July 27th, 2010
The Town of Nantucket’s Climate Action Plan is still open for public comment. The Town is seeking suggestions for additions to the Plan that include as yet unexplored, or creative ways to help us reduce our overall carbon emissions as a community.
In March 2009, the Nantucket Board of Selectmen set a greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction target for the island of 10% below 2000 levels by 2020. The Town’s Climate Action Plan (CAP) considers strategies the town and the community can implement in order to achieve this goal. The plan considers efficiency, conservation and new technologies across four sectors: transportation, heating, electricity and waste management. We have a greater chance of achieving our goal if the community participates in the drafting process by providing feedback and ideas. Submit your suggestions and be part of the solution!
Tags: Climate Initiative, Climate Protection, Grow Smart, Renewable Energy, Sustainability
Posted in Climate Initiative, News
June 16th, 2010
Background
The First Step – Nantucket Joins the Cities for Climate Protection Campaign
In 2008 – Sustainable Nantucket formally requested that the Town of Nantucket join the International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) Cities for Climate Protection Campaign. This request was unanimously granted by the Board of Selectmen. Nantucket joined over twenty-seven participating communities in Massachusetts alone, including, among others: Amherst, Barnstable, Boston, Falmouth, Gloucester, Hull, Kingston, Newburyport, Newton, Northampton, Salem, Somerville, Springfield, Williamstown and Worcester.
What is the International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI’s) Cities for Climate Protection Campaign (CCP)?
The International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI’s) Cities for Climate Protection Campaign (CCP) is a performance-oriented campaign that offers a framework for local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve livability within their municipalities. It is designed to educate and empower local governments worldwide to take action on climate change.
- What are the Milestones of the ICLEI Cities for Climate Protection Campaign?
- Milestone One: Conduct a baseline greenhouse gas emissions inventory for the entire community and municipal operations.
- Milestone Two: Set an emissions reduction target.
- Milestone Three: Develop and adopt a local action plan or a collection of initiatives to reach the target reductions. These initiatives will include finding efficiency and technological improvements available to the municipality.
- Milestone Four: Implement actions. This milestone involves municipal government to formally adopt individual emission reduction initiatives. Further, various municipal departments may be called upon to coordinate and implement the adopted initiatives.
- Milestone Five: Monitor emission reductions. Perform follow-up inventories.
Tags: Climate Protection, Grow Smart, Sustainability
Posted in Background
June 16th, 2010
What is a Climate Action Plan?
It is a collection of initiatives to reach the target reductions. These initiatives will address both primary and secondary sources of carbon emissions, and include finding efficiency and technological improvements available to the municipality. Areas addressed will include buildings, (Historic District Commission guidelines; incentives for energy efficiency and renewable energy sources) lighting, town fleet, public transportation, community policies (e.g., idling policy), life cycle cost analysis for purchases, composting program, gray water /lo-flow toilet program, bio-degradable plastic trash bags; biker/pedestrian friendly community; public education campaign for the environment; school curriculum…
Why create a Climate Protection Action Plan?
There are many benefits economic and environmental benefits to creating a Climate Protection Action Plan including
Cleaner air and water.
Cost Reduction Through:
- increased energy efficiency
- development of renewable energy
- reduced dependency on fossil fuels
Reduced traffic congestion & pollution, benefiting tourist economy and downtown revitalization.
Economic benefits of becoming an eco-tourism destination.
Increased availability of locally-grown & produced food & specialty products.
Potential for economic benefits through agri-tourism.
Nantucket has a strong motivation for joining this Campaign and making a definitive commitment to reducing fossil-fuel use and carbon emissions. Unlike many of these other towns and cities, our unique geographical situation makes us particularly vulnerable to the potential effects of climate change – advanced erosion should sea-levels rise as predicted, and devastating storm damage if the wind and water currents are altered. Yet it also gives us access to significant renewable energy resources (wind-power and tidal-power) and makes energy independence a real possibility for us in the not-too-distant future. Completion of the Climate Protection Action Plan will fulfill criteria set by the Massachusetts Green Communities Act, thereby significantly increasing the Town of Nantucket’s eligibility to receive state funding toward renewable energy development on Nantucket.
Tags: Climate Protection, Grow Smart, Sustainability
Posted in What is a Climate Action Plan?
June 14th, 2010
Climate Plan: 2010 Objectives
- Review of the Plan draft and laying of implementation groundwork with Town departments
- An education / outreach initiative in the summer of 2010 for the Climate Plan. This will include community forums, guest speakers from other communities, and printed information about the specifics of the plan as an effort to help residents and visitors understand the complex nature of Climate Change and the positive steps the Town of Nantucket is planning to adopt.
- Passage of the Climate Protection Plan
The Climate Plan is focused around the municipality acting as both a leader by example – reducing its own carbon emissions– and as a catalyst –by implementing both policy changes and community-wide education– to bring about substantial change on-island, and to realize our vision. We envision the island as a carbon neutral entity and an energy producer utilizing our strongest available source of renewable energy –wind, while reducing our other primary and secondary sources of carbon emissions as much as possible.
We see most, if not all, municipal and individual vehicles being electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles within ten years – brought about by marketplace demand, and municipal regulation. These vehicles could avail themselves of clean & renewable energy, and would act as a reservoir and battery for the local electricity supply. This Plan would provide the added bonus of supporting the local economy by providing additional local jobs and, ideally, making us an eco-tourism destination, as well as –the electric vehicle element – helping to greatly decrease carbon emissions and traffic noise and pollution. We also envision producing as much of our food on-island as possible, given our natural limitations.
Currently, many opportunities and policy implementations are coming together making this the perfect time to put into practice a climate plan for our community. Drafting a Climate Plan qualifies us for “Smart Growth Points” in Massachusetts, improving the Town’s “credit score” with the state, which increases our eligibility for grants and lower-interest rates on long term municipal loans for capital projects.
Key criteria for funding for renewable energy and energy–efficiency projects ($10 million will be available for grants, annually, for Towns in Massachusetts with populations under 35,000), as provided for in the Massachusetts Green Communities Act, include completing and implementing a Climate Protection Action Plan such as the one we are currently drafting, and creating as-of-right siting for renewable energy projects in designated locations, an element which are incorporated into the Plan.
In Progress: Achieving the 3rd Milestone of the Campaign, designing a Climate Protection Action Plan for Nantucket.
Tags: Climate Protection, Grow Smart, Sustainability
Posted in 2010 Objectives
June 14th, 2010
In May of 2009 the Town of Nantucket achieved the first two milestones of the Climate Protection Campaign process with the help of Sustainable Nantucket.
On March 25, 2009, Nantucket achieved the first two milestones of the Climate Protection Campaign process. Board of Selectmen Chair, Michael Kopko & Selectmen Brian Chadwick, Allen Reinhard, Patty Roggeveen, and Rick Atherton accepted the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory report completed by Sustainable Nantucket on behalf of the Town, and approved the suggested targets for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions reduction detailed in the report.
Achievement of these milestones fulfills two of the criteria outlined in the Green Communities Act for Nantucket to be considered for upcoming “Green Communities” funding from the state of Massachusetts – which could provide significant funding from the state toward renewable energy initiatives on the island.
Tags: Climate Protection, Grow Smart, Sustainability
Posted in Achievements, Climate Initiative
