The Eugene, Ore., City Council recently passed an ordinance aimed at steeply reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. The city of 158,000wants to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions 10% below 1990 levels by 2020, and reduce fossil fuel use by 50% by 2030.
Eugene is developing an energy inventory for its entire economy. After that is completed, it will consider voluntary energy-saving measures in the private sector, such as easier permitting for energy-efficient construction and energy performance scores for commercial buildings. The city will also consider other measures like commercial food-waste composting in restaurants and grocery stores to reduce methane emissions from landfills.
Eugene has made significant progress in reducing emissions recently from transportation without any concerted plan. Transportation emissions have dropped 2.5% per year since 2010, despite some population growth. This is largely due to economic and cultural shifts: the recession, the rise of telecommuting, online shopping and entertainment, transit, biking, more efficient cars, and higher gasoline prices. The city has encouraged these trends by improving bus service and developing a master plan for sidewalk and bike path improvements.
City government has rejected hard caps on emissions to date, focusing instead on voluntary measures and incentives for the private sector.
(http://grist.org/climate-energy/what-can-small-cities-do-to-fight-climate-change/)
Related Stories
| Oct 31, 2013
IECC code updates include better lighting controls and new HVAC technology
The proposed new code will increase the mandatory installation of occupancy sensors and daylighting controls to many new types of spaces.
| Oct 31, 2013
Effects of green, white roofs to be compared at Walmart in Oregon
Portland State University will construct a 40,000 sf green roof research site on the top of a new Walmart store in North Portland, Ore., and compare it to a 52,000 sf section of roof with a white membrane.
| Oct 31, 2013
GSA okays Green Globes; USGBC counters forestry industry concerns
Green Globes, a LEED rival, was recently declared to be nearly equal with LEED standards by the General Services Administration.
| Oct 25, 2013
California struggles with updated seismic codes
In California, there are still hundreds of concrete buildings that need reinforcement to bring them up to the new seismic code.
| Oct 24, 2013
Supplement No. 2 to AISC 358-10 Prequalified Moment Connection Standard available for public review
Supplement No. 2 to the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) standard Prequalified Connections for Special and Intermediate Steel Moment Frames for Seismic Applications (AISC 358-10) is now available for public review.
| Oct 24, 2013
Changes in LEED v4 will have large impact on materials manufacturers
Changes to LEED in LEED v4 are so dramatic that they will send ripples into other industries and shift expectations on sustainability reporting and performance far beyond the building industry.
| Oct 24, 2013
D.C. office buildings going green at twice the national average
In 2011, about 33% of new office buildings in the U.S. were built to green standards, but in the nation’s capital that rate has skyrocketed.
| Oct 18, 2013
AGC considers suit over new hiring goals for vets, disabled
The Associated General Contractors of America and the HR Policy Association are reportedly considering taking legal action over the Labor Department's new hiring goals for veterans and disabled people.
| Oct 18, 2013
Cities may be more capable of driving sustainability than nations, experts say
With countries not tackling climate change aggressively, cities are in the best position to drive increased sustainability.
| Oct 8, 2013
Kansas City board OKs $1.6 billion TIF for $4.3 billion redevelopment project
Kansas City’s Tax Increment Financing Commission voted unanimously to forward the Bannister & I-435 TIF Plan to the Kansas City Council for approval.
