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City of Ann Arbor Greenhouse Gas Emissions Reduction Plan

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On October 20, 1997, the City Council of Ann Arbor voted to adopt the necessary statutes committing the City to the Cities for Climate Protection (CCP) campaign - an international program with the aim to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by encouraging local action.  The International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) developed the CCP campaign. In the winter of 2001, David Konkle, Ann Arbor’s Energy Coordinator, sought the help of a Master’s Project team to devise a strategy for the City to achieve its commitment to the CCP campaign. The Team developed this Master’s Project to further the City’s efforts to reduce local GHG emissions and set the groundwork for cultivating a viable Local Action Plan. The primary objectives of the Master’s Project are as follows:

1. Raise local awareness and understanding of the social, environmental, and economic benefits of reducing GHGs on a local and global scale

2. Identify and quantify GHGs emitted by the City of Ann Arbor from 1990 to present, and project future emissions values to 2050 based on historic and future trends

3. Identify and quantify the City of Ann Arbor’s emissions reductions accomplishments since 1990

4. Identify a politically and economically feasible GHG emissions reduction target for the City of Ann Arbor to achieve by 2020

5. Identify strategies to reduce GHG emissions generated by Ann Arbor’s transportation, residential, commercial, industrial, municipal solid waste sectors, the municipal government, and the University of Michigan’s Ann Arbor Campus that meet the reduction target specified by this Project .

This Master’s Project includes a detailed comparison of GHG emission reduction measures and identifies the cost to implement and operate (if quantifiable), the annual saving and years to repayment, and the CO2 equivalent reduction potential for each measure. Overall, this Project does not provide the City of Ann Arbor with a direct action plan to reduce GHG emissions, but rather it provides a framework for implementing a GHG reduction plan as City policy.

Collaborator(s)
City of Ann Arbor
Sponsor(s)
Prentice Foundation
Research Areas
Communities
Urban Systems and Built Environment