DOI: https://doi.org/10.15368/theses.2010.22
Available at: https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/252
Date of Award
3-2010
Degree Name
Master of City and Regional Planning/MS in Engineering (Transportation Planning Specialization)
Department/Program
City and Regional Planning
Advisor
Cornelius Nuworsoo
Abstract
The passage of AB 32 in 2006 initiated the need for city planners in California to consider the quantification of greenhouse gas emissions at the community level in order to develop policies and programs to reduce emissions in the future. Although local jurisdictions are not required to quantify and report emissions at this time, the AB 32 Climate Change Scoping Plan recommended a reduction goal for local governments of 15 percent below today’s levels by 2020 to ensure consistent reduction goals at the state and local levels.
ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability initiated the Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) campaign in 1993, which provides a framework for local governments to develop a baseline emissions inventory and identify reduction measures as part of a climate action plan. This inventory is developed under the framework of the CCP campaign.
A review of the current practice of local greenhouse gas emissions inventories in California identified significant consistencies across jurisdictions in the overall framework of community and municipal emissions inventories– due largely to the framework provided by the CCP campaign. However, data sources used and methods of measurement vary greatly among local inventories, which limit the ability to compare results. This highlights the need for a standard reporting protocol for community inventories.
This baseline emissions inventory document provides the technical information necessary for the city to set reduction goals and facilitates the development of the climate action plan outlining policies and programs that when implemented would reach those goals.