Powerdown Project – Executive Summary

With the onset of $3.00 a gallon gasoline prices and record-breaking oil profits, the fact that our nation is “addicted to oil” has become apparent to most Americans. A recent editorial in The Nation states, “The first step toward curing America’s addiction to oil is to admit that the problem is much worse than gas prices. We face a long-term energy and environmental crisis, and to address it we need reality-based leadership that will map a clear route to sustainable energy independence and a non-polluting future. ”

A 2005 U.S. Government-commissioned report, “Peaking of World Oil Production: Impacts, Mitigation, and Risk Management,” begins this way:

The peaking of world oil production presents the U.S. and the world with an unprecedented risk management problem. As peaking is approached, liquid fuel prices and price volatility will increase dramatically, and, without timely mitigation, the economic, social, and political cost will be unprecedented. Viable mitigation options exist on both the supply and demand sides, but to have a substantial impact, they must be initiated more than a decade in advance of peaking.

It is not only peak oil that we grapple with. According to Richard Heinberg, recognized internationally as one of the foremost educators on the economic realities and implications of our dependence on fossil fuels and the originator of the Powerdown Project, “America faces a double-barreled energy crisis — Peak Oil and Peak Natural Gas. As if that weren’t enough, California faces a renewed electricity crisis this year or next. Energy conservation is no longer optional, or, as our Vice-President has said, merely a sign of personal ethical behavior. It is quickly becoming a matter of economic survival —for individuals, families, municipalities and nations.”

Global climate change further complicates matters. “We have increased the temperature one degree so far,” says environmental writer Bill McKibben, “but the computer modeling is very clear, that unless we do dramatic things to decrease fossil fuels in really profound ways, then we are looking at temperature increases of four or five more degrees this century. Take this kind of chaotic disruptions we are beginning to see and multiply them by four or five times and maybe more. These are by no means the worst-case scenarios.”

Whether you believe that peak oil or climate change is the worse problem, the source of both is the same: fossil fuels. Both problems must be dealt with, and both have similar solutions.

In Sonoma County, all nine cities and the county have signed a commitment to reduce greenhouse gases from the 1990 level by 25 percent by 2015. Now, as the peaking of world oil production approaches, it is time also to address our communities’ vulnerability to fuel shortages. This is a real threat, and one that is time sensitive; it is the responsibility of our civic leaders to respond.

The Powerdown Project emerged out of this sense of urgency and Heinberg’s desire to have his New College (North Bay campus, Santa Rosa) students engage in relevant local work related to peak oil. In September 2005, Heinberg and his students were offered the opportunity to work with civic leaders in Sebastopol to formulate a local plan for energy transition in response to peak oil. Students researched vulnerabilities in the areas of water, sewage treatment, transportation, food security, police, fire, and emergency services with increasing costs for electricity, natural gas, and oil, and interruptions to supply.

The group presented its findings in a report to Sebastopol. Through feedback and additional discussions with local municipal leaders, project members decided to create a template to assist other municipalities to identify energy vulnerabilities and strategies for energy reduction.

Part one of the municipality template consists of an examination of services that municipalities provide to the community. The report is broken down into five sections: Water and Sewage, Police, Fire and Emergency and Trash. We have included Transportation, and Food Security in this segment. We consider them to be community issues but of vital importance to the municipality.

Each section provides an introduction to the topic and examines the possible effects of peak oil. The template also contains questions for municipal leaders to ask regarding the service and possible disruption or decline in energy sources. Short and long term suggestions for conservation and energy reduction are provided, as well as references, resources, and a guide to renewable energy sources. The second part of the template will include: Planning and Zoning, Parks and Recreation, Disaster Relief/Preparedness, and implications for Sales Tax revenues.

Working at the municipal level is crucial for the continued delivery of our essential services, many of which require extensive amounts of energy. Our template offers a starting point for the examination of where energy is used and short and long-term suggestions for reduction of energy use.

Cities in the near future will most likely need to provide municipal services during short- and long-term interruptions of power. By assessing their energy vulnerabilities, they will be able to determine the steps necessary to provide alternative energy sources and redesign of the city operations to decrease dependence on fossil fuels.

Many cities and counties, as well as several nations, have responded to global climate change, the peak oil challenge, or both with bold plans for reducing petroleum consumption and developing alternative energy sources. San Francisco, California, Franklin, New York, Bloomington, Indiana,and Portland, Oregon have passed Peak Oil Resolutions. The San Francisco Peak Oil Resolution “acknowledges the threats posed by peak oil and urges the city to develop a comprehensive plan to respond to the emerging energy crunch.”

Denver, Colorado is changing its land use policy to promote high-density zoning areas in conjunction with the newly voter-approved transit system. Focusing their efforts on transportation, they have reduced the city vehicle fleet, and have purchased hybrid and bio-fueled vehicles.

Sebastopol, California has taken the effort one step further through the formation of an Ad-Hoc Citizen’s Advisory Group on Energy Vulnerability. Its task is to make “analyses and recommendations regarding policies and practices to enable the city to continue to fulfill its primary mission (providing for the public safety, maintaining public facilities and streets, supplying water and sewer services and regulating land use) in the event of future energy interruptions and significant price increases.” Portland, Oregon has a Peak Oil Task Force and a 96 page Peak Oil Task Briefing Book was prepared by the City of Portland.

Kinsale, Ireland was one of the first towns to come up with a comprehensive relocalization plan, “The Kinsale Energy Descent Energy Action Plan.” It’s a 25-year plan of action that was adopted by the Kinsale Town Council in December 2005. The main goals of relocalization are to increase community energy security, strengthen local economies, and dramatically improve environmental condition and social equity.

The Powerdown Project researches what steps cities, counties and countries are taking towards addressing this important issue and makes this information available to interested jurisdictions.

The Powerdown Project is a New College undergraduate student program that became an initiative of Post Carbon Institute (www.postcarbon.org) in January 2006. We consider the template to be a work in progress and welcome feedback and suggestions and are committed to its continual updating.

For further information, please visit our website at www.powerdownproject.org.