Acting Locally on Sustainability through EPA Partnership Programs

1. Acting Locally on Sustainabilitythrough EPA Partnership Programs Erin Newman U.S. EPA Region 5 June 19, 2018

2. Overview • Why Local Government Action is Critical • Opportunities to address climate change through EPA programs and resources

3. Sources of Greenhouse Gas Emissions in the U.S. Local governments have control over decisions that affect land use, transportation, and buildings. Source: Inventory of U.S. GHG Emissions and Sinks

4. Local Governments Have Big Impacts • Every day, local governments make decisions that impact • Energy use • Transportation • Buildings • Air quality • Economic development • Public health • Quality of life • Actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions can also have positive impacts on all of the above factors. • Sustainable communities are attractive places to live.

5. EPA Programs Supporting GHG Reductions

6. A good place to start…… • Informational network facilitating access to tools and technical assistance. • Best Practices • Searchable database of resources • Free Webcast Trainings • Peer to Peer Exchange www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/stateandlocal

7. ENERGY STARReducing Energy Use In Your Community • Energy Star promotes energy efficiency in homes, businesses, and products • Buy Energy Star products • Take the Energy Star Challenge—Communities: • Set at least 10% energy use reduction goal • Benchmark their buildings • Take action to improve • ENERGY STAR provides many free resources online: • Portfolio Manager, benchmarking tools, training calculators, manuals, etc. www.energystar.gov/challenge 7

8. Buildings Homes Industrial Plants Products

9. ENERGY STAR Partners

10. Green Power PartnershipBuying Renewable Energy • Voluntary program in which partners use green power to meet a portion of their electricity needs • Electricity, Renewable Energy Credits (RECs), on-site generation • More than 900 partners purchase more than 14.3 billion KWh of green power annually • The Green Power Partnership helps through: • Green Power Locator • Step-by-Step Guide to Purchasing Green Power • Media/outreach tools www.epa.gov/greenpower

11. Green Power Partners

12. Combined Heat and Power Partnership Increasing Building Energy Efficiency • Promotes cogeneration of electricity and thermal energy from the same fuel • Separate heat and electricity production is highly inefficient • Average efficiency of fossil fuel power plants is 33% • Average efficiency CHP systems is 60-80% • The CHP Partnership can help you determine whether your facilities are good candidates for CHP • Good candidates include schools, WWTPs and district heating systems www.epa.gov/chp

13. Midwest Clean Diesel InitiativeGreening your Municipal Fleet • Public-private partnership working to reduce emissions from diesel-powered engines. • Local governments can: • Inventory vehicles under your control • Determine options depending on vehicle: retrofit, repair, replace, operational strategies • Reduce idling to decrease GHG emissions • Contact EPA for help determining options and possible funding www.epa.gov/midwestcleandiesel

14. WasteWiseReducing Waste and GHGs • WasteWise Partners set recycling and waste prevention goals • Helps communities go beyond basic recycling programs • Reporting partners receive a profile which quantifies the climate benefits of their waste reduction efforts • EPA’s Waste Reduction Model (online) calculates greenhouse gas emissions from waste management actions • Free Helpline/assistance www.epa.gov/wastewise Local Government Partner of the Year, 2017: City of Urbana

15. eCyclingRecycling Electronics • Collect and reuse/recycle e-scrap including computers and cell phones • Recycling reduces greenhouse gas emissions, reduce pollution, and saves energy • Recycling a million cell phones reduces greenhouse gas emissions equal to taking 1,368 cars off the road for a year • EPEAT – Electronics Product Assessment Tool • Greener purchasing of business computers • Easy to use • In 2016 EPEAT reported a education of 7.8 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions— equivalent to taking more than 5.6 million average U.S. passenger cars off the road for a year https://www.epa.gov/smm-electronics

16. WaterSensePromoting Use of Water-Efficient Products • WaterSense labeled products use about 20 percent less water and perform as well as or better than their less efficient counterparts • Water utilities may adopt the program as part of a broader water efficiency strategy to help reduce water infrastructure needs and promote the label to customers • Local governments may become WaterSense Partners and promote WaterSense products www.epa.gov/watersense

17. WaterSense Partners • Barrington Area Council of Governments • Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning • City of Aurora • City of Batavia • City of Crystal Lake • City of Des Plaines • City of Elgin • City of Evanston • City of Highwood • City of McHenry • City of St. Charles • DuPage Water Commission • Kane County • Kendall County • Kendall County Health Department • Lake County • Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago • The City of Geneva • The County of McHenry • The Village of Wayne • Village of Barrington Hills • Village of Buffalo Grove • Village of Campton Hills • Village of Elburn • Village of Fox Lake • Village of Fox River Grove • Village of Gilberts • Village of Hoffman Estates • Village of Kildeer • Village of Kingston • Village of Lake Zurich • Village of North Aurora • Village of Oak Park • Village of Oswego • Village of Palos Park • Village of Schaumburg • Village of Sleepy Hollow • Village of South Elgin • Village of Sugar Grove • Village of Wadsworth • Village of Wauconda • Village of Westmont

18. Green BuildingsConstructing or Retrofitting Buildings to Improve Energy/Water Efficiency and Use of Recycled Materials • The impacts of building are significant: • Nearly 40% of energy use and carbon dioxide emissions • About 68% of total electricity consumption • Nearly 60% of total non-industrial solid waste • Over 12% of total water consumed • EPA is advancing green building practices by: • Addressing market factors • Implementing demonstration projects on green building performance and benefits • Working with communities to update codes and ordinances www.epa.gov/greenbuilding

19. Green InfrastructureManaging Wet Weather and Reusing Stormwater • Using technologies to infiltrate, capture and reuse stormwater such as: • Building green roofs • Promoting rain barrels • Planting trees and other vegetation • Communities can support this effort by: • Planning and implementing demonstration projects on public sites • Involving all city departments • Updating codes and ordinances to create incentives www.epa.gov/greeninfrastructure

20. Brownfields • Offers grants and technical assistance to communities to assess, safely clean up and sustainably reuse contaminated properties • FEJA opportunities for Brownfields www.epa.gov/brownfields

21. Changes in Temperature Source: National Climate Assessment (2014)/NOAA

22. 1958 to 2012 Changes in Precipitation Percent Change Source: 2014 National Climate Assessment, updated from Karl et al. 2009.