Sustainability Commission

City of Sunnyvale Meeting Minutes - Final Sustainability Commission Monday, August 15, 2016 7:00 PM West Conference Room, City Hall, 456 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086 CALL TO ORDER Chair Paton called the meeting to order at 7:01 p.m. in the West Conference Room. SALUTE TO THE FLAG Chair Paton led the salute to the flag. ROLL CALL Present: 7 - Chair Bruce Paton Vice Chair Amit Srivastava Commissioner Brian Glazebrook Commissioner Dan Hafeman Commissioner Petya Kisyova Commissioner Kristel Wickham Commissioner Steven Zornetzer Commissioner Glazebrook arrived at 7:05 p.m. Council Liaison – Pat Meyering (absent) ORAL COMMUNICATIONS Tim Oey, a Sunnyvale resident and Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Commissioner, talked about his family’s efforts to be zero waste, citing that they only take out their trash and recycling a few times a year. He invited the Commissioners to a zero waste potluck on August 28 on Allison Way, Sunnyvale, and to the 2016 Trailblazer Race organized by Friends of Stevens Creek Trail. CONSENT CALENDAR 1 16-0825 Approve the Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes of July 18, 2016 Vice Chair Srivastava moved and Commissioner Hafeman seconded a motion to approve the July 18, 2016 meeting minutes. The motion carried by the following vote: City of Sunnyvale Page 1 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final August 15, 2016 Yes: 4 - Chair Paton Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Wickham No: 0 Abstain: 3 - Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Kisyova Commissioner Zornetzer Commissioners Glazebrook, Kisyova, and Zornetzer abstained as they were not present at the July meeting. PUBLIC HEARINGS/GENERAL BUSINESS 2 16-0641 City-wide Residential Food Scraps Collection Program for Single-Family Households and Small Businesses that Use Commercial Cart Service Mark Bowers, Solid Waste Programs Division Manager, and Karen Gissibl, Environmental Programs Manager, presented a report on residential food scraps recovery, which included a summary of findings from the City’s recent pilot study and its proposed city-wide rollout. Mr. Bowers highlighted program costs, its anticipated food scrap recovery rate, and its unique features (e.g., 70/30 split trash/food scrap carts). The Commission asked clarification questions about the study and commended the City’s progress towards achieving the goals in its Zero Waste Strategic Plan. Chair Paton opened the public hearing. Tim Oey commented that the city-wide program provides a viable alternative for residents who, like him, are interested in separating food scraps from trash but do not have the time or capability for backyard composting. Chair Paton closed the public hearing. Commissioner Hafeman moved and Commissioner Zornetzer seconded a motion to recommend that Council approve the staff recommendation (Alternative 1) of the report, with the comment that the City should implement the city-wide food scraps collection program as quickly as possible. The motion carried by the following vote: City of Sunnyvale Page 2 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final August 15, 2016 Yes: 7 - Chair Paton Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Kisyova Commissioner Wickham Commissioner Zornetzer No: 0 3 16-0716 Sustainability Speaker Series Coordination Nupur Hiremath, Sustainability Coordinator, provided clarification on the process for forming an Ad Hoc Committee to support development of the Sustainability Speaker Series proposal. Commissioner Wickham moved and Vice Chair Srivastava seconded a motion to form an Ad Hoc Committee for the purpose of planning the Sustainability Speaker Series. The Commission asked for clarification on the budgeted amount and the anticipated implementation timeline for the Speaker Series. Elaine Marshall, Environmental Programs Manager, clarified that the budget contained $25,000 per fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) for the Sustainability Speaker Series and that any leftover funds would carry over to the subsequent fiscal year, as this item was a part of the Projects Budget. She added that the Commission’s recommended plan for the Speaker Series would need to be submitted to City Council for approval. Chair Paton offered a friendly amendment to propose that the Ad Hoc Committee return to the Commission with a draft plan for the Speaker Series within three months. Commissioner Wickham accepted the friendly amendment. The motion carried by the following vote: Yes: 7 - Chair Paton Vice Chair Srivastava Commissioner Glazebrook Commissioner Hafeman Commissioner Kisyova Commissioner Wickham Commissioner Zornetzer City of Sunnyvale Page 3 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final August 15, 2016 No: 0 Chair Paton asked the Commission for volunteers or nominations for Ad Hoc Committee members. Commissioners Zornetzer and Wickham volunteered and Chair Paton confirmed their participation in the committee. Chair Paton directed the Ad Hoc committee to use the key discussion questions from this meeting’s agenda as a guide for developing the Speaker Series plan and to provide monthly progress updates. The Commission discussed potential topics of interest for the Speaker Series including: building codes; energy management; and transportation. The Commission discussed that the Series should reach a broad audience, highlight what the City’s sustainability priorities are, and present actionable information for residents for creating sustainable change. The Commission discussed potential target audiences as residents, City leadership, and commercial and industrial enterprises. Commissioner Kisyova identified the U.S. Green Building Council and the American Institute of Architects-Santa Clara Valley as potential partner organizations. Chair Paton proposed that Commissioners send any suggestions related to the Speaker Series to Nupur Hiremath to pass on to the Ad Hoc committee. STANDING ITEM: CONSIDERATION OF POTENTIAL STUDY ISSUES 4 16-0714 Draft Study Issue: Solar-Ready Roofs Vice Chair Srivastava summarized the proposed draft Study Issue, which is intended to examine the feasibility of requiring developers of new residential and commercial construction to: (1) install either a solar photovoltaic system, solar water heating panels, or living vegetation on the roof; and (2) set aside a minimum portion of the roof as “solar ready” (i.e., without shading). He noted that the percentage of the roof that would need to be un-shaded roof would need to be determined by staff as a part of the Study Issue. He noted that only three cities in California (San Francisco, Lancaster, and Palo Alto) had adopted such ordinances to date. Chair Paton, Commissioner Kisyova, and Commissioner Hafeman asked Vice Chair Srivastava to clarify the language “solar-ready” as this term has typically referred to buildings being wired appropriately to support solar. Vice Chair Srivastava responded that he had specifically used a general term because the traditional definition of “solar-ready” has changed, as the technology has evolved City of Sunnyvale Page 4 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final August 15, 2016 (e.g., DC cells are now included on the solar panels themselves). Commissioner Kisyova shared that the State Energy Code (both the 2013 and the 2016 editions) contains “solar-ready” requirements and wanted to clarify if the Study Issue was duplicative of the Energy Code requirements. Staff will check with the Building Division to determine if the Energy Code requirements are consistent with objectives of the proposed Study Issue. Vice Chair Srivastava requested early staff feedback (i.e., prior to submission of Study Issue to City Manager on October 1, 2016) on whether such a Study Issue is needed. Chair Paton proposed that the Commission brainstorm potential Study Issue topics. The Commission discussed building codes, net zero energy, sea-level rise, and transportation as potential topic areas for developing Study Issues. Vice Chair Srivastava noted that sea-level rise has been on the list of Study Issues for more than 3 years. Elaine Marshall clarified that there is an ongoing effort to identify risk and vulnerability to sea-level rise in Sunnyvale through Santa Clara County’s Silicon Valley 2.0 tool. Commissioner Kisyova recalled that duplication between the proposed Study Issue and this tool was the reason the Commission dropped this Study Issue last year. Chair Paton proposed that he would reformulate the sea-level rise Study Issue from the 2016 cycle for consideration. The Commission discussed broader guidelines for selecting Study Issue topics such as: (1) Linking Study Issues to the Climate Action Plan (CAP) and the City’s budget; (2) Compiling a list of Study Issues proposed by the Sustainability Commission so as to identify topics of continued relevance vs. those that are not worth revisiting; (3) Ensuring that Study Issue topics do not duplicate existing efforts undertaken by the City or other agencies (e.g., sea-level rise efforts of USACE and NOAA). NON-AGENDA ITEMS & COMMENTS -Commissioner Comments Commissioner Hafeman attended a Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) workshop, which sought community input to potential 2017 modifications to the route maps and provided insight into VTA’s challenges of developing a transit system in an area designed primarily for automobile use. Commissioner Kisyova noted that the El Camino Real Public Advisory Committee accepted a vision, goals, and a plan with many sustainable elements at the July meeting. Commissioner Wickham announced that she is participating in the City’s energy City of Sunnyvale Page 5 Sustainability Commission Meeting Minutes - Final August 15, 2016 efficiency pilot study. Chair Paton noted that the Sunnyvale Sustainable and Affordable Living Coalition (livablesunnyvale.org) is a new organization formed to advocate for more sustainable and affordable housing in Sunnyvale. -Staff Comments Elaine Marshall noted that she would be the primary contact and liaison for the Sustainability Commission starting September while Nupur Hiremath is on maternity leave. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 9:42 pm. City of Sunnyvale Page 6