2018 CLIMATE ACTION REVENUE INCENTIVE PROGRAM

2018 CLIMATE ACTION REVENUE INCENTIVE PROGRAM

RECOMMENDATION:

THAT the May 1, 2019 report from the Senior Planner titled “2018 Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program” be received for information.

AND THAT up to $2000 in carbon offsets be purchased from an accredited provider by June 1, 2019 so that the Town can be officially carbon neutral in operations for the 2018 reporting year.

CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER’S COMMENTS:

I concur with the recommendations.

DIRECTOR OF FINANCE’S COMMENTS:

I concur with the recommendations.

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT SERVICE’S COMMENTS:

I concur with the recommendations.

PURPOSE OF REPORT

1. To present the 2018 Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program Actions Survey.
2. To report on the Town’s 2018 Green House Gas emissions from corporate operations.
3. To consider the potential purchase of carbon offsets so that the Town can be carbon neutral in operations for 2018 reporting year.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY:

Green House Gas (GHG) emissions from municipal operations decreased in 2018 to 372.1 Tonnes (Tes) from 398.5 Tes in 2017. At the same time, offsetting GHG reductions from organic waste diversion programs increased to 304.8 Tes from 253.8 Tes in 2017.

To balance the Town’s GHG emissions and achieve carbon neutral operations for the 2018 reporting year, 68 tonnes of carbon offsets would have to be purchased for a cost $1400-$2800 depending on the carbon offset provider. The Town is eligible to receive a carbon tax refund of $3046.61 from fuel expenditures made in 2018. To meet Climate Action Charter commitments for carbon neutral operations in 2018 and to stay cost neutral or better, it is recommended that up to $2000 of carbon offsets be purchased from an accredited offset provider.

BACKGROUND

The Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program (CARIP) The Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program (CARIP) is a conditional grant program that returns one hundred percent of the carbon tax paid for in fuel purchases. To be eligible for the CARIP grant, local governments must:

A. Sign on to the BC Climate Action Charter and by doing so commit to take action and develop strategies to achieve the following three goals:

1. Become carbon neutral in their corporate operations by 2012 The Town’s status was “making progress” in 2012 as permitted by the Province. The Town achieved carbon neutral operations in the 2013 reporting and has continued to do so every year since by actively working to minimize greenhouse gas emissions and by purchasing a small amount of carbon offsets.
2. Measure and report on their community Green House Gas (GHG emission) profile The Town relies on the Community Energy & Emissions Inventory, which has been published by the Province for 2007, 2010 and 2012. With the demise of the AirCare program 2014, the Province is unable to provide reliable estimates for vehicle emissions and communities in BC will now have to seek or create a new methodology.
3. Create complete, compact, energy efficient rural and urban communities The Town continues to work towards this goal through continued implementation of the Official Community Plan and other plans and programs.

B. Report publicly on their plan and progress towards meeting their climate action goals. The Climate Actions Survey is a provincial template to describe actions undertaken by the Town in 2018 and planned for 2019. The Carbon Neutral Progress Survey provides an analysis of net greenhouse gas emissions from municipal (including contracted) operations.

Carbon Neutral Operations

To be carbon neutral in corporate operations means the following:

Where:

• Amount of GHGs generated is the tonnes of GHG produced from the consumption of fossil fuels, e.g. heating buildings, running vehicle fleets.
• Project reductions is the reduction of GHG emissions through:
  • Option 1: Investing in any of four pre-approved UBCM Green Communities Committee (GCC) Supported Projects, which consist of the following:
    1. energy efficient building retrofits / fuel switching
    2. solar hot water
    3. household organic waste composting
    4. low emission vehicles
  • Option 2: Investing in Alternate GCC-supported projects, i.e. creating an independent GHG reduction project that meets eligibility requirements and is verified by an accredited third party.
• Offsets is the offsetting of carbon neutrality through Option 3, the purchase of carbon offsets from an approved provider that are used to fund projects that reduce GHGs elsewhere.

Note: to calculate GHG emissions, the Town uses a spreadsheet produced by the Capital Regional District and continuously updated each in accordance with the methodology set out by the Province. Other similar sized communities have to pay for reporting tools that would cost approximately $750 for the first two years followed by an annual service agreement.

DISCUSSION

To fulfill the Town’s Climate Action Charter commitments, the following is presented for Council’s information and consideration:

1. 2018 CARIP Climate Action/Carbon Neutral Progress Survey
2. Summary of GHGs produced by the Town’s corporate operations
3. GHG emission reductions from composting
4. Achieving carbon neutrality – purchasing offsets
5. Reporting requirements

1. 2017 CARIP Climate Action/Carbon Neutral Progress Survey

The draft survey reporting on the Town’s actions to address climate change in its operations and community support can be found in Attachment 1. This survey would be submitted to the Province and published to summarize the Town’s completed and proposed actions towards reducing community GHG emissions and achieving or maintaining carbon neutrality in the Town’s corporate operations.

2. Corporate Green House Gas Emissions

The Town’s GHG emissions from operations are summarized in Table 1:

Table 1. Town of View Royal Corporate GHG Emissions from Operations and Composting

Municipal Emissions The municipal GHG emissions (Attachment 2) are based on the amount of fossil fuels used in the Town’s facilities, roads, and service operations, including the following:

• Vehicle use
• Traffic signals and street and ornamental lighting
• Building (heating, cooling and lighting)
• Sewer pump stations
• Park irrigation

The main factors that can affect the amount of GHGs emitted each year include the timing and amount of heating fuel used; the percentage of electricity that is generated from fossil fuels; and distance driven by the vehicle fleet. Key points for 2018 include the following:

1. A relatively mild winter reduced the amount of energy needed to heat the Town’s buildings.
2. Town vehicles used 10% less fuel than the previous year.
3. This is the second year that accurate, metered electricity consumption for overhead street lighting is available. Previous years’ data were estimated from tariffs assigned by BC Hydro.

Contracted emissions Contracted emissions (Attachment 3) are generated by contractors engaged by the Town to provide standard municipal services such as solid and organic waste collection, road and boulevard maintenance, community water, recreation centres, and libraries. GHG emissions for water service have been addressed by the Capital Regional District in their calculations and the City of Victoria accounts for Town’s share of the Central Public Library’s GHG emissions. If the assistance provided by these two parties (who are consistently carbon neutral) were to end, the Town’s share of emissions from those operations will have to be accounted for in these calculations. 2018 highlights include the following:

1. The Town’s ownership share of Juan de Fuca Recreation Centre has increased from 14.52% to 15.62% as the Juan de Fuca Electoral District is no longer a participant. Despite that, lower expenditures for buildings and transportation created a significant reduction on GHG emissions.

3. Green House Gas Reduction Projects

A total of 194.2 + 110.6 = 304.8 Tes can be claimed for GHG-reduction from two projects that divert household and yard organic waste from Hartland Landfill into composting programs.

a. Town of View Royal Household Organic Composting Project The project includes curbside collection of household organic waste, seasonal yard waste curbside pickups, and the yard waste drop-off location in Esquimalt. 194.2 Tes were recovered in 2018 by this program (Attachment 4).

b. CRD ICI Household Organic Composting Project This project includes collection and diversion of organic waste from Industrial, Commercial and Institutional (ICI) properties. These are properties for which the Town does not provide garbage and compost collection service and includes apartments, townhouses and other multifamily properties. The CRD coordinates the program, assigns the credits to its member municipalities based on population and certifies that the credits were not claimed by the companies that create or collect the organic waste. 110.6 Tes of GHG reduction credits are available for the Town to claim for 2018 (see Attachment 5), a major increase from 62.2 Tes in 2017. As more multifamily residential units are built and commercial development increases, this figure should rise in the future if organic waste is diverted from the waste stream.

4. Achieving Carbon Neutral Operations for 2018 - Purchasing Offsets

GHG emissions decreased in 2018 while GHG reductions from composting programs increased from 2017. To balance the Town’s GHG emissions, 372.1 Tes - 304.8 Tes = 68 tonnes of carbon offsets would have to be purchased. Carbon offsets usually range in price from $20 – $30 per tonne depending on the scale and certification level of different programs.

To meet Climate Action Charter commitments and stay cost neutral or better, it is recommended that up to $2000 of carbon offsets be purchased from an accredited offset provider such Offsetters.ca. The Town is eligible to receive a carbon tax refund of $3046.61 from fuel expenditures made in 2018 upon filing the CARIP report.

If Climate Action Charter commitments for carbon neutral operation are not met, future eligibility for the grant could be in question if there is no demonstrated continuing progress towards carbon neutral operations. If the Town does not wish to purchase offsets, the survey report would be modified to exclude the purchase of offsets and the Town’s level of recognition from the Provincial-UBCM Green Communities Committee (GCC)’s Climate Action Recognition Program would drop from the highest level “Level 4 - Achievement of Carbon Neutrality” to lower levels, and may compromise the Town’s commitment to the BC Climate Action Charter.

5. Reporting Requirements

To meet provincial requirements for carbon neutral operations for the 2018 reporting year, the following is required by June 1, 2019: a. Publication of the final 2018 CARIP Carbon Neutral Progress Survey report on the Town website b. Publication of the 2018 report on Organic Waste Diversion c. Purchase 68 tonnes of carbon offsets if the Town wishes to achieve carbon neutral operations for the 2018 reporting year d. Submission of CARIP documentation to the Province.

RECOMMENDATION

THAT the May 1, 2019 report from the Senior Planner titled “2018 Climate Action Revenue Incentive Program” be received for information.

AND THAT up to $2000 in carbon offsets be purchased from an accredited provider by June 1, 2019 so that the Town can be officially carbon neutral in operations for the 2018 reporting year.

SUBMITTED BY: Jeff Chow, MCIP, RPP, Senior Planner

REVIEWED BY: Lindsay Chase, MCIP, RPP, Director of Development Services

ATTACHMENTS

1. 2018 Climate Actions Survey (14 pages)
2. 2018 Town GHG Emissions
3. 2018 Contracted GHG Emissions
4. 2018 Organic Waste Composting figures
5. E-mail from CRD - CARIP Reporting: Carbon Neutral Balancing Credits (ICI Kitchen Scraps) 2017, May 2, 2019