Environment And Infrastructure Committee

COLUMBIA ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES TUESDAY, JULY 20, 2021 CALL TO ORDER Attendee Name Title Status Tameika Isaac Devine Chair Present Will Brennan Member Present Daniel J. Rickenmann Member Present COMMITTEE DISCUSSION 1. Columbia's Climate Protection Action Committee (CPAC) Quarterly Update - Ms. Mary Pat Baldauf, Sustainability Administrator for the Public Works Department and Mr. Robert Petrulis, Vice-Chair of CPAC Bob Petrulis, Vice Chair of Columbia's Climate Protection Action Committee provided an update on behalf of CPAC. The second quarterly webinar: Keeping Columbia Cool was held on June 17, 2021. To date, we've had 67 views of the webinar and it can still be viewed at <https://youtu.be/LVxd639k5Fw>. Members of the committee and city staff are participating in the following procurement cohorts: Renewable Energy Procurement Cohort, Sustainability Planning Cohort, and the Mobile Electric Vehicle (EV) Charging Cohort. The Ready for 100 Consultant's Report was completed by Dr. Anthony Artuso of BrightView Energy. The goals and guiding principles include affordability, reliability, local generation, and accessibility/equity. We need to consider the climate impact of new acquisitions immediately. Next steps include dialogue about a resolution to affirm the City's commitment to Ready 100, constructive collaborations, utility-scale solar projects, a strategy to address the transportation sector, and a community-facing dashboard to report progress. We propose that CPAC take the lead in developing a draft resolution for Council's consideration in consultation with the Environment and Infrastructure Committee. What assets exist within the city that can move this agenda forward? What does this committee need from CPAC that can help you frame these issues for the committee and for City Council? Councilor Rickenmann said we have to think about how we will distribute the power. Are grid upgrades available? Large scale solar is a great option. Solar thermal wasn’t talked about. We can incorporate that in public buildings and attainable housing options. In terms of assets that exist within, we have a hydro plant and we can channel the power back to the water treatment facility instead of selling it. We can capture the waste heat that’s generated at our wastewater treatment plant. The commitment from the City is there. We will have to do this with Dominion Page 1 of 3  COLUMBIA ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES TUESDAY, JULY 20, 2021 Energy and all the utilities that touch the City. We need to incorporate these strategies into discussions as we move forward. We have a lot of tools that we can utilize today. Councilor Brennan said I want to get your feedback on public engagement. What are some metrics that can connect with everyday citizens to get them more engaged with these topics? Perhaps the consultant can tell you what other municipalities are seeing as successful engagement metrics. Councilor Devine said we can identify metrics and identify whether or not they align with our Envision Columbia Plan. NLC is advocating for the renewal of the Energy Conservation Block Grants in the American Jobs Plan. We need to understand what projects we have on the table that will allow us to utilize that resource that may become available. We need a repository for our partners so that we understand who is doing what within our region. Mary Pat and Tameria should brief the committee on the partnership we have with Keep the Midlands Beautiful because smaller groups are also contributing. DHEC may have grants available for environmental justice issues or other projects like community engagement and education. Councilor Rickenmann said a lot of incentives are going to roll out to for businesses. We need to seek the right partners at every level. Tameria Warren, CPAC member said I am a project consultant for Keep the Midlands Beautiful has a grant in collaboration with Bank of American and the Arbor Day Foundation. They are looking to complete beautification projects within the City of Columbia, specifically in the North Main area. The partnership is with the Department of Juvenile Justice and Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Cayce. The idea is to make sure youth are learning about environmental awareness through beautification projects in the city. They will be participating in environmental justice and awareness sessions between July and November. Clint Shealy, P.E., Assistant City Manager for Columbia Water encouraged the committee members to read the full report. You will see some momentum on the draft resolution at our next meeting in October. Part of that discussion will be defining the magnitude of the problem we are trying to solve. We have made a lot of progress working with CPAC to determine where Dominion energy will be organically as they move toward clean energy by 2050. The procurement cohort has brought several partners together to discuss clean energy. Please contact your colleagues at the county and other partners because the footprint impacts all of us. Page 2 of 3  COLUMBIA ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES TUESDAY, JULY 20, 2021 ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 10:47 a.m. Respectfully submitted: Erika D. Moore Hammond, CMC City Clerk Page 3 of 3

COLUMBIA ENVIRONMENT AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMMITTEE MEETING AGENDA TUESDAY, JULY 20, 2021 The Columbia Environment and Infrastructure Committee will conduct a meeting on Tuesday, July 20, 2021 at 10:00 a.m. at the Busby Street Community Center, 1735 Busby Street, Columbia, SC 29203. CALL TO ORDER COMMITTEE DISCUSSION 1. Columbia's Climate Protection Action Committee (CPAC) Quarterly Update - Ms. Mary Pat Baldauf, Sustainability Administrator for the Public Works Department and Mr. Robert Petrulis, Vice-Chair of CPAC ADJOURNMENT Page 1 of 1