ALBANY, CA—Two months into the implementation phase of the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP), staff presented an update of their progress to the Climate Action Committee and to the public. Around seven people attended.

City staff started the meeting by  providing a summary of their initial research, including the Sustainable Procurement Policy, the Electric Vehicle Action Plan, the Urban Forestry Plan, and voluntary green building tiers.

In addition to discussing their research, the staff let the Committee know that they “were given directions to pause Albany’s natural gas ban as a similar ban has caused lawsuits in Berkeley and other cities.” In response, one committee member stated that “we should not be pushed back just because of possible lawsuits.”

City staff member Elizabeth Carrade provided an update on the city’s CALGreen (read here for more information about CALGreen) analysis. She  then asked the committee for advice on adopting CALGreen so the city can meet the state’s new green building standards code.

The committee debated whether they should adopt it completely, adopt it with minor changes, or not adopt it. The Committee discussed pursuing a piecemeal approach to adopting Tier 1 measures, and plans to further analyze the California Department of General Services green building standards code before reporting back to the Committee at the next meeting.

Another noteworthy announcement from the meeting was that the Committee said it was against banning leaf blowers, and suggested that  property owners and landscapers use alternatives due to health and noise concerns.

–Cynthia Deng