CC Minutes - 10/10/11 Work Session

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MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room —City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon October 10, 2011 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Betty Taylor, George Brown, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Mike Clark, Chris Pryor, Alan Zelenka, Pat Farr. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the October 10, 2011, work session of the Eugene City Council to order. A. WORK SESSION: Eugene Community Climate and Energy Action Plan Progress Report The council was joined by Sustainability Liaison Babe O'Sullivan, Climate and Energy Analyst Matt McRae, and Sustainability Commission Vice Chair Kathi Jaworski. Ms. Jaworski expressed the Sustainability Commission's support for the work that had occurred to implement the City's Climate and Energy Action Plan (CEAP) and for its continued implementation. She reviewed the highlights of a letter from the commission that urged the council to focus on goals where less progress had been made, including expansion and maintenance of the urban forest, promotion of water conservation, and reduced natural gas consumption and which suggested the council could spur action in those areas. Ms. Jaworski recognized progress as exemplified by the City's Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan and recommended that the City establish a process to evaluate which projects worked best to encourage the use of alternate modes. She concluded by suggesting the next step was to reflect CEAP in City policies. She offered the commission as a resource in that effort. Mr. McRae led the council through a PowerPoint presentation regarding the City's Climate and Energy Action Plan, first reminding the council of the goals of the plan: 1) to reduce community greenhouse gas emissions ten percent below 1990 levels by 2020; 2) to reduce fossil fuel use by 50 percent by 2030; 3) to prepare the community for climate change; and 4) to prepare the community for rising fuel prices. CEAP included six focus areas: • Buildings and agriculture • Food and agriculture • Land use and transportation • Consumption and waste • Health and social services • Urban natural resources Mr. McRae placed local efforts in context by noting increasing national awareness of the issue of climate change. He shared national trend data showing increases in crude oil prices, gasoline prices, adjusted food prices, and adjusted asphalt price index. MINUTES— Eugene City Council October 10, 2011 Page 1 Work Session