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EC agenda 10-23-2023 REGULAR MEETING AGENDA Remote Attendance: Members of the public may attend this meeting via Webex by calling 1- 415-655-0001 and entering access code 2453 165 1685. Questions/Comments: Members of the public who have questions about the commission or any items on the agenda should contact the staff commission liaison – Eric Eckman, Environmental Resources Supervisor, eeckman@goldenvalleymn.gov, 763-593-8084. 1. Call to Order 2. Land Acknowledgement 3. Roll Call 4. Approval of Agenda 5. Approval of September 18, 2023 Regular Meeting Minutes (5 min) 6. Old Business A. Home Energy Squad renewal (5 min) 7. New Business A. New GreenCorps Member (5 min) B. 2024 Meeting Dates (10 min) C. Organics Recycling Participation Plan (20 min) D. Council Updates (5 min) E. Other Business 8. Adjournment October 23, 2023 – 6:30 pm City Hall Council Conference Room REGULAR MEETING MINUTES Remote Attendance: Members of the public may attend this meeting via Webex by calling 1-415-655- 0001 and entering access code 1773 93 4642. Questions/Comments: Members of the public who have questions about the commission or any items on the agenda should contact the staff commission liaison – Eric Eckman, Environmental Resources Supervisor, eeckman@goldenvalleymn.gov, 763-593-8084. 1. Call to Order The meeting was called to order by Chair Hill at 6:30 pm. 2. Land Acknowledgement 3. Roll Call Commissioners present: Dawn Hill, Wendy Weirich, Tonia Galonska, Sarah Drawz, Paul Klaas, Ellen Brenna Commissioners absent: Debra Yahle Council Members present: None Staff present: Eric Eckman, Environmental Resources Supervisor; Ethan Kehrberg, Sustainability Specialist; Carrie Nelson, Engineering Assistant. 4. Approval of September 18, 2023, Agenda MOTION by Commissioner Weirich, seconded by Commissioner Galonska to approve the agenda for September 18, 2023, and the motion carried. 5. Approval of August 28, 2023, Regular Meeting Minutes MOTION by Commissioner Galonska, seconded by Commissioner Klaas to approve the minutes of August 28, 2023, as submitted and the motion carried. 6. Old Business A. Land Acknowledgement - Ȟaȟa Wakpadaŋ / Bassett Creek and BAEGV Forum i. Special/Joint Commission meeting with DEIC 1. Chairs from the DEIC and EC can declare a special (joint) meeting. We just need enough time to inform the commissioners and the public. ii. Upcoming regular meetings 1. The EC did not decide to cancel any upcoming regular meetings at this time. September 18, 2023 – 6:30 pm City of Golden Valley Environmental Commission Regular Meeting September 18, 2023 – 6:30 pm 2 7. New Business A. Energy Action Plan Progress i. Staff reviewed the 2022 data from CenterPoint Energy and Xcel Energy found in the September 18, 2023 agenda packet. ii. The City does not get credit for GHG emissions reductions resulting from ongoing decarbonization of the grid by Xcel Energy as it adds wind and solar. It’s through program participation in efficiency and clean energy programs. iii. The data show all sectors in Golden Valley – Residential, Commercial, Municipal. iv. Reps from Xcel & CenterPoint helped the Energy Action Team set the goals. v. Xcel Energy is decarbonizing the grid. Trying to go carbon free by 2050, 80% carbon reduction by 2030. Even if we did nothing there might be a 30% reduction in our carbon emissions in GV just for being part of the conversion to electricity and cleaning of the grid. The community’s goal is to reduce GHG emissions by another 30% beyond what Xcel Energy is doing. vi. Consumption may vary from year to year and is hopefully trending down, but the only way to track what the savings are and the avoidance of GHG emissions is through signing up for programs because Xcel and CenterPoint don’t know what you’re doing in your house unless you tell them. vii. Xcel doesn’t include transportation emissions reductions in their numbers. viii. It does get harder to increase eliminations over time. ix. We would like residents in GV to participate in the net metering program through Xcel if they install solar. x. Program participation is the predictor of long-term trends; the annual reporting data are the proof of whether the programs are working or not. xi. We are falling a little behind on the first-year energy savings. This is calculated by looking at how much you saved on your energy bill the year after you made the change. They don’t track your savings in the years following (even though you are likely to save money past year one). xii. The Energy Burdened household goal does not include participation in CenterPoint programs. Only Xcel. 1. There has been a lot of staff outreach through mailings, online posts, event tabling, presentations to property managers, and others. 2. 1 in 5 homes were experiencing energy burden going into the pandemic. We think that number went up in the years following, but we do not have the data yet. 3. High energy cost burden is when 6% of your income goes to energy costs. Severe energy cost burden is when 10% of your income goes to energy costs. 4. We signed up to be a part of the programs that help the energy burdened households. xiii. We’ll see more significant savings and energy reduction if we focus on businesses. 1. One business signed up for CenterPoint energy’s audit in 2022. Why are there not more? 2. Could we get rid of the word audit and rebrand it? City of Golden Valley Environmental Commission Regular Meeting September 18, 2023 – 6:30 pm 3 3. Businesses scared off by the words “green” and “environmental”? 4. Youth seems to be much more effective when visiting businesses. Could our GreenCorps member or an intern visit businesses frequently? 1. GreenCorps member can educate but not assist for-profit businesses, but they can assist schools and non-profit organizations. 2. Downplay the government angle? Discuss short and long term return on investment. Play up relationships like private to private or private to utility. 5. Could the City ask Xcel or CenterPoint to pick a business to walk through the assessment process (and improvement process) to make an example of and show other businesses what’s involved and what the benefits could be to their bottom line? 1. Could the City do the same thing for the HERO program? 6. At a future commission meeting, discuss whether City funds should go toward incentivizing businesses and multi-family properties. xiv. We are now a graduate program of the Partners in Energy program. B. Home Energy Squad Renewal MOTION by Commissioner Weirich, seconded by Commissioner Galonska to recommend renewal of the Home Energy Squad Agreement with the Center for Energy and Environment for another two years, with a total reimbursement budget of $10,000 for the contract term, and the motion carried. C. Program/Project Updates i. Can we share the statewide GreenStep Cities update on the City website? D. Council Updates i. None E. Other Business i. The Outdoor Lighting ordinance discussion is tabled and can be considered as part of the 2024 Work Plan. 8. Adjournment MOTION by Commissioner Klaas, seconded by Commissioner Drawz to adjourn the meeting at 8:25 pm and the motion carried. ATTEST: ________________________________ _______________________________________ Carrie Nelson, Administrative Assistant Dawn Hill, Chair Date: October 18, 2023 To: Environmental Commission From: Eric Eckman, Environmental Resources Supervisor Subject: 2024 Meeting Dates In order to update the City calendar for Boards and Commissions, staff is requesting the Environmental Commission review the following proposed meeting dates for 2024. As a reminder, the Commission typically meets on the fourth Monday of each month. Below is a list of proposed meeting dates (the nearest holiday potentially impacting the date of the meeting is provided for reference). • January 22, 2024 • February 26, 2024 • March 25, 2024 • April 22, 2024 – Passover April 22 – 30 • May 27, 2024 – Memorial Day • June 24, 2024 • July 22, 2024 • August 26, 2024 • September 23, 2024 • October 28, 2024 • November 25, 2024 • December 23, 2024 – Christmas Eve December 24 Staff are requesting that the Commission discuss the dates, make changes where necessary, and make a motion on the proposed meeting dates for 2024. Date: October 18, 2023 To: Environmental Commission From: Ethan Kehrberg, Sustainability Specialist Subject: Organics Recycling Participation Plan One of the top priorities identified in the Environmental Commission’s 2023 Work Plan is to “help develop a plan to increase participation rates for organics recycling, and opportunities for multi-family recycling, including organics and onsite composting.” In 2022, Golden Valley achieved participation rates of approximately 45% in the organics recycling program and approximately 97% in the traditional recycling program. Staff are conducting another participation study this year and will have results ready early next year. Since the launch of the organics recycling program in January 2022, staff have been busy with a variety of outreach strategies to increase participation. Some of these completed strategies are listed below: • Implement a robust educational campaign ahead of the organics recycling launch • Set up the initial cart delivery to be opt-out rather than opt-in • Offer free starter kits (compost bucket, bags, and guide) at the start of the program • Update website information and links • Publish stories in newsletter about program, participation rates, and waste sorting • Add organics recycling info to annual recycling calendar mailing • Update recycling and organics contamination tag with Republic • Work with Hennepin County to provide organics information in multiple languages • Mail educational letter to non-participating households with information about organics recycling • Expand composting ordinance to allow more properties to do on-site composting, including multi-family residential • Table at community events to promote program and hand out materials • Provide free compost from organics recycling process to Golden Valley residents As the City enters its third year of offering organics recycling service, staff would like ideas and feedback from the Environmental Commission about how we can maintain and increase participation rates going forward. To help get the conversation started, staff included the following goals, strategies, and actions for waste reduction from City and County planning documents. Golden Valley Resilience and Sustainability Plan objectives (link): Golden Valley Resilience and Sustainability Plan implementation actions: Golden Valley Resilience and Sustainability Plan implementation action summary: Hennepin County Solid Waste Planning Master Plan (link) • Provide information about recycling and waste prevention programs, services and actions at events and through presentations • Ensure equitable access to services by translating literature into multiple languages • Promote Master Recycler/Composter training and volunteer opportunities • Provide resources and technical assistance for organics diversion Hennepin County Zero Waste Plan (link) *ranked in descending order of estimated waste reduction impact • Expand drop-off options (low-hanging fruit) 4 • Increase access to organics recycling options for multifamily residents (low-hanging fruit) 3 • Provide financial incentives to increase participation in targeted communities (system transformation) 3 • Implement low-income rate assistance (low-hanging fruit) 2 • Help schools prevent and divert more waste (system transformation) 2 • Evaluate adding multifamily to single-family residential service (approaching zero-waste) 2 • Add organics recycling bins in public spaces (system transformation) 1 • Improve new resident education (system transformation) 1 • Promote multifamily recycling champions program (low-hanging fruit) 1 Other possible strategies • Annually offer free compostable bags for residents • Utilize recycling email subscriber list for more than just service delay alerts • Do more with the website • Create a series of informational videos about organics recycling (currently in progress) Staff requests that commissioners review this information and come to the meeting prepared to discuss ideas and recommend specific strategies to increase participation in recycling programs and decrease waste in Golden Valley.