HMB Building electrification letter
Letter to HMB city council on the proposed building electrification ordinance.
Sent on June 10, 2021.
June 10, 2021
RE: Proposed Building Electrification Ordinance- Support
Dear Mayor Brownstone and Half Moon Bay City Council Members,
Thank you for your on-going commitment and leadership in sustainability. We wanted to write a letter in support of the adoption of a building electrification reach code and the inclusion of a Home Energy Score or a Home Energy Audit requirement when selling or transferring property. By passing this code now, Half Moon Bay would be taking an important and timely step to mitigate the climate, health, and safety crises.
First, by adopting the building electrification code, Half Moon Bay will join a wave of cities and counties across California in declaring that fossil fuels must be phased out of our homes, commercial buildings, and communities, and that we have a right to clean, safe, and affordable energy. Nearly 50 cities and counties in California have implemented similar reach codes to shift to all-electric new construction and many more are in consideration.
Secondly, the building electrification code will improve air quality and public health for residents. On average, Californians spend 87 percent of their time indoors, making indoor air quality a key determinant of human health. The combustion of gas inside our homes produces harmful indoor air pollution, specifically nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitric oxide, formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and ultrafine particles. These odorless and undetectable gas combustion pollutants can cause respiratory diseases. A meta-analysis found children in homes with gas stoves have a 42 percent increased risk of experiencing asthma symptoms (current asthma), a 24 percent increased risk of ever being diagnosed with asthma by a doctor (lifetime asthma), and an overall 32 percent increased risk of both current and lifetime asthma. All-electric new construction is an essential step to improving indoor air quality in Half Moon Bay.
Thirdly, the reach code will make Half Moon Bay homes and businesses safer and more resilient as we face the effects of climate change. Gas pipelines are vulnerable to methane leakage, over-pressurization, earthquakes and fires. Gas appliances and associated piping located in the ground and in the buildings increase the risk of explosion or fire if there is a structural failure due to a seismic event.
State and regional cost-effectiveness studies have demonstrated that all electric buildings are cost effective in most cases. The cost of building an all electric building is less expensive than a mixed-fuel building, primarily owing to the large expense of gas infrastructure. While electricity rates are typically higher than gas rates, modern electric appliances are significantly more efficient and thus cost less to operate overall. This is especially true when coupled with on-site solar and battery storage, as the City’s proposed reach code requires, which not only lowers overall costs but also greatly improves resilience to natural disasters and power outages.
While we strongly support the draft reach code’s provisions for new buildings, we have concerns regarding the required conversion for existing buildings. Major appliances such as heating and water heating systems are rarely replaced before they burn out, and converting from gas to electric systems takes significant time and expense. Requiring this conversion places a heavy burden on those least able to afford it and could lead to negative outcomes. Hot water and heating are crucial for health and well-being, and an inability to replace these systems could leave vulnerable populations at risk. Illegal or unpermitted conversions to skirt the requirements could result in dangerous conditions. Furthermore, while the requirement that all buildings be all-electric by 2045 is a goal we support, there is little to indicate how the City will reach this goal, and a conversion plan must be made far sooner than 1 year in advance. Should these provisions remain in the proposal, they must be paired with programs that meaningfully address equity and help people transition.
We recommend an alternative approach to addressing gas usage in existing buildings such as that found in the City of Piedmont’s Reach Code (Ordinances 750 N.S. & 751 N.S. adopted February 1, 2021). Requiring a Home Energy Score or Home Energy Audit at time of sale or transfer helps improve awareness and energy consumption literacy, similar to MPG ratings for vehicles, and will help transition the market to placing appropriate value on climate-friendly homes and buildings. Additional requirements that can help facilitate the transition to fossil-fuel free buildings include all electric for high-dollar renovations, electric-ready infrastructure in kitchen or laundry renovations, capacity for full building electrification with any panel upgrades, and solar installations on new or expanded roofs over a certain size.
Passing this Reach Code is an appropriate step to do our part in achieving California’s climate goals. Scientists say that we need to reduce carbon emissions to 49% of 2017 levels by 2030 and then achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 in order to limit climate catastrophe. As natural gas use in buildings accounts for 39% of Half Moon Bay’s carbon emissions, shifting to electric power in our buildings would dramatically lower greenhouse gas emissions. The prohibition of new natural gas infrastructure is a step in the right direction for the future of our children. By mandating gas-free construction for new buildings, Half Moon Bay will protect the health of its residents, while implementing the critical climate protections necessary for dramatic greenhouse gas reductions.
Sincerely,
Coastside Families Taking Action (CFTA)
