ENERGY CONSERVATION EFFORTS, SOUTH BAY ENERGY SUMMIT, AND LONG TERM ENERGY OPTIONS.

 

Recommendation:

That the City Council review and discuss energy related issues and provide direction to staff.

Background:

This report has been prepared as a result of City Council direction at the 1/23/01 meeting as a result of a request from Mayor Bowler. The energy crisis will seemingly be with us for sometime. The most urgent action that the city, residents and businesses can take is to reduce electricity usage as much as possible. The Governor has requested that cities reduce their electricity usage by 10% for all of 2001. A copy of the Governor’s letter is attached. This reduction is also being requested on all segments of the economy including businesses, schools, etc.. The state will provide a detailed reduction goal shortly that will include penalties for users that do not meet the required reductions.

City staff has taken steps to reduce usage by making sure that lights are turned off in unused rooms and turning computers, printers, etc. off when not in use. In addition, we will take advantage of the new state energy audit program and have all of City facilities audited. Hopefully, these efforts will allow the City to meet the 10% reduction target.

Other areas that staff will be evaluating include outside lighting in parks and parking lots to determine whether on not we can reduce usage by reducing the number of lights on during the evening hours. In addition, staff will look at whether or not the number of streetlights on can be reduced. A number of cities are turning off every other streetlight.

Once this effort is completed staff will report back to the City Council on the exact savings that can be achieved and make sure that the reductions do not have an impact on public safety.

South Bay Energy Summit

Mayor Bowler and Councilmember Dunbabin have been working with other South Bay Mayors and Councilmembers to organize the South Bay Energy Summit meeting on Friday, February 23, 2001, at the Redondo Beach Performing Arts Center. This will be an opportunity for residents and the business community to discuss the issue with representatives from the energy industry, state government and Mayors and Councilmembers for the 15 South Bay Cities. Topics of discussion will include exploring possible options for securing a reliable source of electricity as a group.

Long Term Options

The concept of a city or group of cities forming their own municipal utility has gained a great deal of interest. This would take some time to set up and implement but may be worth looking into given the success that some local cities have had operating their own electricity utility. The American Public Power Association is holding a conference on this subject in April in Sacramento and this would be a good opportunity to get an overview of the potential for forming a municipal utility as a district that could include many cities.

The most immediate long-term impact will be higher rates for the City. The cost of streetlights, park safety lighting, recreational lighting, and city facilities will all increase until the power market is settled. This will have some budget impact although it is too soon to tell how much. It is one of the factors that staff will have to consider when developing the budget.

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