (owned)• employee commuting• City Housing• streetlights and traffi c lights• waste fl eet (contracted)• expensed kilometres• water and sewage (energy used in buildings and infrastructure)• wastewater emissions (CH4, N2O from sewage treatment)
PROVINCIAL AND FEDERAL POLICIES WILL HAVE AN EFFECT, TOO.The full inventory attempts to quantify the impacts of the phase-out of coal-fi red electricity generation, the MoveOntario 2020 Rapid Transit Action Plan and the “Turning the Corner” Federal climate change plan, all of which will help to decrease both municipal and community GHG emissions if successfully implemented.
Hamilton’s municipal operations emitted 135,058 tonnes of CO2e in 2005. Largely because of an increase in coal-fi red generation in the Ontario electricity mix, these emissions rose to 139,401 tonnes CO2e in 2007, an increase of 3.2%. If the City of Hamilton does not implement any new policies or programs to reduce the GHG emissions from its day-to-day operations, by 2020 its emissions are predicted to be 109,820 tonnes CO2e. This is a decrease of 18.7% compared to 2005 emissions and gets the City quite close to achieving its target of a 20% reduction by 2020.
PAGE 8
THE BIG PICTURE: Community Emissions to 2020
PAGE 9
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT IS CRITICALThe community as a whole contributes 99% of the total GHG emissions in Hamilton. In order to reverse the upward trend of community emissions we need an engaged and committed group of citizens and other stake-holders who are prepared to take action, and a municipal government that supports their work.
COMMUNITY GHG SOURCES INCLUDED IN THE INVENTORY• residential (home heating and cooling)• commercial and institutional (excludes fuel used for transport)• transportation (annual kilometres travelled by Hamilton vehicles)• industrial (excluding steel) • steel sector• agriculture (livestock only)• waste (methane released from landfi lls)
UNTIL A COMMUNITY TARGET-SETTING PROCESShas been completed, community targets are assumed to be the same as municipal targets: 10% reduction by 2012 and 20% reduction by 2020.
EMISSIONS INCREASE WITH GROWTHThe forecast increase in community GHG emissions is a direct result of the growth predicted for Hamilton. To reduce emissions, we must manage our growth with care. Every development counts.
Community emissions, including the steel sector, totaled 12,758,652 tonnes of CO2e in 2006. These emissions rose to 13,131,097 tonnes of CO2e by 2008, an increase of 2.9%. By 2020, if there are no additional policies or programs put in place to enhance GHG emission reductions, the community’s “business as usual” emissions will rise to 17,349,621 tonnes of CO2e. This forecast is 36% above the emission levels calculated for 2006 and 56% above the target for 2020.
PAGE 10
THE BASELINE:Municipal Emissions 2005
TOP FOUR SINGLE MUNICIPAL GHG SOURCES IN 2005Public Transit
21,544 t CO2eWoodward Water & Wastewater Plant
6,602 t CO2e Arenas
8,160 t CO2eStreet Lights (excluding traffi c lights)
7,052 t CO2e
KEY INFORMATION WE’RE MISSING• City Housing data, including actual
energy consumption• Employee commuting data• Type and amount of fuel used in
employee-owned vehicles• Type and amount of fuel used in
contracted fl eets• Small engine data (fuel used, age, size,
and engine type)
PAGE 11
Community Emissions 2006KEY INFORMATION WE’RE MISSING• Data on private landfi lls• Residential and commercial/institutional
energy use, other than electricity and natural gas
• Industrial energy use, other than natural gas
• Steel sector energy use (all types of fuel)• Carbon sequestration potential of
Hamilton trees• Data on agriculture, including sources
other than live-stock• Information on emissions from
highway travel
Hamilton’s steel sector produced 61% of community GHG emissions in 2006 (7,757,526 t CO2e). Steel was removed from the community emissions chart because it is regulated by the Provincial and Federal governments and we want the focus of this summary to be on those sectors where we have local control. Also, at the time Hamilton’s inventory was done there was no actual data on steel emissions for 2008, meaning comparison between years would be diffi cult.
The commercial and institutional sector is a signifi cant source of GHG emissions in Hamilton. Programs that encourage green building and energy conservation retrofi ts will be of real value.
2006 was chosen as the baseline year for community emissions because, as a census year, it could provide a more accurate picture of community characteristics. Also, the Partners in Climate Change program requires that the community baseline for a GHG inventory be a census year.
PAGE 12
TRACKING PROGRESS: Municipal Emissions 2007
PAGE 13
Emissions from municipal operations increased 3% between 2005 and 2007. Small reductions in GHG emissions from corporate buildings, the contracted waste fl eet and expensed kilometres were not enough to off set the signifi cant increases in GHG emissions from all sectors that used large amounts of electricity. These increases were due to an increase in coal-fi red electricity generation (20% of the provincial mix was coal-fi red in 2007 versus 18% in 2005). GHG emissions from coal burning are particularly high. Emission increases in the Fleet & Transportation sector were due to increased transit service, which is ultimately necessary to reduce community (and City employee) transportation emissions.
INITIATIVES TO REDUCE MUNICIPAL EMISSIONS• Green Fleet program (Phase I-2005, Phase II-2009)• Green Cart program (2006)• Biogas Cogeneration Facility at Woodward Wastewater Treatment Plant (2006)• Corporate Computer Shutdown (2006)• Installation of LED traffi c lights (2007)• Energy Pilot Retrofi t Program (2007)• Corporate Energy Policy (2007)• Light Savers Project (2008)• Glanbrook landfi ll gas collection system (2008)• LEED Silver certifi cation at Woodward Environ-mental Lab (2008)• Low emission turf mowing pilot (2009)
Reducing emissions saves money. From May 2006 to December 31, 2008 the City reports over $10 million in savings and avoided costs because of reduced energy consumption (Public Works, July 2009).
PAGE 14
TRACKING PROGRESS: Community Emissions 2008
PAGE 15
Community GHG emissions increased 3% between 2006 and 2008. Reductions in GHG emissions from the industrial sector (-15%) and waste sector (-18%) were not enough to off set the signifi cant increases in GHG emissions from the residential and commercial sectors. These increases were due to the increased consumption of natural gas in both of these sectors, as well as an increase in coal-fi red electricity in the provincial mix in 2008.
HAMILTON HAS MANY PROGRAMS AND POLICIES TO DECREASE COMMUNITY GHG EMISSIONS...These include planning documents (the Offi cial Plan, Transportation Master Plan etc.), municipal programs (green carts, leaf and yard waste, street tree planting, traffi c signal re-timing, Rapid Transit, Smart Commute etc.) bylaws (anti-idling), community programs (Eat Local, Idling Stinks, Climate Change Champions, EcoDriver, Passport to Hamilton, Clean Air Hamilton etc.), Horizon Utilities programs (Peaksaver, Powersavings Blitz, Electricity Retrofi t Incentive Program, Great Refrigerator Roundup, Generation Conservation) and events (Commuter Challenge, Blackout Challenge, Earth Hour).
MOST OF THESE PROGRAMS DO NOT RESULT IN QUANTIFIABLE GHG EMISSION REDUCTIONS.Some of them are educational and awareness activities. Many are programs off ered only as long as funding is available. Others are plans which must be actually implemented to make a diff erence. What programs do we need? How should programs be designed to create sustainable, measurable change?
PAGE 16
NEXT STEPS: Research and Action
The Bottom LineA “business as usual” approach to addressing GHG emissions means we will exceed our community GHG emission target for 2020 by 56%. While the GHG inventory suggests that the municipality will get close to its target for 2020 by implementing the programs in place as of 2008, emissions in 2007 had still increased 3% over the 2005 baseline.
MUNICIPAL ACTIONS:• Monitor community and municipal progress. Refi ne data collection
and publish results every year. Make the data open source so that the community can have access to it.
• Conduct additional research to guide investments, including detailedenergy mapping.
• Take a leadership role. Facilitate the community’s planning and implementation process (see COMMUNITY ACTIONS below) as well as share lessons learned and best practices.
• Get results. Prioritize those policies and programs that will reduce community GHG emissions (e.g. Rapid Transit, Community Energy Planning). Measure the results.
• Invest in staff training, mentoring and culture change. Every municipal employee, from Corporate Services to Procurement to Economic Development to Development Planning, has a critical role in turning strategy into action and policy into reality.
• Go for the money. Work with other levels of government to fi nd support and resources for municipal and community initiatives.
PAGE 17
COMMUNITY ACTIONS:• Decide on community targets or endorse the targets set by the City.• Fill in missing information, conduct research, and explore existing data.• Determine a community process for taking action. Options include a
Climate Change Roundtable; a steering committee; an annual “Citizens summit”; one-on-one presentations to groups to gauge interest; and a monthly Climate Change Café to create opportunities for informal discussion. The City of Hamilton will be a key partner.
• Spread the word. Youth, seniors, school councils, faith groups, businesses, hospital and education administrators, employees, parents, NGOs, neighbourhood associations, teachers, and interested citizens all have a place at the table and a voice in discussions.
• Create fact sheets for each sector (e.g. residential, steel industry, transportation etc.) to help with planning, implementation and evaluation.
• Join an existing group such as Green Venture, Environment Hamilton or Clean Air Hamilton and take action right away.
HOW DO I GET INVOLVED?ContactBrian Montgomery, Air & Climate Change Co-ordinatorEmail: [email protected]: 905.546.2424 Ext. 1275Check out the climate change web page for info on events, meetings and groups to join at: www.hamilton.ca/climatechange.
GIVE US YOUR FEEDBACK!Fill in and mail back the form below or fi ll in the on-line form.
PAGE 18
HAVE YOUR SAY
SEND YOUR RESPONSES
By MailBrian Montgomery
Air & Climate Change Co-ordinatorPlanning and Economic Development
City of Hamilton71 Main Street West, 4th Floor
Hamilton, ON L8P 4Y5
Onlinewww.hamilton.ca/climatechange
HAVE YOUR SAY!
CLIMATE CHANGE WILL AFFECT EVERYONE...THAT’S WHY WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!Answer the following questions here or online at www.hamilton.ca/climatechange. Your responses will give City staff feedback on the inventory and help us partner with the community in a meaningful way. The more specifi c your responses are, the better!
I’m fi lling this out as:
a representative of (your organizations name is optional) a interested citizen
Can we add you to out contact list? (include your name and the best way to contact you)
The inventory sets the community emissions target at 10% below 2006 levels by 2012 and 20% below 2006 levels by 2020. What do you think the community targets should be?
Is there anything we’ve missed in the GHG inventory? How could we get that information?
What do you think we, as a community, should do to combat climate change in Hamilton?
How would you (or your organization) like to get involved?
What would need to be in place to make your involvement feel worthwhile?
