The California Air Resources Board presented its plan to reduce the state’s greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020 at a workshop in San Jose on August 8, 2008. The audience of about 100 came to offer comments on the AB 32 draft scoping plan, designed to implement the California Global Warming Solution Act, as much as to hear what the board proposes.

The State of California’s climate plan establishes an ambitious goal. It seeks to engage individuals, communities and businesses in strategies that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and

“. . . make our cities healthier, our natural areas safer and our working landscapes more productive; that make our economy more resilient as we reduce our reliance on imported petroleum; and that pave the way for technologies that can make our state both more prosperous and more sustainable.”

The state’s $100 billion travel and hospitality industry, and the 900,000 travel-related jobs, are particularly vulnerable to climate change. During the 2008 fire season, over 2,000 wildfires scorched California, and uncontrolled blazes forced mass evacuations at some of the state’s cherished destinations–Big Sur, Santa Cruz, Yosemite, Shasta-Trinity, and the Northern Sierras.

Spring 2008, preceding the fires of summer, was the driest in a generation. The governor declared a water emergency and water districts across the state instituted mandatory water rationing, measures that affect California residents and tourists alike.

The shrinking Sierra snowpack could devastate the state’s ski resorts and affect outdoor recreation activities year-round. The state’s wineries are threatened by rising temperatures and changing weather patterns. California’s coastal communities face rising sea levels and warming waters, which could adversely affect these tourist destinations.

The Air Resources Board will consider comments on the plan, submitted in writing and at public hearings, when it writes its “Proposed Scoping Plan,” which will be released on October 3, 2008. The board will vote on the proposed plan at its November 20 meeting.

Keep reading for more about the Draft Scoping Plan; or

Read Climate Change Plan Gets Public Airing.

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It was standing-room only at the Santa Clara County auditorium on August 8, 2008, when representatives from the California Air Resources Board opened the public hearing on the state’s plan to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by the year 2020. The parking lot outside the auditorium was also full, since the board chose a locale for the hearing that was a good five miles from downtown San Jose, and away from the city’s street car lines.

Kevin Kennedy from the Air Resources Board spent the first hour describing the state’s plan to reduce GHG emissions by:

• Improving energy efficiency and expanding renewable energy production;
• Changing land use policy to encourage smart growth and mixed-use development, thus reducing sprawl and vehicle miles traveled;
• Enhancing public transportation and developing high-speed rail;
• Improving vehicle fuel efficiency and developing alternative, low-carbon fuels;
• Adopting green building standards; and
• Developing a carbon “Cap-and-Trade” program.

Then it was the public’s turn to address the critical issue of climate change.

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Traffic congestion is bad for business, especially hospitality businesses. There is nothing hospitable about traffic jams, gridlock, and vehicle exhaust.

When tourists are stuck in traffic, they have less time to spend in local stores, restaurants, and destinations. Much of the serendipity of travel is lost when tourists are isolated from local people and local businesses by the isolating bubble of a car.

The hospitality industry has a large stake in the regional transportation plan for the San Francisco Bay Area, which the Metropolitan Transportation Commission is currently updating, as it does every four years. The plan will direct $122 billion in investments over the next 25 years, and for the first time, it will attempt to address climate change, smart growth, and transportation options, as well as gridlock.

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Counties across California are revising their general plans, and a number of boards of supervisors are integrating “smart growth” principles in these plans.

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A giant construction crane looms above the Village at Mammoth Lakes, where thirty area residents met to discuss the draft strategic plan for the new Sierra Nevada Conservancy. The setting in this town of 7,500 in the eastern Sierras provides a stark reminder about the challenges facing the Sierras, where real estate development and unchecked population growth is transforming California’s mountain communities.

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Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the bill creating state’s largest conservancy–25 million acres of the Sierra range from the Oregon border to Kern County–in September 2004. At the signing ceremony, he said,

“The conservancy will not only support environmental preservation but assist the regional economy, preserve working landscapes and provide increased opportunities for tourism. It is an example of economy and environment in harmony.”

A year later, Autumn 2005, the fledgeling state agency, with the assistance of the Sierra Business Council, held a series of public forums across the Sierra range. Read a summary of the public testimony from the fourms.

The conservancy unveiled its draft strategic plan in the Spring 2006, at another series of public forums.

Download the Strategic Plan Executive Summary (PDF) or go to the conservancy website to read the entire 36 page document.

The Board of the Sierra Nevada Conservancy voted at its February 23 meeting to set up shop in Auburn. By law, the conservancy was required to establish its headquaters in the Sierra Nevada range “in order to effectively carry out its mission.”

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Fetzer Vineyard installed a 40 kilowatt solar photovoltaic system on its administration building in Hopland, California, as part of its 20 year old commitment as “an environmentally and socially conscious grower, producer, and marketer of wines.�?

The system of PV panels generates about 52 kilowatts of energy per year, 75% of the building’s electrical needs. Patrick Healy, Fetzer’s environmental manager, says that even with the state and federal incentives, PV is hard to justify, based strictly on its return on investment. “Even with the discounts, the systems aren’t competitive.�?

So rather than depend on PV’s to supply needed electricity, Fetzer designed a low energy building from the ground up, to reduce demand. The administration building, with its rammed-earth construction, remains comfortable during the sweltering summer heat without air conditioning. In addition, Healy says that Fetzer operations produce no greenhouse gases because the company has purchased 100% renewable energy since 2000. “We support alternative energy. After commissioning an emission study, we switched to 3 Phases Energy.�? Fetzer is the country’s sixth largest producer of premium wines, but the largest producer of certified organic grapes with 2,000 acres in Northern and Central California.

According to Healty, Fetzer established a five acre organic garden at its Hopland ranch in 1984. “Our original intention was to provide fresh fruits and vegetables at events for our distributors.�? The experiment was so successful the company decided to convert all its vineyards to organics, beginning in 1989. Next Fetzer instituted a company-wide waste reduction effort. “We have reduced our waste stream by 94% since 1990, even though we’ve increased our volume of production,�? says company spokesperson James Caudill.

In 1998, Fetzer worked with UC Davis Extension to create a natural filtration system—otherwise known as a pond. Water used in the wine production process drains into a pond on site. Reeds line its shore, sand and gravel cover the bottom, filtering out the impurities. The treated water is then used to nourish the vineyards and gardens at the Valley Oaks Ranch in Hopland. Fetzer is now taking its sustainable business practices to the 200 growers from whom it buys grapes.

The company sponsors courses on organic viticulture, supports research on organic methods, and has produced a handbook on Growing Organic Winegrapes, as part of its effort to move the industry “more quickly toward sustainable and organic farming practices.�?