Environmental Sustainability Council

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY COUNCIL ENERGY TRANSITION SUBCOMMITTEE Thursday, April 6th, 2017 Dogwood Room, City Hall MINUTES CALL TO ORDER: Members Tim Stevens (Chair), Nisha Thirumurthy, Jon Ward, Chris McCloud, Aziz Shaik; City Staff: Kate Walker (Staff Liaison and Environmental Programs Coordinator) Public Comments: No public comments were received. Approval of Minutes (March 2, 2016): Minutes were approved Ongoing Business - GHG Emissions Reductions Resolution and inventory: The resolution for GHG reductions target was passed by our City Council unanimously. As a result, the need for a city-wide greenhouse gas emissions inventory gains additional importance. The Subcommittee members briefly reviewed the changes needed to improve the accuracy of the GHG inventory for Falls Church recently performed by MWCOG. The suggestion was made to consult with Washington Gas to obtain data. Data for houses partially in Falls Church needs to be reviewed. MWCOG has released the 2017-2020 Regional Climate and Energy Action Plan which contains recommended actions for jurisdictions to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. - Solarize campaign: The city launch meeting is on Sunday, April 23, 2017 from 3:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and the actual campaign runs from April 18 to June 30. The subcommittee examined Solarize flyers as well as selected a piece from artwork from Operation Earthwatch to use on the flyers. NVRC and LEAP will now include Fairfax County in this Spring’s Solarize campaign. - Cottage Housing: The Cottage Housing proposal along the W&OD trail across from Property Yard has received a generally positive response from the city. The contractor in charge of the proposal is Bob Young. The subcommittee examined the amenities offered by the proposal as well as maps of the proposal. The ESC plans to support this proposal. It was agreed on by the subcommittee that the ETS should give advice to the ESC in support of this proposal, due to the energy efficiency and renewable energy features proposed for the project. Information Items - VW Settlement: The Virginia DEQ has issued an RFI asking for input on projects for which Virginia jurisdictions anticipate requesting grant funding from the VW Environmental Mitigation Trust. The City will need to decide if it wants to respond to the RFI. - Campus Site Planning: Mid-May is when the feasibility reports come in and the subcommittee viewed the school plans and the market packet online from the EDO.