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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-30-20 Public Comment - J. Dimarco - Comments on Bozeman Climate PlanFrom:jerrydimarco@mail.com To:Agenda Cc:Natalie Meyer Subject:Comments on Bozeman Climate Plan Date:Friday, October 30, 2020 3:53:16 PM Attachments:BOZEMAN CLIMATE PLAN comments.doc Attached are my comments regarding the Climate Plan. I appreciate all the hard work you have done in preparing the document. It was very professionally done. Thank you for your consideration of my comments. Jerry DiMarco Bozeman P.S. I'm doing my part, recently purchased a Prius. BOZEMAN CLIMATE PLAN COMMENTS Jerry DiMarco, Bozeman 10/30/2020 Are the following included under vulnerable assets? hospital capacity; Fire Dept, Police Dept, road crews swamped asphalt roads, parking lots, bridges, train tracks, signs and signals, dark roofs communications infrastructure, public transportation, lakes and ponds 1.B.1. The city will have to be careful that builders they train stay here. 1.B.5. With incentive options, what is given up? I'm not a fan of compromising on planning principles. For example, the trend toward increased density combined with an enhanced urban forest could compromise fire safety in town. Sol C. I saw no mention of wood burning stoves. They are a significant source of pollution in winter and are not a sustainable source of energy, and should therefore be addressed. I support retrofitting of existing buildings when they are being renovated or repaired. 1.C.3. I think we will eventually have to get to the point where the city is able to require installation of electric appliances and equipment. Sol E Since renewable energy certificates do not increase the amount of renewable energy on the grid, why not keep that money here and use it to build our own clean energy sources and a community grid? Sol F Solar and wind energy were originally conceived to be applied locally. Part of the reason for this is the high loss of energy from the electric grid. Siting renewable energy sources where they are needed makes the most sense long-term. Can we create a community grid, apart from the utility grid? Regarding wind energy, I hope the new vertical axis, bladeless, wind turbines will be considered. This type of wind power generator has the same profile as a telephone pole, and is therefore a more city friendly design. The big blade generators are a blight on the landscape, and harmful to our avian friends. I hope they are phased out and replaced. 2.F.2. The whole town needs to be solar ready. To maximize solar access for houses and businesses, blocks should be longer in the E-W direction, and shorter in the N-S direction, to accommodate only 2 lots oriented N-S. Because we are entering a period of time where there could be more damaging storms, it might be a good idea to put photovoltaics inside, behind glass. This would eliminate storm damage, there would be less maintenance, and re-roofing costs would be lower. Solar panels could be combined with a trombe wall. Solar panels get hot, but when they are outside the heat is lost. If they were part of a trombe wall, the trombe wall would produce electricity as well as heat. How much energy is lost with fixed solar panels versus panels that track the Sun? 2.F.3. I'm all for getting rid of the net metering cap. 3.G.1. It is no longer acceptable to be limited to only encouraging where we want development to occur. Urban sprawl is not sustainable and raises the cost and energy needs of everything. The city must strongly advocate for state-wide comprehensive land-use planning. Looking to a future with a much higher world population, it may be necessary to bring urban sprawl back to town, and reclaim that land for agriculture. We also need to determine local carrying capacity (the population that can be sustained). 3.G.2. Compact development and density negatively impact affordable housing by increasing property values. Will all affordable housing be apartments? Compact development should not be the only solution. Row houses and no yards reduce the quality of life. Sol H Should high winds, rioting, pandemics also be included in the list of hazards? Is there a plan for relocating vulnerable infrastructure damaged after a hazard event? Sol I If educational materials must be in multiple languages, will citizens in multi-lingual neighborhoods be able to talk to each other in an emergency? Perhaps having the materials in English will encourage learning of at least the basics of the language. 4 There is probably a high percentage of commuters who come from out of town. Affordable housing can also reduce vehicle miles traveled. We should also advocate for restoration of Amtrak train service. Back when we lost Amtrak service, Montana had to choose between the northern route and the southern route. Montana's congressional delegation stood up for the northern route, saying the towns would die without rail service. This was an exaggeration of course because Hwy 2 follows the same course. After Amtrak left, air fares here went up ~$100. To get Amtrak service back, we will have to get our congressional delegation behind the effort. The communities along the northern route may oppose our effort because they will lose some passengers. The airport may also be opposed, but train service along the southern route makes sense because this is where most of the population centers are. Sol J The urban forest also affects sidewalks. There are many cracked and elevated sidewalk sections adjacent to parkway trees. See 6.O.2. There should be park and rides at the ends of the new bus routes. 4.J.2. We may want to find another term for non-car travel, since the future could bring unexpected transportation options. The mention of sharing the road conflicts with pg 99 which suggests physical separation is safer (and it is - think of the children!). This is especially true where bicyclists get caught between traffic and parked vehicles. 4.J.3. Since winter maintenance of shared use paths may use sand or salt, will our storm sewer system need to be improved to handle the added load? 4.J.4. The bus routes will be changing in the future. It is likely they will be traveling along main roads and connecting complementary districts. So transit-oriented development may be unnecessary. Less populated areas can be served by smaller buses. 4.J.6. I think it might be premature to consider light rail and high speed rail here. However it makes sense to have a more extensive intrastate bus system that serves the major cities in Montana, and connects to our local bus system. It should be used to handle intercity transit, including to Belgrade and Livingston. 4.J.8. I wonder if bike, scooter and car share programs will suffer the tragedy of the commons? I recently saw kids playing games with the share scooters in the parking garage. 4.K.2. I don't know if a funding source has been identified for the EV infrastructure, but maybe a gas tax would be a logical choice. 4.K.3. Could COB sell its used EVs to citizens, or donate them to low income households or to the car share program? I think biofuels are poor energy choice because they may compete for space with food sources, and they are not sustainable. 4.K.4. If a lot of electricity use is going to be shifted off peak, there may not be an off peak period much longer. 5 Should waste water be included as a source of emissions? Sol M Could methane be used in place of biofuel? 5.M.1. Are front yard giveaways allowed? This is already common practice. 5.M.2. Food waste can also be used for agricultural feed. Can composting be done in winter? Could greenhouses be helpful for that, or for urban agriculture? 5.M.4. Would it make sense to offer support for demolition businesses? Perhaps it could be coordinated through Job Service. Sol N Will organic food be supported or encouraged? 6.N.2. Advocating for state-wide comprehensive land-use planning is the best way to protect existing agricultural activity. 6.N.3. Community gardens seem to be a popular suggestion, but they tend to be problematic. I think a more desirable solution is to keep lots big enough so that the owners can have a garden. Our public green spaces should be for all. If we're going to set a target for a percentage of land to remain in agricultural production, we'll probably need to know the carrying capacity of the valley. 6.N.4. Most of the small-scale foods mentioned on page 139 are unhealthy. 6.O.1. I would like to see native plants in medians and other non-park green spaces. 6.O.2. Lawn retrofits are a good idea because the type of grasses used in lawns are a source of allergies. Will you be doing this in parks too? If the ground in parkways and medians were sculpted below grade, with the low spot in the middle, they would hold more water, and less water would run off into storm drains. This would also help to keep ice off sidewalks in winter. It would likely benefit trees in the parkways and medians, and because trees would be planted lower, it might save sidewalks from cracking too. Sol P I am glad to see an emphasis on regeneration of soils. We need to complete the nutrient cycle so that soils do not continue to be depleted with each harvest, whether we are talking about food or forests. Compost, food waste and human waste should be returned to the soils that grew them. It is getting more difficult to get all the nutrients we need from our diet. We will need to be healthy in order to be able to make it through the climate and population crises. I did not see any mention of catalysts for converting CO2 into carbon and oxygen or other compounds. The former seems more desirable. Breaking down excess CO2 appears to be a solution with few if any undesirable consequences. Should we be considering this as part of the solution too? 6.P.2. I hope the city will show leadership in planting only native species in its effort to prepare Bozeman's "forest" for climate change. To do otherwise could have wide range negative ramifications. Ideally, the urban forest should be native, planted in appropriate habitat, and not affect solar access. Would it be possible to do something in our natural areas to help endangered or threatened species such as the monarch butterfly?