HomeMy Public PortalAboutClimate Mitigation Summary Paper
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BREWSTER VISION PLAN COMMITTEE
SUMMARY PAPER
CLIMATE MITIGATION AND ADAPTATION
July 2022
I. BACKGROUND
As noted in the Executive Summary of the July 2021 Cape Cod Climate Action Plan, climate change is an
unprecedented challenge that is transforming Cape Cod. Rising seas and changes to the coastline are the
most dramatic evidence of climate change, but a changing climate is also impacting every facet of Cape
Cod’s natural, built, and community systems. By the end of the century, damage to Cape Cod’s buildings
and land lost to inundation could alone total over $30 billion. Our land use patterns, and way of living
dictate our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the leading cause of the climate crisis. Dedicated and
immediate action is necessary to slow the effects of climate change and improve the region’s resiliency
to its impacts.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts took significant strides shifting the state toward a net-zero
carbon emissions goal through its most recent statewide Clean Energy and Climate Plan and climate
policy establishing a statewide net zero carbon emissions target for 2050, including a 50% reduction in
carbon emissions by 2030. The Cape Cod Climate Action Plan and 2018 Cape Cod Regional Policy Plan
identify goals and policies as well as strategies and actions to reduce GHG emissions and enhance local
and regional resiliency to present and future climate threats.
The Town of Brewster has taken important steps in adopting local policies designed to support
attainment of statewide GHG targets and regional goals for climate mitigation. Recognizing the current
climate emergency, the Town adopted a Climate Change and Net Zero Emissions Resolution on October
19, 2020, with the following policy objectives:
Reduce net greenhouse gas emissions from human activity within and by the Town to zero at
the earliest technically and economically feasible time.
Reduce the Town’s vulnerability to climate change.
While Town-wide data regarding Brewster’s contribution to GHG emissions are not yet available, data
from the 2021 Cape Cod Climate Action Plan indicate that Cape Cod’s 2017 GHG emissions equal
3,564,875 MTCO2E, or approximately 4-5% of Massachusetts state emissions. The Climate Action Plan
identified the major sources of GHG as being from transportation and stationary energy sources (homes
and businesses), with transportation (55.5%), and stationary energy sources (39.2%) accounting for 95%
of the region’s GHG emissions. On-road vehicles account for 43% of the region’s emissions and nearly
80% of transportation emissions. Cape Cod is highly residential, with only 2-3% of the reported
commercial and industrial building square footage in the state. Residential development is
predominantly single-family homes, resulting in the residential subsector being the highest single
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contributor of stationary energy emissions. Offsetting these overall emissions, forested land captures an
equivalent of 9% of the region’s carbon emissions.
As described in the Brewster 2019 Municipal Vulnerability Preparedness Summary of Findings,
Brewster has experienced a number of climate- and weather-related challenges in recent years and can
expect to experience more severe events in the years to come due to climate change. For example,
intense rainstorms in 2017 and 2018 caused street flooding, coastal flooding, storm surge, power
outages and major travel disruptions. In addition, portions of Main Street (Route 6A) can flood during
king tides (e.g., especially high spring tide). The most commonly cited challenges, concerns and
vulnerabilities for Brewster included Inland flooding due to heavy rain and sea level rise; high wind
events causing widespread power outages throughout the community; impacts to emergency
preparedness and communications; water quality and human health issues; and coastal erosion.
As noted in the Coastal Management Summary Paper, the Town’s public access points are threatened by
storms, which can damage both the beaches and their access points, and by the increasing impacts of
climate change.
II. RECENT ACTIONS BY THE TOWN
As noted above, the Town adopted a Climate Change and Net Zero Emissions Resolution to establish
Town policy objectives on reduction of GHG emissions and address the Town’s vulnerability to climate
change. The following are specific actions the Town has taken to support these objectives.
Energy Reduction Measures
The Town adopted the Board of Building Regulations and Standards Stretch Energy Code in 2019 to
minimize the life-cycle cost of new construction by utilizing energy efficiency, water conservation and
other renewable/alternative energy technologies. The Stretch Energy Code applies to all new residential
and commercial construction in the Town.
The Town completed a Town-Wide Energy Reduction Plan including a summary of municipal energy uses
and short- and long-term plans for municipal energy reduction. During the baseline year, fiscal year 2018
(FY18), the total energy usage for the Town of Brewster was 31,199 MMBTU. The majority of energy
consumed was used by municipal buildings (60%). The remaining usage is divided between vehicles
(30%) and water/sewer/pumping (10%). The Town is committed to reducing baseline energy
consumption by twenty (20) percent over the five-year period from FY2019 to FY2023.
Green Communities Designation
In February 2020, Brewster was designated as a Massachusetts Green Community. A Massachusetts
Department of Energy Resources (DOER) program created by the Green Communities Act of 2008, the
Green Communities program provides financial and technical assistance to help communities reduce
energy use and costs by implementing clean energy projects. The Town was awarded grant funds
through the Green Communities program for energy conservation measures such as programmable
thermostats, an energy management system, heat pump water heater, and demand control ventilation
in Municipal Buildings.
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As a member of the Cape and Vineyard Electric Cooperative, the Town has installed solar panels on both
schools to reduce electrical energy use and generates revenue for the schools. Town has installed solar
panels on the capped municipal landfill, solar canopies on the parking lot of the golf course and
continues to look at other opportunities to install solar PV on municipal buildings.
Complete Streets
The Town of Brewster adopted a Complete Streets Policy in 2020. Complete streets are ones that
provide safe and accessible options for all modes of travel and can help to encourage less personal
vehicle travel, a significant source of GHG emissions, and more opportunity for walking, biking, and
transit.
III. KEY ISSUES MOVING FORWARD
The baseline inventory provided in the 2021 Cape Cod Climate Action Plan points to the need to
drastically reduce the region’s emissions in the transportation and stationary energy sectors, which
account for nearly 95% of all Cape Cod GHG emissions. Changes in GHG emissions in these two sectors
will greatly impact the region’s GHG emissions and will be critical in aligning the region’s GHG emissions
with the Commonwealth’s goals for GHG emissions reduction. According to data from in the Cape Cod
Commission GHG inventory, Brewster has a total of 10,192 registered vehicles, or approximately 4.5% of
the vehicles registered on Cape Cod. Similar to other Cape communities, most of these vehicles consist
of autos/SUVs or light trucks. A key challenge for the town is to reduce automobile dependence and
provide alternatives to private automobile travel. Meanwhile, the Town is in the process of converting
municipal vehicle fleets to electric vehicles when feasible. For municipal vehicles that will not be
converted to electric in the near-term, the Town could also consider the use of hybrid vehicles or
cleaner fuels, as available. In addition, the Town is reviewing methods to convert the conventional
heating system in the Stony Brook school to cold weather heat pumps.
There are three private electric vehicle charging stations in the town of Brewster. The Town could
pursue resources and programs to support development of additional electric vehicle charging stations
in appropriate locations to help reduce the local GHG emissions in support of State goals.
As a region, over 80% of Cape Cod’s land area is already protected or developed, with over 90,000 acres
of protected open space. Between 2001 and 2011, however, the Cape lost more than 2,300 acres of
forest cover, with 70% of the loss replaced by development (buildings, driveways, parking lots, etc.).
Focusing future development in already developed areas in activity centers of housing, economic
activity, and services and away from areas that are undeveloped can help maintain our region’s ability to
sequester carbon. As noted in the Land Use section, the Town is exploring potential locations for Town
Center(s) as part of the outreach efforts for this LCP.
The Town could consider completing a town wide GHG inventory and climate action plan to support the
Town’s net zero climate objectives. As an example, the Town of Truro established a Climate Action
Committee in 2019 to review the carbon footprint of Town-owned facilities and equipment and make
recommendations to the Select Board on methods to minimize the Town’s carbon footprint and
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vulnerabilities to climate change. Using online support tools from the International Council for Local
Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), the Truro Climate Action Committee completed a town wide GHG
inventory and a Climate Action Plan in 2021.
Through the Cape Light Compact, the Town has a part-time energy manager who is analyzing the energy
uses of the town and finding ways to save money and reduce dependency on fossil fuels as appropriate.
The Town could consider performing energy assessments on all municipal buildings and work with the
Cape Light Compact to access available programs. The Town could also consider pursuing adoption of
small-scale community solar at appropriate locations. The CCC created an online screening tool to
identify areas in Barnstable County that may be appropriate for large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV)
projects and those areas that may be less appropriate due to potential impacts to natural resources.
This tool could be used as a starting point to help inform the siting of potential solar PV projects.
As noted in the Coastal Management Building Block, Brewster is working with the Cape Cod Commission
on updating and strengthening local bylaws to better address coastal development and redevelopment
with the goal of building coastal resiliency. Revisions to municipal bylaws focused on practices to
encourage or incentivize energy efficiency and conservation, onsite or local renewable energy, and
compact development to minimize impervious surfaces other sustainable building and site development
practices could also be pursued by the Town.
IV. BUILDING BLOCK GOAL
Support and advance the Commonwealth’s greenhouse gas reduction goals, including promoting
sustainable energy use and renewable energy that protects the Town’s natural resources.