ECAT Meets with Hines on New City Center

DC Sierra Meeting with Hines on New City Center
25 April 2006
Tuesday, 4pm

Notes by John Wickham

DC Sierra Club Energy and Climate Action Team (E-CAT) members:
Bob Morris, David Kessler, Russ Edwards, Murad Khan, John Wickham

Hines Representatives: Howard Riker, Vice President for Development and Michael Greene, Vice President for Construction

Overall Impression: Very positive, mutually beneficial exchange. Howard Riker and Michael Greene were very welcoming, providing each of the Sierra members with a site map, project schedule, and ‘development program’ outlining portion of site dedicated to different uses (e.g., retail, office, rental and for sale housing, and District uses). Howard Riker did most of the talking, and he and Michael Greene were clearly well-prepared. Riker, in particular, showed impressive knowledge of a wide variety of factors (e.g., Federal legislation, DC legislation, local DC politics, LEED certification, green building practices and architects).

Each of the Sierra members made short statements of their interest in project, with Bob leading off, explaining size and activities of DC Sierra Chapter; David explaining his background and lead role in E-CAT outreach to Hines and other community partners; Murad speaking up for DC legal and student communities, John mentioning his role in his northwest DC church and with Episcopal Diocese of Washington, and Russ describing his outreach to DC libraries, as well as his promotion of compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs).

Notes

Howard Riker thanked us for contacting him and for arranging meeting, then mentioned there is web site for New City Center, where information about project may be found: www.oldconventioncenter.com.

Howard explained that Hines is the largest real estate company in the United States, and that it is an international company. Its founder, Gerald Hines, is retired and living in London.

Among Hines’s core principles, according to Riker, is to Invest in the Long-Term and to Use High Quality Materials (keeping end use in mind), with the result that many of Hines’s projects and clients occupy the top tier of the market. Hines began in Houston, Texas, then became active nationally in the 1970s/80s.

Hines built their corporate headquarters in Washington, DC, a multi-tenant building at 555 13th Street, NW, where the meeting took place, as well as major building projects at Franklin Square, Postal Square (where Bureau of Labor Statistics and Capitol City Brewing Company on Capitol Hill are), and Gannett Headquarters (home of USA Today).

Riker described Hines as environmentally sensitive, noting that it has won more awards from EPA’s Energy Star program for its buildings in DC and nationwide than most other firms. So successful is Hines, Riker explained, that EPA has created a separate category for it within Energy Star.

Hines knows the energy savings and clean air that result from sustainable design, and has established contacts with green architects, building professionals, and the US Green Building Council (e.g.,William McDonough; Ken Hubbard; Jerry Lee, Hines’s Head of Construction, serves on LEED Board; while Hines’s Head of Commercial Buildings serves on LEED’s Construction Board).

Hines is a 50/50 Joint-Venture Partner with Archstone-Smith on the New City Center. Archstone is a residential landlord familiar with sustainable concepts. Daryl South of Archstone is Howard Riker’s counterpart.

Howard pointed to a variety of green design credentials that Mike Greene and his team enjoy (e.g., LEED certifications) and also discussed Hines’s affiliations with leading green builders. Howard referred to Foster & Partners in London, claiming a connection to their lead architect. He also cited the new Hearst Headquarters building in New York City, asking whether we had read about it in last Sunday’s New York Times? Howard said key members of the Hearst team will work with Hines on the New City Center, applying their knowledge of energy conservation and sustainability. William McDonough, former Dean of the School of Architecture at the University of Virginia, will serve as a Consultant to Hines on the City project (McDonough, one of the world’s leading practitioners of green design, known informally as the ‘Dean of Green,’ designed Ford Motor Company’s world headquarters, the River Rouge Plant in Dearborn, Michigan, as well as GAP’s headquarters in California).

The Master Plan for the New City Center is still in progress (see Conceptual Project Schedule handed out by Riker in meeting), with design guidelines for the Project and the larger site still being established. Riker noted that landscape architect Kathryn Gustafson will be engaged (he referred to the firm Gustafson, Guthrie, and Nichol). Gustafson helped design Canal Park in Southeast Washington, DC and the National Portrait Gallery renovation downtown.

For Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing (MEP), Hines will retain Tolk, Inc., consulting engineers in Fairfax, VA. Howard said Tolk excelled at providing energy savings and sustainable design, and that all their engineers are LEED certified.

Riker explained that the District of Columbia is a 25% Partner in the Project, and that the City’s detailed Request for Proposals (RFP) included a requirement for Sustainability Commitments. Riker then noted the DC Green Building Legislation before City Council, as well as the City’s Office of Planning, with whom Hines has been working. Ideas explored by Hines with the Office of Planning include trenches for trees rather than pits (Kathryn Gustafson has experience using tree trenches in Chicago and Seattle). Apparently, tree pits allow soil to become 100% compacted, preventing rain from penetrating and other undesirable side effects.

Riker also mentioned an Exclusive Rights Agreement (ER Agreement) with the City, which lays out the economic terms of its relationship with the District. Having signed that agreement, Howard said, Hines no longer needs approval from the City on its plans. Howard said Hines is not anticipating Planned-Unit Development (PUD) or any sort of request for variances. There are certain fundamental attributes, such as Sunlight and Maximizing Access to Air, that are a part of Hines’s agreement with the City.

Construction is expected to take 30 months, with ground breaking in 2008 and completion projected in 2011.

It’s a 10-acre site. The National Park Service (NPS) owns a variety of parkland in DC, including a small ‘bow-tie’ parcel at the northwest corner of the site. Riker cited Federal legislation in Congress that would transfer NPS parks in the District to the DC Government. He said this legislation would be relevant at Poplar Point, where a soccer stadium might be built, as well as at Mt. Vernon Square and elsewhere in the City.

Howard noted that on 10th Street and I Street, portions of the roadway may be ‘re-introduced,’ or made walkable again by pedestrians with ‘view corridors,’ and that if this occurred the City would control the new portions opened.

Riker also pointed to Civic & Cultural uses on the site, and the possible construction of a new Martin Luther King (MLK) Library, which the Mayor requested funding for in his 2007 Budget. He also alluded to "Swap Parcels," which are located at the upper northeast corner of the site.

Running east-west through the site are H Street (at southern edge) and I Street, both of which were part of Pierre L’Enfant’s original plan for the District. These streets are not major arteries, but are considered essential for traffic circulation in the area. Hines will be seeking ‘streetscape’ standards for trees, and intends to widen sidewalks while narrowing streets.

There are alleys running north-south (especially between 9th and 10th Streets), that Hines intends to make attractive and inviting, similar to an alley recently redeveloped in Georgetown called Keadys Court (near Key Bridge, one block south of M Street). On the Hines site map it says "create open space at intersection of Alleys," and again, near alleys, "visibility through the site to be enhanced." Howard described the width of the alleys as 24 feet from building-face to building-face, saying that Hines intended them to be pedestrian friendly. He added that the alleys should provide ‘permeability,’ offering routes through the Superblock as well as allowing light and air.

At the intersection of several internal pedestrian alleys at the center of the site, the Hines site map says:

Central Plaza to include:

Approximately 1/3 acre open space
Areas for public seating
Free space to handle gatherings of approximately 500 people
Spatially dynamic and flexible open space that functions as a ‘Heart’ for the development
Destination for area residents and workers

Howard noted that the buildings will be two (2) stories high, and that there will be a 50-foot setback for some of the structures. If I understood Howard correctly, Hines will develop only the two (2) lower parcels at the site (out of roughly four (4) quadrants, which form a trapezoid), for a total of 275,000 square feet.

As to residential property, 2/3 will be rented and 1/3 will be for sale. 20% of the site (300,000-400,000 square feet) will be office space.

As for the Central Plaza or open space, Howard envisioned book fairs, farmers’ markets, concerts, and other public events occurring there, similar to how Rockefeller Center is used in New York City. Howard said they will try to avoid a large void as can be found at Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue (he said he wants space usable for public events, but only at the scale of the community and its needs).

In tandem with a landscape architect, Hines intends to place trees 30 feet apart, some in single rows, others in double rows. Riker said Hines would like to offer plantings and streetscapes worthy of being emulated elsewhere in the City.

Significant parking will be offered at the site (private, retail, and public), which Hines was required to provide by the City.

A bike lane will be placed on 10th Street, and possibly on 9th Street also.

Howard said the City wants people to come Downtown to shop and for entertainment. The K Street Realignment Project was mentioned, and Bob Morris noted that a trolley was planned for H Street.

On 4 May 2006, from 6-9pm, a Public Hearing will be held on the New City Center, a portion of which will be dedicated to Sustainability.

Howard said Hines wants to go beyond LEED. For instance, he said, by the time they finish construction in 2011, what will be the protocol or norm expected of buildings? New standards will be in place for sunlight, wind, green technology, and roofs.

Foster & Partners won the 1st LEED Gold Rating in New York City for an office building, and Foster & Partners and William McDonough take turns criticizing each others’ designs.

Masterplan development usually just involves architects, but the District of Columbia encouraged Hines and Archstone-Smith to engage in outreach. Howard said the community outreach has been enjoyable for him, since he’s lived in Washington for the last 14 years. Howard said he enjoys creating ‘partnership-type’ relationships, e.g., with high schools, colleges, graduate programs, and others, to "share what we’re doing."

Howard said he wants local businesses to locate in DC so that they can generate money for local entrepreneurs. Howard and Mike both have a plan to get out into the schools, perhaps partnering with them.

Bob Morris then distributed Sierra Club’s Cool Cities brochures, explaining how Sierra partners with individuals and organizations throughout the United States in over 220 cities, and then gives them credit and publicity for their innovative and sustainable development designs.

Howard said Hines would like to maintain an open dialogue.

At the end, in a give-and-take Question and Answer period, Local Small Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (LSDBE) were discussed. The District’s Department of Small and Local Business Development was mentioned, as was a plan to have 35% of the New City Center's retail tenants in the first five (5) years be LSDBE firms.

Important Reminder

Hey E-CATs, its Dave again with a quick reminder. I forgot to mention this in the blog that I posted earlier this evening, but in the blog posting from 2/24/06, I did mention that you should forward your letters to your city councilmembers. You can feel free to do this as well, but we must direct them to Hines. I recently discovered that Hines is accepting community feedback for the redevelopment's master planing phase, so it makes sense to take advantage of this. Also, I get the impression that the developers of this project have more power in deciding the course of its future. They are leasing the land from the District and they are directing the master planning phase of the project, "a process which will determine the look and feel of the buildings and open space"- www.oldconventioncenter.com . Therefore, they appear to be at the top of the hierarchy involved with redeveloping the site. Also, please feel free to provide me with your feedback. Enjoy, and I hope to meet all of you in the coming weeks!!!!
peace
Dave Kessler

Write a Letter!!! Help Stop Global Warming

Hey E-CATs, its Dave, your political outreach coordinator!! I hope all of you are enjoying our unseasonably warm weather!!! Since my last blog update on 2/24/06 , I have done some research on the New City Project. Remember, our focus is on incorporating energy efficient building designs and features into the master plan for this project!! Currently, both DC and Hines/Archstone-Smith (developers) are in the process of creating a master plan for this project. The master plan allows for community feedback and suggestions for all aspects of the redevelopment. The letter writing campaign that I outlined in the blog from 2/24/06 will be directed to Hines, a development company working with Archstone-Smith on this project.

Some Important Facts: An overview

You can access more information about this project at http://www.oldconventioncenter.com/

• The New City Project will be constructed on the ten acre site of the former Washington Convention Center.
• This site is surrounded by 9th, H and 11th Streets and New York Avenue, NW in downtown.
• Construction is anticipated to begin in 2008.
• The site will include an anticipated: 275,000 square feet of retail space, 300,000 square feet of office space, 772 units of housing, at least 1,900 parking spaces, up to one acre of open space, plus a reserved 120,000 square feet of space to be decided upon for use by the District.
• The Hines/Archstone-Smith development team will work in conjunction with the Distirct on this project.
• "The Land Disposition Agreement / Exclusive Rights Agreement calls for a 99-year lease of the site to the developer for all private uses, except the for-sale housing parcels which will be sold outright."- press release, 6/7/05, www.oldconventioncenter.com
• "The District estimates it will receive $200 million in value for the land (in today's dollars) over the course of the 99-year lease." - press release, 6/7/05, www.oldconventioncenter.com
• According to www.oldconventioncenter.com, the Master plan will "strengthen neighborhood businesses, generate quality housing, and improve the public realm." - www.oldconventioncenter.com

Hines/Archstone-Smith claims that "we take seriously our commitment to consider input from the community in formulating its master plan, designing and constructing the project and, finally, during ongoing operations of the development." - www.oldconventioncenter.com, under the Community link.

E-CATs, if this is so, then this is the perfect opportunity to reveal our feelings on this project!!!

We must petition the developers to include green building designs and features into the master plan!!!

The blog from 2/24/06 will instruct you on crafting your letter to Hines.

Contact Information-

Please direct your letters to:

Dawn C. Marcus

Communications Manager

Hines

555 13th Street, NW

Suite 1020 East

Washington, DC 20004

Phone: (202) 347-6337

hines-smith@hines.com

E-CATs, lets make this happen!!! Taking five minutes to type or hand write a letter to the Communications Manager at Hines is all that it takes. It will be an effort that is totally worth your time! This first step in our campaign is crucial because we must generate a response from the developers on this issue. They may or may not be open to our suggestions, but our job is to demand that they listen to us and seriously consider the importance of this issue. Just think, this project will set an example for future building projects across the country to think green and clean when it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and providing cost-savings for energy consumers. Enjoy!!

peace

Dave Kessler

Green Buildings!! YAY!!

Hey everybody!! Its Dave Kessler, your political outreach coordinator for the E-CAT's New City Project. For those of you who are new to the campaign, I want to give you a warm welcome and I hope that you enjoy your time volunteering with us. I am always open to suggestions and I am always happy to have people assume leadership positions. So if you are motivated, have the time and passion to help your community please feel free to organize and lead. Just remember, that the possibilities are endless!!! Also, I would like to emphasize that this should be a fun endeavor. As a team we should enjoy our projects and recognize that everyone is on an equal playing field.

Last week, a few of us from the group got together and discussed some of the major themes of our campaign and tried to create a road map towards implementing them. We've decided that each leader in the group should manage a specific campaign issue area semi-autonomously. For example, Joanna Winchester is the "go to person" when group leaders or volunteers are having difficulty completing their projects. John Wickham will be handling public outreach and volunteer coordination. Mary Lou is helping us with delivering our campaign to schools. Janet Bumpas is helping us with media efforts. And as the political outreach coordinator, I will be assisting in policy research for the project. Once again, these positions are not written in stone and ANYONE is welcome to step up and assume responsibility anywhere. We highly encourage you to initiate a leadership role.

We decided that our first hands on, grassrootsy campaign effort will be a letter writing campaign. Each personally crafted letter should include the talking points which I've included at the bottom. They address the issue of "green buildings" and "green urbanism." The New City Project, as many of you probably know, will be the development of the old convention center site. For more info check out http://dcbiz.dc.gov/dmped/site/default.asp. This site should include elements of green buildings and low impact energy efficient design. This is the perfect opportunity for Mayor Williams and the DC City Council to support the development of an environmentally friendly space within Dowtown Washington since the signing of the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement of 2005. A letter writing campaign would give our public servants an opportunity to provide us with their positioning on this issue. Even though we are promoting "green urbanism," we must maintain our focus on this particular project which will occupy the old convention center. The Sierra Club is refering to it as the New City Project.

Our message is simple and our defining goals can be summed up as follows:

- Energy efficient buildings not only help reduce the risk of climate change by lowering green house gas emissions, but they also provide energy cost savings for their proprietors. Because of these benefits, they are exemplary for future building projects in an age of much needed and critical environmental reform.

Some of the design features that the Sierra Club would like to see implemented into this new building include the following:

- LEED certification. For more info check out: http://www.usgbc.org/
- the use of compact flourescent lighting
- large windows to provide natural lighting
- stormwater management technologies, example: raingardens to absorb greywater
- tree-lined streets to help add to the biodiversity of the neighborhood.
- green rooftops to help absorb carbon dioxide
- the fostering of car-sharing and and bicycle-riding. Example: a bike shelter
- all buildings should contain appliances and technology that earns Energy Star ratings such as computers, fax machines, copy machines etc. http://www.energystar.gov/
- the city should create "environmental guidelines" for the site similar to those of Battery Park City in New York. For more info check out: http://www.batteryparkcity.org/Working/green-guidelines.htm
- emphasize the importance of including green spaces in the proposed public plaza
- waste should be treated through nutrient-recycling and greywater re-use systems.
- finally, a certain percentage of energy consumption in the buildings should come from renewable sources.

To learn more information about green urbanism and buildings check out:
http://www.metropolismag.com/cda/
http://www.batteryparkcity.org/

We should write our letters to city council members and to the mayor's office.
This website will provide you with the name of your council member:
http://www.grc.dc.gov/grc/cwp/view.asp?a=1206&q=447541&grcNav_GID=1421&portal_link=hr

Our letter writing campaign should emphasize the message stated above, and it should also include the following set of talking points.

Dear ____________,

I am writing today to ask you to support the environmentally friendly construction of the
buildings which will occupy the site of the old convention center in Downtown Washington.

Mention that this would be a great opportunity for the District of Columbia to follow through on its commitment to the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement to lower green house gases. Mention the importance of how this would look to the DC community and the country.

Explain the scientific importance of having this green building project in DC.
- mention its effect on lowering green house gas emissions
- mention its potential to lower energy costs at a time when energy is costly and in short supply
- mention how constructing green buildings on this site will help influence future green building projects.

Here is some important data for you to include in your letter:

- In the United States, buildings account for:
36 percent of total energy use and 65 percent of electricity consumption
30 percent of greenhouse gas emissions
30 percent of raw materials use
30 percent of waste output (136 million tons annually)
12 percent of potable water consumption
Source: U.S. Green Building Council

Green buildings would significantly lower these percentages by using energy efficient building materials and allowing for an increase in renewable energy consumption.

"The Benefits of Greener Buildings: An increasing number of studies support the idea that green building is good for business. Initial investments in environmentally preferable building technologies and materials often pay for themselves within a few years. In fact, investments in green buildings pay for themselves ten times over, according to a landmark study drawing on national data for 100 green buildings in the U.S. The report found that the financial benefits of green design are between $50 and $70 per square foot in a LEED building, over ten times the additional cost associated with building green. The benefits include cost savings from reduced energy, water, and waste; lower operations and maintenance costs; and enhanced occupant productivity and health." - According to greenbiz.com

"Appliance efficiency has also benefited consumers; by reducing electrical demand in our homes and offices, energy efficiency standards have saved over $50 billion since the majority standards were passed." -

Also the Mayor stated the following according to a July 8th, 2005 News Release from the dc.gov web site.

“Global warming is perhaps the most urgent environmental threat that we now face,” said Mayor Williams. “We in Washington, DC have become accustomed to Code Red and even Code Purple days in the summer. Cities are hotter than surrounding areas due to the urban heat island effect, caused by our roads and other impervious surfaces absorbing heat from the sun. The District of Columbia is committed to doing its part, as a major US city, to reduce our impact. I commend Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels for his leadership in reaching out to mayors nationwide in order to speed the adoption of local strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

In May, Mayor Williams announced his support for the creation of a stand-alone Department of the Environment for the District saying, “It’s time that the Nation’s Capital has a Department of the Environment to help ensure that our natural environment is clean and healthy for our residents and for the millions of visitors we host every year. A new department would enable us to focus our efforts on critical issues such improving the city’s air quality, cleaning up our local rivers and streams and developing our parks and open spaces.”

Check out these links, they contain some useful information: http://www.earthjustice.org/news/print.html?ID=567
http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/pdf/purchasing_guide_for_web.pdf
http://www.epa.state.oh.us/opp/greenbuilding_web.pdf
http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/pdf/purchasing_guide_for_web.pdf

Finally, before you write your letter please check out the following web sites to learn more about green buildings if you are new to the topic. A great source in the EPA's web site.

Enjoy!! Have fun!!
Dave Kessler

E-CAT Application to Conservation Initiatives Committee

Hi E-CATs,

Below is a copy of the application recently submitted to the Sierra Club's national Conservation Initiatives Committee for funding. A little background: the Club's Conservation Initiatives are general environmental issues ("Safe and Healthy Communities," "America's Wild Legacy," and "Smart Energy Solutions") which were given priority by Sierra Club members from all over the country at the Sierra Summit last summer. The Initiatives were then approved by the national Conservation Governance Committee, and are now considered top priority for Sierra Club work. To emphasize their importance, the national Sierra Club dedicated a certain amount of its funding to be channeled into work across the country that fits into the Initiatives. The Conservation Initiatives Committee (CIC) is reviewing and approving or denying applications for that money. We sent in an application for the work we're doing in DC.

You can review the application to see how we are representing our work, and to get a sense of our goals, vision, and plans for the foreseeable future.

Enjoy!

(Questions 1-3 asked for contact info, deleted here for individual privacy).

4) Please identify what Club entity (chapter, group, issue committee etc.) or what group of members your proposal comes from, or who you propose to do the project work.

The “Energy and Climate Action Team” (E-CAT), part of the Washington DC Chapter.

5) Are any other Club leaders or entities working with you on this? If so, please list them along with their titles and contact information.

a) Bob Morris: Community Activist;
b) Joanna Winchester: DC Sierra Club Chapter, Chapter Assistant
c) Jim Dougherty: Sierra Club Board of Directors
d) We are also working in tandem with a new regional energy program organized by Glen Besa to include initiatives in most of the other chapters and groups in our region.

6) Conservation Initiative Committee you are applying to (check one):

__ America's Wild Legacy __ Safe and Healthy Communities _X_ Smart Energy Solutions __ Uncertain which one it might fit in

While we believe this project contains components that fit into both Smart Energy Solutions and Safe and Healthy Communities, we see a great opportunity to use this project to raise awareness about energy usage in the spaces where we live and work.

According to the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), “buildings in the United States consume more than 30 percent of our total energy and 60 percent of our electricity annually.”
Particularly in urban settings, buildings that are “green” can play a large role in reducing dependence on fossil fuels (including oil, natural gas, or coal) in a variety of ways:

• They use less energy in heating and cooling, lighting, etc.;
• Their location and design work with a good public transit system to encourage people to live and work in a walking urban environment;
• They utilize local and environmentally safe materials in their construction and maintenance and reduce the necessity to deplete resources elsewhere and to rely on oil and gas in the transport of non-local resources.

7) Please check the type of funding you are requesting. You must complete a separate application for each type of funding you are requesting, so you should check only one below.

_X_ Educational 501(c)(3) __ Legislative 501(c)(4) __ Electoral (PAC/527) __ Not sure

8) What is the proposed ultimate goal and/or public policy outcome that you hope to achieve with your project? There may be a long term goal (i.e. wilderness designation for the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, or cleaning up/replacing dirty coal-fired power plants in the Midwest),and short term goals (i.e. blocking legislation authorizing Arctic leasing in the next Congress, or retiring the Belching Power Plant in Kentucky).

Long Term Goals:

a) Develop energy-efficient “green” buildings in Washington DC that have a minimal environmental impact, help to build a downtown urban community, and improve quality of life for people who work, study, and live in DC.
b) Reduce the city’s energy usage and emissions of both greenhouse gases and conventional pollutants (in cooperation with ongoing public transportation campaigns) to a level that meets Kyoto Protocol proposed levels.
c) Make DC’s green building standards and projects a model for other cities.

Short Term Goals:

In the short-term, we are focused on the development of the Old Convention Center site. Our goal is the incorporation of green and energy-efficient design into any project that will occupy the site. A successful design will:

a) Conserve energy (both in the construction and operation of the structure).
b) Allow for easy access to and use of alternative transportation (transit, bikes, etc.).
c) Create a pedestrian friendly urban environment that will encourage people to walk around.
d) Reduce the heat island effect.
e) Rely on local materials and labor (to reduce the need for long-distance transportation and to decrease depletion of natural resources in wild places that are often used in building projects – e.g. timber from national forests, rock and stone from quarries).
f) Include low-income housing if housing is proposed (because of DC’s housing crunch and gentrification, many low-income households are pushed into the suburbs while their jobs remain in the city, which increases the number of cars on the road). Including low-income housing in every new housing development not only builds community, it also decreases dependence on cars and fuel.
g) Prevent stormwater runoff and conserve water.

We chose to focus on the Old Convention Center site for several reasons: as a large, iconic project it will be in the public eye in DC; because of the scale of the project, building in an environmentally friendly manner has the potential to impact the lives of DC residents and to serve as a model for future projects in DC and other cities; there will be many opportunities to get the public involved in the project, which will help the chapter to educate and empower DC residents.

Question 9 asks about total resources requested - deleted here for privacy.

10) Briefly describe the project you are proposing. As you lay out the project, please provide as much information as necessary to show how you meet the criteria above. For example, if you plan to build an alliance with a non-environmental constituency, please indicate which constituency you plan to enlist. Include tactics and targets if you know them.

We are organizing to promote green and energy efficient building in the District of Columbia. Our immediate project, focusing on our short-term goals, will be the development of new retail and housing developments which will be occupying the land of the Old Convention Center in Downtown Washington (a previous structure, which was demolished when a new convention center was built in another part of the city). Through this project, we will be laying groundwork to achieve our long-term goals.

Our campaign will involve public education and involvement in the new development at the Old Convention Center site as well as working with developers, designers, and ultimately City Council to ensure that any proposals and most importantly, the final approved project are energy efficient and green.

Tactics include:

• Presence at any public hearings on the new project
• Tours of green buildings in the area (some crafted for decision-makers/developers, and some for public audiences with a component like letter-writing included)
• Letter-writing campaigns to decision-makers and developers; letters to the editor and op-eds
• Roundtables with members of the community, environmental groups, developers, and city officials for educational sessions on green building and energy efficiency.
• Film festivals (working in coalition with other environmental groups to show films like Kilowatt Hours) with presentations on the project and opportunities for letter-writing
• Media events at the Old Convention Center site to demonstrate support for or opposition to proposals as they arise.
• Educational events in coordination with local schools, colleges/universities, citizen and neighborhood groups (ANCs – Advisory Neighborhood Commissions; PTAs; business groups) in vicinity of the project, churches.

Primary Targets include:

• Developers who may be creating proposals (to be determined through a series of meetings with local developers)
• Members of city council who will ultimately be approving or denying the project (through only c3 educational tactics).

Secondary Targets include:

• Architects who may be working with developers to create proposals
• Advisory Neighborhood Commissions in the vicinity of the project (these are elected volunteer commissions that advise the City Council).
• Mayor Anthony Williams (and his successor) – while not a decision maker in this instance, he can certainly exert a great deal of influence in the process
• Realtor groups and city housing departments as well as business affiliations – anyone who can speak on behalf of the potential occupants of the site.

Public Audiences include:

• Residents of the Ward and ANC of the site.
• Schools and universities near the site
• Professional and business associations – people who currently work in the vicinity of the site

Potential Alliances:

• Architects, engineers, designers, and developers; American Institute of Architects, US Green Building Council and other industry organizations and associations
• Washington Regional Network for Livable Communities; Coalition for Smarter Growth; Chesapeake Bay Foundation; Friends of the Earth; Natural Resources Defense Council; DC Environmental Network; etc.
• Local chambers of commerce and other business associations
• University/college groups (e.g. undergraduate environmental or community clubs and MBA green student associations); high schools; PTAs
• Unions of workers that might be employed by tenants of the building (e.g. the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees); workers’ rights groups (creating a more positive atmosphere for workers is a big bonus of green building – people actually want to come work in these buildings, and they are healthier for the employees)
• Local church groups and interfaith groups interested in global warming.
• Fair/healthy housing associations and advocates.

Meeting CGC CIC Criteria:

a) Emphasize related highly-ranked issue focus areas from the direction setting process from the conservation approaches.
This project emphasizes components of both the Smart Energy Solutions and the Building Healthy Communities initiatives. We are focusing on promoting green developments that greatly reduce our city’s emissions and energy dependence while building an urban environment that brings people together, keeps people healthy, and improves overall quality of life.

b) Actively engaging multiple sectors of the Club:
The project will be working on the chapter level (which in this case is an entirely urban chapter without groups), but will also be related to regional Metro DC work (one of our definitions of green development is that it is conducive to alternative transit and walking – we will work with our transportation committee and local BEC campaign on this). We will also be coordinating with our regional energy campaign – organized through Glen Besa – largely in terms of sharing information.

c) Be achievable
By focusing on one iconic development as a short-term goal, we will be able to channel all of our energy and resources into achieving this project, enabling us to ensure a win. This is also a great time to be focusing on green building – with energy prices rising, and increasing industry support for energy efficient building techniques, the last step is educating the public and the developers, which is a perfect fit for our grassroots work.

d) Promote environmental justice
Part of our work on this project will be making sure that the development includes low-income housing. Against the backdrop of DC’s housing crunch, we would be pushing not only for affordable housing, but for affordable housing that is healthy.

e) Contribute to the Club’s political power
Since our project will be conducted in the nation’s capital, it puts it in the spotlight and enables it to enhance the Club’s political power – a positive local example of decreasing energy use and emissions while building community is something that national as well as other local efforts can draw on.
Additionally, because of the nature of the project, we will be working with City Council and encouraging attendance at public hearings. This will build our relationship with local decision makers while encouraging our public audiences to become more involved in civic activities – the people we involve in activities like attending planning board, zoning board, or other public hearings will be a major potential source of energy in electoral cycles, and will demonstrate our presence in the community to elected officials.

f) Build the capacities identified as priorities in the direction setting process (seek new allies and build coalitions, create media visibility, bring people together, advocate for solutions, influence voters’ electoral decisions, influence state policy makers, influence local decision makers about specific places)

New Allies: We will seek to get involved with the local business community, churches, developers, real estate brokers, schools, universities/colleges, and fair housing associations/advocates; working with business associations and developers is certainly a non-traditional ally, and incorporating churches, schools, universities/colleges, and fair housing associations/advocates will allow us to become more connected to community constituencies that we may not have been in close contact with before.

Create Media Visibility: We will mount an educational and advocacy grassroots campaign that utilizes media at events we organize as well as at public meetings on the project (working with our current media contacts and developing relationships with new ones) to engage the community at large and convince those who are accountable for the project’s success that this is an important issue that impacts quality of life in the city. This project is something that will be in the public eye regardless of the Club’s involvement in it – and we can harness that publicity to shift the discussion toward creating smart energy solutions in Washington DC through developments like this one.

Bring People Together: This issue is important to several sectors of the city – those who will work and live in and around the new development; those who will be responsible for designing, building, and managing the new development; and decision makers who are responsible for maintaining and improving the quality of life in the city. Because of the nature of the project, it will be an opportunity to bring together the environmental community with neighborhood associations around the proposed project, industry and business, as well as those working to ensure fair and healthy housing in the District. The proposed development is something that is innately relevant to the neighborhood community in its vicinity, and is by extension relevant to the city as a whole – by working on this project, the chapter will be able to strengthen its own ties with the neighborhood community and help move dialogue toward our vision for our community.

Influence voters’ electoral decisions: While this is not an electoral campaign, and we will not be working with c4 funding or conducting any c4 activities, our work will include educational work with elected officials; by including the public in the project, their opinion of their elected officials will be impacted by the decisions that those officials make in approving or denying a final proposal (though we will not be running a campaign with a targeted political “ask”). By including the public, and making them feel that they have a stake in this process, their votes may also be indirectly influenced. Add to this the fact that 2006 is an electoral year in DC, and that Mayoral and Council candidates may take positions on this issue, then there is some potential for the project to have an impact beyond its c3 educational work.

Influence state policy makers: It is our goal to help both the public and policy makers see the connection between smart energy solutions for model development projects in the District (beginning with the Old Convention Center site) and the implementation of a comprehensive plan for the city to help cut emissions and reduce energy use.
Influence local decision makers about specific places: In an urban chapter, the word “places” takes on a different meaning – rather than talking about protecting wild places specifically, we talk about urban development that will protect our health and quality of life, while decreasing our need for resources from wild places. This project is working to promote exactly that kind of positive urban development.

g) Attract funding
This project has the potential to attract corporate funding as a showcase for green construction and design firms, as well as the possibility of luring contributions from city, state, and Federal energy agencies (e.g., community grants) and from other environmental funders.
Further, building success stories like our initial short-term project for the site of the Old Convention Center increases the Club’s attractiveness to potential funders. Success in our short-term goals will provide a story that can be used in DC to attract external funding for the program into the long-term, as well as in other cities looking to begin programs like ours and on a national level.

h) Build public sentiment for conservation issues
One of the largest parts of this project is public education and involvement. It will provide the public with a Smart Energy Solution that alleviates climate change through local development while building neighborhoods and improving residents’ and workers’ quality of life. This will be one project where we address climate change in a positive manner, and stress community development and quality of life as being connected to smart energy solutions. When the public hears our positive message, and sees the project work because of their involvement, they will be that much more open to other conservation issues.

i) Create synergy among conservation initiatives
As has been evident throughout this application, there is a lot of common ground in this project between the Smart Energy Solutions initiative and the Building Healthy Communities initiative. In essence, this project is both a “smart energy solution” and a step toward “building healthy communities.” While we did decide to apply to the Smart Energy Solutions committee, we believe the difficulty of separating the two initiatives from each other in our project is one of the project’s greatest strengths.

11) What is the duration of your proposed project? Note that projects will vary from short-term tactical actions with others planned for longer than two years. No project will be guaranteed funding for longer than 2 years; this default sunsetting forces a review of current salience and performance. New projects may be initiated at any time during the year.

We would like to request funding through the end of 2006, at which point we will review the progress it has made in terms of short and long term goals and readjust our plan and funding requests as needed, and pursue external funding sources.

Bob Morris Takes on COP 11 (edition 4)

Bob COP 11 Dispatch #4 (Final)
Bob Morris, Montreal, Dec. 6, 2005

Sunday the hall was closed, but that doesn’t mean there was a break in the action. Climate Action Network (CAN), which is the alliance within which many, most or all of the world’s environmental non governmental organizations (ENGO’s) are working, had a planning meeting at the National Library that lasted long after closing (and my dinner) time. Mostly focused on 3.9 and Articles 9 and 10…oh, sorry, you don’t speak COP/MOP.

The main points we are going to continue to press are:

1. We want Kyoto Protocol with hard emission reduction targets extended past 2012 and expanded in terms of both provisions and participants.

2. We want clean development mechanisms (CDM’s) funded and extended beyond 2012 under Kyoto.

3. U. S. government is trying to kill Kyoto and they aren’t going to change their tune for at least three years. That is because they don’t want to have mandatory reductions in emissions until the oil companies have drained every possible ounce of profit.

4. We don’t want the rest of the world to be held hostage to the U. S. government pursuit of a fossil fuel friendly agenda.

On Monday I attended the presentation by the United Nations Environmental Programme Finance Initiative Climate Change Working Group (UNEP FI CCWG, I’m not kidding). This very accomplished panel comprised leading experts on international trade, economics, financial markets, banking and insurance industries who reported their findings on future costs, risks and opportunities of climate change, with recommendations for policy decisions under COP and COP/MOP.

(Clarification: The COP track refers to policies under the Council of Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 160 signatories (give or take) including the U. S. and all are committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions but not to establishing and meeting binding targets or mandatory clean development mechanisms. The COP/MOP track refers to the Meeting of Parties to the Kyoto Protocol, negotiated under COP in 1997. 150 (or so) countries (not including the U. S.) have ratified this treaty, meaning the U. S. cannot participate in decision making or carbon market trading in the COP/MOP track. For those of us not making a life’s work of diplomatic esoterica, “Kyoto” and “COP/MOP track can be used interchangeably. All carbon market trading is done under Kyoto because trading requires binding emission levels.

Anyway, these UN financial wizards surveyed the top international financial trading, banking and insurance corporations and presented their findings to a packed room of very well dressed financial reporters, governmental representatives, business non governmental organizations (BINGO’s, I swear I’m not kidding), corporate observers and your humble ENGO. Astonishingly, sum of their recommendations was both in accord with the joint positions of CAN (remember, that’s us ENGO’s), but with real teeth. As an example, they called for strong governmental support of clean (non carbon emitting) energy sources and phasing out “conflicting” and “inconsistent” support of fossil fuels!!! When they were weakly challenged by a BINGO carbon apologist about the “uncertainty” and “risk” of moving to a clean energy economy, they roundly thrashed her by citing the much greater costs, risks and economic uncertainty of unabated emissions leading to catastrophic climate impacts as well as the missed opportunities for those countries (read U. S. and Australia here) who fail to provide for a rapid and well managed transition. In contrast, when I asked them if they had factored into their risk analysis the prospects of carbon emitters and facilitating governmental agencies being sued for the harm they have caused the health of people, economies and the biosphere, using the suits against the American tobacco companies as an analogy, the panel engaged in an excited discussion of the certainty of both private and public suits occurring on the basis of not only harm to the environment but also (and this seemed most alarming to the assembly) fiduciary negligence (i.e. shareholder and lender suits).

Later points, some of which I am not sure I understood, were introduced with “as noted by Mr. Bob from Sierra, U. S.”, and I even got passed a note by someone in the crowd. I felt like a pretty girl in a cowboy bar.

There are points that we will find objectionable in the CEO Briefing on the Future of Climate Policy, most notably their inclusion of “clean coal” and nuclear (despite the prohibitive cost) in a clean energy menu, but I think those can be dealt with later through aggressive carbon valuation and cost/benefit comparisons with energy efficiency, solar, wind and geothermal investments. In short, the U. S. government position does not represent the business community, except for the worst of the multinational oil corporations.

After the Financial Markets meeting I stopped at the in-house café for my afternoon latte. I became acquainted with two delegates from Angola, one of whom said, “Oh yes! I know Sierra Club. You helped me when I was in Washington to testify.” We then talked about the need to move forward with clean development mechanisms (CDM’s) after 2012 so they could get funding commitments from the developed countries and financial institutions. I think this makes me a lobbyist, since they were signaling a position different from their bloc, called “the G77 and China” and taking one favorable to our CAN position.

I left my Angolan friends to go to the Youth Caucus. I had been invited by some youth activists when I was discussing with them the need for some dramatic public action that demonstrated the point that the U. S. government position did not represent the interests of the American people or the desires of informed U. S. citizens. I had found my contemporaries uncomfortable about participating in actions sufficiently visual and dramatic to get major market media penetration, but I hoped the youth would be interested. The Caucus was well run, energetic, informed and collegial, with the only problem being that they are so smart and excited and have so much to say that they talk really fast and have to constantly remind each other to slow down so non native English speakers can keep up. They welcomed me despite my obvious lack of qualifications (i.e. youth) to be there and I got to talk with a few who agreed on the need and would pursue the idea.

I left the future, appropriately, in the youths’ capable hands to go to yet another meeting, this one a 30 minute briefing for U. S. ENGO’s by the U. S. negotiating team. The head negotiator, Mr. Harlen Watson, obviously didn’t want to actually brief us on the U. S. negotiating position, which we all knew was to wreck Kyoto, block any targets for emission reduction and delay any actions that would move money away from concentrated fossil fuel industries and towards more dispersed clean energy initiatives. He therefore just opened the panel to questions. Apparently at a planning meeting I had missed it was determined that the CAN chair would work through a pre selected panel of questioners, a reasonable strategy. While our execution of the questioning turned out to be somewhat disappointing, the performance of Mr. Watson and his three sycophants was infuriating.

Our panel of questioners turned out to be more preachers than prosecutors, not an uncommon fault among we who would save the world. When we did get in some substantive questions, however, Mr. Watson revealed that his position was that “there is currently no level of carbon saturation in the atmosphere that they would consider a problem” because “a lot more research needs to be done”. He further stated that there is “no clear evidence” that heightened carbon levels cause any extreme climate events,” again citing the need for more scientific study. Unfortunately we didn’t follow up by asking him why the NOAA budget to conduct those studies was drastically cut just two weeks previously. Mr. Watson also said that it wasn’t a problem that U. S. businesses couldn’t engage in the growing carbon trading markets because those businesses that “have subsidiaries overseas can participate,” a position that encourages U. S. businesses to move overseas.

This was the end of my short but busy week in Montreal. I leave with great respect for our friends in Sierra Club of Canada. They are organized, dedicated, and tenacious and they were gracious and helpful to me. I was similarly impressed with the Youth Caucus, which included numerous Sierra Student Coalition members from the U. S. Fred Hiatt is a wise and experienced mentor and would make an excellent chief negotiator for a future U. S. delegation.

The main lesson that I took from this is that Sierra Club is right on target with our new priority goal of building a new energy economy based on clean power and climate protection. The one factor that the world is counting on is for us to build a grassroots movement that will require the U. S. to become a leader in achieving this goal rather than an obstacle. I recommend we budget and raise funds to participate in future COP’s (including next year in Nairobi) and amplify our role representing U. S. grassroots. I also would recommend we acknowledge the complexity, importance and promise of the year round COP and COP/MOP processes, and their convergence with our stated top priority, by having one full time staff person dedicated and permanently assigned to enable, organize and amplify volunteer participation.

Bob Morris Takes on COP 11 (edition 3)

Bob COP 11 Dispatch No. 3
Bob Morris, Montreal, Dec. 3, 2005


Last night was the first chance I had to attend the Sierra Club Canada, Sierra Club U. S. organizational meeting. It was both interesting and enlightening, but first I want to cover what has happened today.

I struck up a conversation with the man from National Oceanic and Atmosperic Administration (I’m not sure about that title, but anyway, he was from NOAA, the weather people). He started to give party line answers about more research needs to be done and areas of uncertainty, but I don’t think his heart was in it because when I asked what research they were doint to resolve their uncertainty he told me that was a big problem because they just got their budget two weeks ago and they took big cuts.

We agreed that this was a bad time to be cutting funding on climate research, when another man came up and my new friend from NOAA introduced me to Trey Trigg, a member of the U. S. climate change negotiating team. We quickly established that Trey, who was also a member of the U. S. team at Kyoto, could easily out acronym me. As I querried him regarding the distance between the U. S. position on climate change and the rest of the world’s, he tossed me the old line that the rest of the world and the science were just too far ahead of the American people for the government to take a stronger position and that the American people weren’t ready to cut emissions by 36% in eight years (his claim of what Kyoto would require). He was nonplussed when instead of disagreeing with him I said that Sierra Club was ready to help him remedy that problem by building grassroots support for a new energy economy based on clean power and climate protection. We parted as possible allies, with me encouraging him to think about how we could work together on our common goal, because Mother Nature doesn’t care about politics and we needed to get emission reductions going soon.

Next was the big march of at least 100,000 (my guesstimate) people calling for action beyond Kyoto from the rest of the world and admonishing the U. S. delegation to get out of the way of progress. Very orderly, icy cold and windy; I handed out flyers along the march but skipped the speeches at the end in deference to my cold. I came inside for my Dayquil, latte and to write this report. (Note : Canadians are very polite and nice about taking a proferred flyer on the street compared to people in D. C. and none of the flyers seemed to end up on the ground.

Now back to last night’s SCC and SCUS organizational meeting : those Canadians are all over this stuff! Three of Canada’s 16 voting delegates are SCC members. Elizabeth May and her team of extraordinarily sharp, mostly young volunteers have been working on this since Kyoto and are acknowledged by the Canadian Forign Minister (who is President of this whole conference and with whom they met and had substantive discussions yesterday) to be more knowlegeable than the Canadian government. They can acronym right up there with Trdy Trigg and are an active part of forming the Canadian positions on 3.9 and, article 10 (the new one) and other madly obscure but highly important negotiating points. Fred Huett is providing them with wise counsel regarding the need to not count on the U. S. to bow to reason or world opinion and alter their carbon-industry-profit centric position.

The common thread I perceive in all this is that grassroots support in the U. S. is the only force that can generate the needed rapid, orderly movement to a new energy economy based on clean power and climate protection.

Bob Morris Takes On COP 11 (edition 2)

Bob COP 11 Dispatch No. 2
Bob Morris, Montreal, Dec. 3, 2005

Maybe it was the nasty cold that has been gaining ground, or the rain/sleet/snow, or the legion of security officers looking every inch lie the Secret Service people I left behind in D. C., or my problems as a first time user of a French keyboard on an antiquated Apple computer to send out my first dispatch. Whatever the reason by 2:00 PM I was pretty much ready to say that my presence here was not going to be productive and I ought to cut my trip short. I poked my head in a couple of side bar meetings on energy efficiency and a Mexican pilot voluntary emissions reduction program, but I didn’t learn anything that will help Sierra Club enlist humanity or convince our government to make America a world leader in building a new energy economy based on clean power and climate protection.

So I bought some Dayquil, stopped for a latte and thought about Cesar Chavez. Then I went back into the hall and introduced myself to different people (who weren’t busy on cell phones), asked them what they were trying to accomplish here and discussed how we could help each other. Here is what I got:

(First a diversion. Why do people pay a fortune to come to something like this and then spend all their time on cell phones talking with the people who they see every day and who didn’t make the trip? I saw the same thing in my business career: people would drive to get someplace and see a branch of their business and then spend most of the time on the phone talking with their home office, ignoring the real people right in front of them that they traveled to see. Hello! This is not a productive use of time or money.)

Back to reporting. There is a big push for nuclear energy to be revived as a clean, green option. The young, attractive professionals from the unfortunately named Envi Rad Consulting Services tried to convince me that they had solved the operational safety and transport problems by telling me that the people responsible for doing these jobs said that there had been no leakages…well, except for Chernobyl. “The French,” they proudly announced, “are now recycling their waste so there is no more storage problem either.” They were a little short on facts and details as I asked questions and admitted that maybe they were a little naïve when they stated that if there had been problems the responsible authorities would have reported them, but insisted they just needed to work on their “communications skills” and they had the hard science in hand. The irony of having heard the same refrain among fellow Global Warming activists didn’t make their assertion any less scary.

Next I talked to the French guys who had a booth touting their Climate Change initiatives. They confirmed that they had an active recycling program for nuclear waste, but the recovery wasn’t 100% and they couldn’t give me any estimate of how much waste remained after the recycling process. Someone else gave me a flyer saying Dr. Patrick Moore, “co-founder of Greenpeace” was going to give a pro-nuclear talk on Monday. That makes three co-founders of Greenpeace that I have heard about.

I got some good data showing that the external costs of cars in Europe per 1000 passenger kilometers are 76 euro, air is 52.5, bus is 37.7 and rail is 22.9. External costs include accidents, air pollution, up and down stream processes, climate change, noise, nature and landscapes and urban effects. I think you can get the details at WWW.INFRAS.CH.

Ms. Peace at Pew Center for Global Climate Change said we should contact the Pew Trust to help fund our grassroots program to enlist humanity in building a new energy future based on clean power and climate protection. As soon as we get a good plan together I think we should do that. A very pleasant gentleman from Belize with Mainstream Adaptation to Climate Change advised that we form a speakers bureau of the leaders of government, industry and non profits who have led successful initiative to reduce carbon emissions, giving emphasis to progress that is being made. He suggested Ms. Peace from Pew as a candidate.

The man at Sweden’s booth and I talked about the possibility of Sweden and Sierra Club working together to persuade our U. S. government to take a pro-active stance on climate change instead of being an obstacle to progress. We didn’t come up with any concrete ideas, but said we would circulate the idea. I also talked with people from non-profits who were eager to explain very esoteric models of things like “convergence and contraction”, but the more questions I asked the more confused we both got and they usually said that the “real expert” would be there at some future time.

I’ll have to think some more about whether I should stay the week I planned or cut it short. It won’ surprise those who know me that I am impatient with our inability to get the attention of our U. S. delegation. I think we should get a couple of dozen U. S. activists together and stand near where ever the delegation is located, wearing plain paper bags over our heads and holding signs that say, “Proud U. S. citizen ashamed of my government’s position on climate change.” That would get their attention!

Bob Morris Takes On COP 11 (edition 1)

Bob’s COP 11 Dispatch No. 1
Montreal, Dec. 1, 2005-12-02

From the northbound Adirondaker I looked across the broad, charging current of the Hudson to the low hardwood covered banks of the Palisades. The thick forest continued up the steep rock littered slopes at the base of the high cliffs before giving way to the sheer curtain of rock. The forest reappeared on the level cliff top like a hardwood sauce on a giant granite shortcake. Perhaps because of the unusually warm fall we have had, I caught occasional glimpses of the last bright yellows of fall here and there among the otherwise dun winter hue of dead leaves and bare trees this first day of December.

I was on my way to the laboriously named but lightly abbreviated Eleventh Council of Parties to the United Nations Framework Conference on Climate Change (COP 11), so it was natural to muse on the impacts of climate disruption on those hardwoods. Because of the precipitous increase of carbon in the atmosphere due to burning prodigious quantities of gas, coal and oil over the past 160 years the delicate balance that has kept the biosphere stable has been upset. The climate has been pushed by that disruption into an increasing rapid rate of change, including short term extreme weather events and long term alteration of ocean currents, drought and flood cycles, duration and character of seasons. Changes that would otherwise occur over tens and even hundreds of thousands of years are being compressed into centuries and even decades.

Hardwoods don’t adapt all that quickly. As the band of cool, temperate weather with distinct seasons that supports them moves further north, the hardwoods are stuck in place by their long life cycles and slow growth patterns. The beetles and other insects that feed on the bark and trunks of the hardwoods have shorter life cycles and adapt quickly and well to warming temperatures and longer summers. They multiply, overwhelming the relatively static hardwood population. Southern species of pine also have shorter life cycles and adapt well to warmtnh, so they march up eastern North America far more rapidly than the hardwoods, overtaking and displacing them.

How long before we no longer enjoy the colorful and evocative annual cycles of the hardwood forests along the Hudson River and surrounding states? Already there is a noticeable decline in the maples that give autumn its bright reds. Every gallon of gas and shovelful of coal we burn gives another little push to accelerate these changes. On the other hand we can slow and even limit those changes with every gallon of gas and shovelful of coal that we prevent from burning by increasing the energy efficiency of our buildings, stretching the mileage of our cars, developing solar and wind power capacity, using trains or trolleys or bikes or walking instead of driving.

That is the message I am taking to Montreal and hoping to help spread among the decision makers at COP 11. The biggest obstacle to getting these decision makers to make firm plans that will protect our climate and save the hardwoods is the U. S. government. Our government’s plan is to just ask the carbon based industries and other s to develop new technologies and voluntarily “do the right thing” as long as it doesn’t hurt corporate profits. No one actually believes this will happen, but it serves the corporate agenda well by delaying any changes that will reduce the use of gas, coal and oil.

I don’t know how to get my message to the COP 11 decision makers, since I have never been to a conference of this sort. I will do my best to be heard, and you can help. If you will try to get decision makers at home, in schools, in businesses and in government to recognize the need to move to a new energy economy based on clean power and climate protection, then that will increase the chances that those of us in Montreal will be heard. The hardwoods can’t speak for themselves.

Mission Statement

I figure that I should post the mission statement and goals that I introduced yesterday evening. If you have any suggestions, questions or if you wish to see something added or removed from the statements, please feel free to contact me with your input. I hope all is well!!

Our Mission: The Sierra Club's message should be: to promote an energy efficient, low environmental impact design plan for the New City Project which incorporates the elements of renewable energy, green spaces, green rooftops, low impact development standards to minimize or prevent the runoff of greywater or polluted rain water especially in the form of rain gardens, permeable pavement for parking lots and streets, tree-lined streets to enhance the beauty of the neighborhood, promote biodiversity and to increase the amount of pollinators, Energy Star rated designs and equipment, recycled building materials, energy efficient heating and cooling systems, and finally, to promote car-sharing and the use of bicycles.

Our Goal: Is to approach the development of the New City Project as an opportunity to advance the cause of implementing "green building" and urban planning designs that utilize the least amount of energy, provide cost-savings for energy consumers and have the lowest impact on the natural environment. With this in mind, our goal is also to assert the importance of creating sustainable, cost-effective and environmentally friendly "green building" and urban designs which can serve as an example for future building and urban planning projects in Washington DC and throughout the country.

~David Kessler

Brand new E-CAT blog!

Hey E-CATs!

After our meeting last night, everyone seemed psyched about setting up a blog that we could use to communicate among ourselves. Please feel free to post to the blog anytime!

Thanks!
Joanna