Relevance of Climate Change to Transportation Information Resources to Support Climate Change Initiatives: Experience of a State DOT Leni Oman Director, Office of Research and Library Services TRB Environmental Committees 2008 Joint Summer Meeting Denver, Colorado July 29, 2008 1
What is Climate Change? Long-term changes in climate, including average temperature (up or down) and precipitation. Potential Climate Change Impacts in Washington State We need to expect the unexpected Wind and other storm events More severe flooding Higher ocean temperatures Summer heat waves Source: Washington State Dept. of Ecology 2
Transportation accounts for 47% of greenhouse gases in Washington 2005 Source: Leading the Way on Climate Change: the Challenge of Our Time, February 2008, Washington State Dept. of Ecology Publication #08-01-008 3
Western Regional Climate Action Initiative (WCI) Governors of Washington, Oregon, California, Arizona, and New Mexico formed the Initiative to develop regional strategies addressing climate change in February 2007 Montana, Utah, British Columbia, and Manitoba have since joined as partners 6 US states, 6 Mexican states and 3 Canadian provinces are official observers Partner Observer 4
Governor s Climate Change Challenge Executive Order 07-02 (2007) Reduce emissions Adapt to change Support our economy Climate Advisory Team (CAT) Governor-appointed committee co-lead by Ecology and Community Trade and Economic Development 5
Legislative highlights 2007 Senate Bill 6001 Target reduction of Washington s greenhouse gas emissions to: 1990 levels by 2020 25% below 1990 levels by 2035 50% below 1990 levels by 2050 State s baseline = 94.6 million metric tons CO2 equivalent 6
Legislative highlights cont d 2008 House Bill 2815 State to reduce per person VMT (for vehicles under 10,000 lbs) 18% by 2020 30% by 2035 50% by 2050 Reporting required starting in 2010 Large greenhouse gases emitters will start reporting industrial sites with emissions exceeding 10,000 metric tons Large motor vehicle fleet operators with emissions exceeding 2,500 metric tons 150-200 of state s largest vehicle fleets will need to report (trucking, delivery, rental cars) Green Economy Jobs Growth Initiative Target of 25,000 green jobs by 2020 7
Legislative highlights cont d 2008 Senate Bill 6580 affecting transportation planning & GMA Links greenhouse gas emissions with transportation and local land use actions Report by December 2008 Methods and tools by December 2009 How much GHG can be reduced by certain local actions? How can locals reduce VMT? 8
Climate Action Team to deliver By December 1, 2008 Comprehensive plan to achieve statutory greenhouse gas emission limits Track and report on progress towards meeting emission reductions Recommend additional strategies if limits not being met Final recommendations of the Climate Action Team Most promising strategies Recommendations to reduce emissions per distance traveled Tools and best practices to achieve reductions in annual per capita vehicle miles traveled 9
Transportation Implementation Work Group Group to develop, review, and prioritize strategies and measurement tools for reducing Vehicle Miles Traveled Statewide representatives from: transportation planning organizations transit association Business and auto industry state agencies and local government environmental groups 10
Strategies to address Climate Change Transportation working group recommended 13 areas of focus for Washington. 5% Highlights include: Analyze greenhouse gas emissions and mitigation options early in Bottlenecks decision-making, planning 40% processes, and development projects Build and continue Traffic Incidents to redesign communities that offer real and reliable 25% alternatives to single occupancy vehicles Ensure Washington has vehicles that are as efficient as possible and use non-carbon or lower carbon intensity fuels developed sustainably from regional resources Invest in Washington's existing transportation infrastructure to move people and goods cleanly and efficiently 11
SEPA Implementation Work Group Clarify how, where, when to address climate change in state and local environmental review process (SEPA). Develop guidance, amend state rules. Statewide representatives from: state agencies (including WSDOT) local government transportation planning organizations environmental groups 12
SEPA working group to deliver: Recommendations for: Policy direction SEPA forms, rules, and language Making other improvements for using SEPA as a tool for reducing greenhouse gas emissions Measuring and disclosing impacts Mitigating and adapting Leveraging SEPA to encourage climate friendly development 13
Land Use and Climate Change Committee Develop actions counties and cities are taking to address climate change Compact development Increased density/infill Jobs/housing balance Affordable housing in high density areas Green building Identify and evaluate existing and potential computer modeling and analytic tools for counties and cities Analyze impacts of addressing climate change at the local level Assessment of resources needed to implement recommendations 14
State Organization for Climate Change 15
Legislature Governor Western Climate Initiative Secretary of Transportation Climate Action Team WSDOT Executive Advisory Team Director of Public Transportation WSDOT Climate Change Team Transportation (K. Taylor) SEPA (M. White) GMA (B. Smith) Implementation Work Groups State/Regional Agencies WSDOT Climate Change Flow Chart WSDOT Climate Change Technical Advisory Team Transportation Partners 16
WSDOT s approach to Climate Change 5% WSDOT is addressing Climate Change through effective, measurable and balanced emission reduction strategies: Bottlenecks 40% Traffic Incidents 1. Measurable, based in science 25% 2. Balanced approach, looking at a range of strategies. 3. Strategic, identifying and applying different strategies based on region and access, not one size fits all 17
Moving Washington WSDOT s three-part strategy to address congestion Managing Demand Providing people choices CTR, vanpools, transit, travel information Operating Efficiently Getting the most out of our infrastructure Ramp meters, HOV lanes, Incident Response Adding Capacity Strategically Improving congestion and safety by increasing highway capacity to relieve chokepoints. 18
DOT Adaptation to Climate Change Global and regional climate is already changing, and changes are expected to continue and accelerate in the coming decades. Sea levels are expected to rise. Build to withstand hot summers, wind and other severe storm events including flooding Awareness of adaptation needs will result in short-term retrofit actions and better long-term decisions freight and Passenger Rail lines run near water in many areas bridge heights may not be adequate bridges may be scoured from flood events roadways may be prone to repeat flooding future infrastructure -- is it in the right place? Source: Climate Impacts Group, University of Washington 19
Climate Change Information Resources National Transportation Library Climate Change web resource: http://climate.dot.gov TRB Special Report 290 The Potential Impacts of Climate Change on U.S. Transportation 2008 Impacts of Climate Change and Variability on Transportation Systems and Infrastructure: Gulf Coast Study, Phase I US Climate Change Science Program, 2008 Transportation Strategies to Mitigate Climate Change, Leadership and Management in Engineering, July 2008 Primer on Transportation and Climate Change, AASHTO, April 2008 Wisconsin DOT Transportation Synthesis Report Transportation and Global Warming Green Roads a LEEDS like certification program in development Research in Progress for ongoing transportation research Podcasts: Lexis Nexis Environmental Law & Climate Change Center Living on Earth NPR: Climate Connections Many more. 20
Washington Information Resources Washington Climate Advisory Team web site: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/2008cat_overview.htm Washington Department of Ecology web site: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/index.htm WSDOT Climate Change web site: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/environment/climatechange/ Transportation Implementation Working Group http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/2008cat_iwg_tran.htm 21
Questions or comments? Leni Oman Director, WSDOT Office of Research & Library Services OmanL@wsdot.wa.gov, (360) 705-7974 Katy Taylor Director, WSDOT Public Transportation Division taylork@wsdot.wa.gov, (360) 705-7920 Anne Criss WSDOT Climate Change Program Lead crissa@wsdot.wa.gov, (360) 705-7909 22
Climate Change Reports and Resources July 2008 Quick Reference Guide This is not a comprehensive list of resources but does identify reports, websites, and podcasts that provide some basic information on climate change and transportation. General Climate Change and Transportation Resources National Transportation Library Climate Change web resource: http://climate.dot.gov TRB Special Report 290 The Potential Impacts of Climate Change on U.S. Transportation 2008 Impacts of Climate Change and Variability on Transportation Systems and Infrastructure: Gulf Coast Study, Phase I US Climate Change Science Program, 2008 Transportation Strategies to Mitigate Climate Change, Leadership and Management in Engineering, July 2008 Primer on Transportation and Climate Change, AASHTO, April 2008 Wisconsin DOT Transportation Synthesis Report Transportation and Global Warming Green Roads a LEEDS like certification program in development Research in Progress for ongoing transportation research Washington Climate Change Websites Washington Climate Advisory Team web site: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/2008cat_overview.htm Washington Department of Ecology web site: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/index.htm WSDOT Climate Change web site: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/environment/climatechange/ Transportation Implementation Working Group http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/2008cat_iwg_tran.htm General Climate Change Resources Pew Center on Global Climate Change Podcasts: Lexis Nexis Environmental Law & Climate Change Center Living on Earth NPR: Climate Connections Many more. Prepared by Leni Oman July 23, 2008 For the TRB Mid-Year Meeting in Denver, CO