Regional Planning for Climate Action

Pittsburgh Green New Deal Discussion Group

September 30, 2023

Patricia DeMarco

https://patriciademarco.com

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9/30/23

Local action for a global problem

• Requires cooperation- air crosses municipal, state and national boundaries
• Planning to reflect local needs- geographic, demographic, infrastructure
• Shared vision for future development – Hydrogen hub based on fracking or a sustainable energy system hub? Manufacturing based here, or just pilot programs that expand elsewhere?
• Commitment to implement

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9/30/23

Assess Climate Vulnerabilities

• Landslides
• Storm sewer overflows
• Flooding
• Drought- parklands and open spaces
• Power outages
• Bridge and road deterioration

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9/30/23

Address Climate change in context of resilience

• Incorporate climate change realities into land use planning
• Drought-tolerant trees
• Native plants- pollinator protection
• Zoning to permit urban agriculture
• Zoning to enable passive solar design and solar PV arrays

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9/30/23

Address Climate change in context of resilience

• Evaluate infrastructure specific to area- roads, bridges, storm management
• Establish bio-swales in parking lots and public park areas
• Encourage tree planting along hillsides to stabilize the ground and take up water
• Zone to require stormwater diversion into deep wells on building sites.

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9/30/23

Address Climate change in context of resilience

• Anticipate changes in transportation
• Electric vehicle charging stations in public spaces
• Electric public transportation (Restore the streetcars!)
• Electrified freight railroad system
• Non-motorized travel: sidewalks, bike paths, interconnected retail and living spaces with safe pedestrian zones

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Residential Measures to 2025 

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9/30/23

MARISSA A. STAKELEY – APRIL 15, 2021

Answering a Challenge: Youth Lead!

• In 2016 Planning for the Centennial Celebration in 2019
• Updating the Comprehensive Plan from 2003
• Students from WHHS successfully challenged the School Board to adopt a Climate Action Plan
• They have organized annual Climate Summit Conferences for Pittsburgh area high school students. Over 500 attended this year in the David Lawrence Convention Center

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Woodland Hills High School AWESOME 2018 Climate Action Team!

Climate Action Planning Process:

Council Assigned to Operations and Policy Committee

Delegated to Environmental Advisory Council to implement

ICLEI /DCNR Grant for modeling and data tools

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Sequence of Actions:�

Integrated planning

Coordinated with Budgeting

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9/30/23

Forest Hills Climate Vulnerabilities

1. Drought and warmer than normal weather
2. More frequent and severe storms- both summer and winter
3. Landslides and flooding from storm surges- 40% of land area subject to landslides

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9/30/23

Why We Adopted a Climate Action Plan

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9/30/23

Goals

• Through Proclamation and by action of the Forest Hills Borough Council, we have resolved to adhere to the Climate Action Goals of the Paris Climate Accord of 2015 and have Forest Hills established a goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions throughout the community by 2050.
• By 2025, in order to reach our Residential Energy reduction by 3.3% per year per household BTUs is throughout 5 main sectors:
• 1.) Electricity 
• 2.) Water  
• 3.) Transportation 
• 4.) Solid Waste and
•  5.) Wastewater

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9/30/23

Every Household must reduce their energy consumption by 0.59 BTUs per year. The Residential Action Plan is meant to guide FHB residents to take the most efficient action to reach our goal.

Household Count

In Forest Hills Borough: 3,162 units

Short-term Policies for 2025 Milestones:

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Next Steps:

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A Net Zero Emissions goal for all Borough Buildings

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Guaranteed Energy Savings Contract with Siemens Industry, Inc. Smart Infrastructure

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Community Pool

Municipal Building Parking Canopy

Siemens Industry, Inc.

Siemens Industry, Inc.

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Next Steps:

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Establish a Micro-Grid

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Use Inflation Reduction Act funds

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Solar on Four more locations

875 kW PV total!

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A Net Zero Energy Borough!

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Siemens Infrastructure Group

CONNECT Climate Action Plan

Although participation in CONNECT’s work is always optional - climate change does not respect municipal borders - so our solutions must be rooted in collaboration and cooperation.

CONNECT resolves to address climate�change by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, increasing our resilience to natural hazards, and addressing our�environmental inequities.

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Climate Planning

• Per capita, CONNECT communities emit 5x our fair share of emissions recommended to limit warming.
• CONNECT’s Climate Action Plan is a tool to engage and empower local communities, in order to reduce our collective greenhouse gas emissions and adapt to the climate impacts to our shared region. The CONNECT Climate Action Plan hopes to provide vision, tailored policy solutions, expertise, and financial support that smooth the way for Allegheny County municipalities to engage in climate action.

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• 30% reduction in emissions by 2030

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https://www.connect.pitt.edu/sites/default/files/connect_climate_action_plan_final_6.5.22_1.pdf

Allegheny County Efforts �

• CONNECT’s member governments hope to align CONNECT’s municipal climate efforts with those of Allegheny County as well as Council’s newly formed Committee on Sustainability & Green Initiatives.
• Looking to and learning from the successes at the County level as well as supporting the County’s work on renewable projects, air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and the County’s Sustainability Plan, will in turn support climate action by our region’s local governments.

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