HomeMy WebLinkAboutMemo From City ManagerCITY OF MIAMI
OFFICE OF THE CITY ATTORNEY
MEMORANDUM
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Corrunission
FROM: Victoria Mendez, City Attorney ez /„e ,
DATE: November 17, 2021 (�
RE: November 18, 2021, Commission Meeting Agenda — Substitution of CA.2 ---
Resolution adopting Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
File No. 10932
Exhibit A for Item CA.2 scheduled on the November 18, 2021 City Commission
Agenda is being substituted to include the New Green Economy goal and action as well
as additional case studies.
cc. Arthur Noriega V, City Manager
Miriam Santana, Agenda Coordinator
VMIBLMIALK
jO9 IR°M G (vMAj2-
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Miami Forever Carbon
Neutral
Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan and Roadmap
to Carbon Neutrality by 2050
November 2021
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Chapter 1: Introduction
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral is the City's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Plan (GHG Plan) and is a
roadmap to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050 in the community, strengthen the local economy, and
enhance climate justice. The plan's primary focus is to directly reduce the source of GHG emissions to
get as close to zero emissions as possible. The plan is based on five overarching goals that support a
GREEN Miami and achievement of the City's GHG reduction targets:
• G — Getting Around Miami
• R — Renewable Energy
• E — Electric Vehicles
• E — Energy Efficiency
• N — New Green Economy
As the City emerges from the COVID-19 crisis, this GHG Plan and stated actions provide opportunity for
the City's recovery to be green and just. GREEN actions will not only reduce GHG emissions but also
build our new economy!
In order to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 at latest and participate in the global effort to keep global
warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius, we needed to set a baseline, develop a science -based interim
target, and engage key regional stakeholders. This Plan is focused on rapidly decreasing greenhouse gas
emissions from sources within City of Miami's jurisdiction, aiming to achieve a minimum 60% reduction
in emissions from 2018 levels by 2035.
The Case for Action
Human -caused GHG emissions from activities like burning fossil fuels to produce electricity or driving
our cars are the primary contributors to global climate change. 70% of global carbon dioxide emissions
(the primary human -caused greenhouse gas) come from cities, which means local governments must be
leaders in their commitment to ambitious actions that drastically reduce emissions to avoid the worst
impacts of climate change.' Miami is a low-lying, subtropical, coastal city, which makes it susceptible to
flooding due to sea level rise, impacts from intensifying tropical storms, and extreme heat.2 This
confluence of factors paired with population density and exposed assets makes greater Miami one of
the most vulnerable areas to climate change in the world. However, with dedicated efforts and
investments to climate adaptation and carbon mitigation, Miami can combat these climate challenges
and create a resilient and sustainable city for all.
Miami's Greenhouse Gas Reduction Commitments
In November 2019, Miami declared a climate emergency and committed to developing a GHG Reduction
Plan. In 2021, the City adopted a resolution committing to the goal of reaching net zero emissions by
2050. On the trajectory to its net zero emissions by 2050 goal, the City set an interim target of 60%
reductions below 2018 levels by 2035. These goals are for citywide emission reductions, which includes
1 https://www.c40.org/whv cities
2 More details on Miami's vulnerabilities can be found in Resilient305 and Miami Forever Climate Ready
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
emissions from entities that operate within the City but are outside the City's direct control like certain
private businesses and some Miami -Dade County services.
The development of this GHG Plan was supported by C40 Cities, a global network of cities committed to
tackling climate change and increasing the economic and environmental wellbeing of their residents.
Assistance was specifically provided by C40's climate planning team through its Climate Action Planning
Framework and was further supported with C40's technical resources, including a GHG scenario
planning tool (Pathways), action selection and prioritization tool (ASAP), and guidance for setting
ambitious and achievable GHG reduction targets on the path to net zero. C40 member cities use a
science -based approach and exchange best practices in taking the urgent and effective actions needed
to address the climate crisis and keep global warming below 1.5°C.
Miami's Key Greenhouse Gas Reduction Actions
The City of Miami already has a history of climate action to reduce GHG emissions and prepare for and
respond to climate risks. Several recent examples include:
• MiPlan: The City's first Climate Action Plan and greenhouse gas inventory. MiPlan set out a goal
for the City to reduce GHG emissions by 25% below 2006 levels by 2020. By 2018, the City had
reduced GHG emissions by —31%.
• City Building Retrofits: During the economic recession in 2008, City of Miami received $4.7
million from the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program (EECBG) to conduct
energy efficiency retrofits in City buildings. These retrofits resulted in significant reductions in
energy use. In addition, many of the City's outdoor lights have been upgraded to LEDs.
• LEED Requirement for New Construction: Miami21, Miami's form -based zoning code, includes a
LEED silver requirement for all new construction over 50,000 sq. ft. and expedited permitting
and density bonuses for green buildings to further incentivize sustainable building design. It also
requires cool roofs on most new construction and/or roof replacements to help reduce the
urban heat island effect and lower building cooling demand.
• Miami 21: Miami21 became the City's effective zoning code in February 2010. The Miami21
Zoning Code is a form -based code guided by tenets of new urbanism and smart growth
principles. Its passage facilitated the growth and densification of the urban core.
• Solar Incentives: Miami provides expedited permitting and waived permit fees for rooftop solar
installations. The City also helps constituents afford solar through the Solar United Neighbors
Co-op and PACE financing.
• Alternative Transportation: The City operates its own free trolley network with 13 routes and
over 5 million rides provided per year. We are currently working to update the Bicycle Master
Plan, which will help us create additional dedicated bike lanes. We also partner with private
micro -mobility programs, like Citibikes and dockless scooters.
• Resilient305: Miami participated in a regional planning process to develop a comprehensive
strategy to tackle multiple emerging challenges, including climate change, urbanization, and
globalization.
• Miami Forever Climate Ready: Miami's climate adaptation strategy to reduce climate risks to
the city and its communities, including impacts from flooding, extreme heat, and storms.
• Google Environmental Insights Explorer Program: Google has chosen Miami as one of 100 cities
nationwide for which they will develop and provide advanced environmental data. This data will
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
help improve the accuracy of future GHG inventories and planning efforts and includes datasets
such as an urban tree canopy and emissions from on -road transportation.
This document is one of three strategies guiding City of Miami climate resilience work and should be
read in compliment with Resilient305 and Miami Forever Climate Ready.
Climate Justice
Climate justice begins with recognizing which groups are disproportionately impacted by the
environmental and economic consequences of climate change and that climate impacts can exacerbate
inequitable social conditions. Typically, those groups tend to be responsible for a relatively low volume
of greenhouse gas emissions.
In Miami, climate justice communities are historically underinvested neighborhoods (which tend to be
inland), populated by individuals that are low-income, predominantly Black, and recent immigrants.
These neighborhoods tend to be viewed as less physically vulnerable to climate change since flooding is
less common, but they are still vulnerable to climate impacts (hurricanes, extreme heat, flooding,
pandemic, recession) and their residents are relatively more socially vulnerable than other parts of the
City. Neighborhoods of note in Miami include: Allapattah, Liberty City, Little Havana, Little Haiti/Ti Ayiti,
and Overtown.
Inequities experienced by residents of climate justice communities include:
• Utility burden
• Low car ownership rates
• Renters being pushed out of homes due to increasing rent prices
• Uninsured or underinsured
• Prolonged exposure to hazardous conditions such as extreme heat and pollution in homes and
worksites
• Lack of access to reliable and consistent public transportation
• Live paycheck to paycheck and cannot afford hurricane supplies or to evacuate due to flooding
• Live more than 3 miles from closest grocery store
Throughout the Plan development process, consideration was given to how actions could have disparate
impact or benefits across the City and explicit language and programmatic elements were added to seize
climate justice opportunities. This holistic view of climate action is vital in carrying out the City's vision to
create a more resilient, safe, and vibrant Miami for all.
Growing Miami's New Green Economy & Green Workforce
Achieving Miami's target of 60% reduction in GHG emissions by 2035 and 100% reduction by 2050,
coupled with adapting to the increasing intensity and severity of weather events will require a
substantive transformation of the local economy. Critical to Miami Forever Carbon Neutral and
Resilient305, among other City climate action commitments, is ensuring that local businesses and
residents economically benefit from sustainability and resilience efforts. Prioritizing green investments —
those that support GHG mitigation and climate adaptation — will simultaneously facilitate economic
development and diversification, achieve GHG mitigation goals, and support climate justice priorities.
Defining the new green economy
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
The green economy is broadly defined as any group of businesses and organizations that use practices
that are significantly better in reducing the negative impact of human activity on the environment',
including those that mitigate or adapt to the impacts of climate change. Participants in the green new
economy can be divided into two groups — those that supply a green output, such as renewable
energy, climate mitigation services, electric vehicles, or mass transit, and those that consume a green
output, including traditional industry sectors like healthcare, hospitality, and government.
Miami's new green economy is defined as the businesses and organizations that are supporting the
realization of our climate action goals by facilitating access to the goods and services that are
essential to reducing the negative impact of human activity on the environment. Importantly, Miami's
new green economy realizes our climate justice goals by providing middle -skill, living wage jobs,
creating demand for workforce training opportunities, and promoting economic resilience for Miami's
socially vulnerable residents.
The scale of climate change impacts facing our community and the actions needed to transition to a
healthy, climate -resilient future and a more sustainable, inclusive economy are far too great for any one
economic sector to address alone. The public and private sectors each have key roles to play in
positioning the local economy to be responsive to these structural changes and ensuring that the local
workforce is prepared for the new skills required by green jobs. Still, the public sector will play an
important role in creating and fostering an environment that is welcoming and conducive to growing
Miami's new green economy, similar to the role the City has played with the tech industry.
Appendix A provides an evaluation of Miami's current green economy, including key industries and
assets, green industries that are poised for growth, and occupations that will be positively and
negatively impacted by green economic growth. It concludes with actions the City can take to
complement its GREEN actions to grow the new green economy and create inclusive economic
opportunity for our residents and workers while supporting the transition to a carbon -free future. These
actions support and further many objectives established in Resilient305, including goals for building a
diverse, inclusive economy, creating youth career opportunities, buying local, and collaborating with
local universities. In Chapter 3, actions with new economy opportunities have been noted with "$$".
Community Engagement Process
In order to produce an equitable plan that represents all of Miami's stakeholders, significant effort was
made to inform and engage the public throughout the development of this Plan. Monthly progress
updates were given throughout the project development period at the Mayor's Resilience Action Forum,
an online, moderated dialogue between the public and City staff focused on climate resilience topics. In
addition to that standing update, we had five different methods of collecting feedback.
Throughout the engagement process we surveyed participants to see what areas of the City were being
represented. We found that there was high representation from the City's coastal areas that tend to
have higher -income households, younger populations, and are more digitally connected in comparison
to the City at large: Coconut Grove, Coral Way, The Roads, Brickell, Downtown, and Edgewater. There
was relatively low representation from inland areas that have lower -income households, older
3 C40, C40 Green Economy & Innovation Forum webinar on measuring green jobs in cities, 2019.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
populations, more non-English speaking residents, and historic Black neighborhoods: Flagami, Little
Havana, Overtown, Liberty City, and Little Haiti/Ti Ayiti. As these areas with low representation also
constitute the City's climate justice communities, it is clear that the City must diversify its engagement
practices as it implements this plan to ensure these socially vulnerable communities are included on the
road to carbon neutrality.
• Open feedback
o We began to engage the public by publishing a project website
(www.miamigov.com/ghgplan) and inviting people to share both their ideas and
concerns about the proposed high-level topics the Plan addresses. For example,
increasing rooftop solar and reducing vehicle miles traveled. The survey was open for
one month and received 149 responses.
• Virtual workshops
o The City hosted three identical virtual workshops for the GHG reduction actions wherein
attendees were briefed on the Plan's goals, answered a survey on their co -benefit
criteria priorities, and shared their feedback on specific key actions the City was
proposing for the Plan.
o The City hosted a GHG Plan Townhall with Commissioner Ken Russell to discuss the
latest version of the plan, answer questions, and collect additional feedback.
o The City hosted two virtual information sessions for the New Green Economy report,
briefing participants about the content of the report and providing a forum for
discussion and questions.
• Public draft review
o After the Plan's release on Earth Day 2021, the Plan was out for public review for 30
days. Feedback was solicited via a form or through email for those who were interested
in giving more in-depth comments.
o The New Green Economy report was released in September 2021 and was open for
public comment through the end of the month.
• Targeted meetings
o For key stakeholders and/or stakeholder groups that were not represented in earlier
outreach efforts, focused meetings were held to fill knowledge gaps and socialize the
plan.
• Interviews
o For the new green economy analysis, we sought to pair quantitative jobs data with
qualitative anecdotes from professionals working and leading in sectors that are already
green or have emerging opportunity. We hosted 13 stakeholder interviews via web calls
to understand their unique perspective and learn more about Miami's green economy
potential.
Prior to public engagement, the Division of Resilience and Sustainability staff convened a series of
meetings with internal City staff to discuss existing and planned climate actions, as well as feasibility and
edits for proposed actions. This feedback was used to inform the emissions forecast and the draft list of
actions.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Throughout the plan development process, the City collaborated and aligned actions, where strategic,
with Miami -Dade County as they developed their Climate Action Strategy at the same time as the City.
GHG Plan Organization
The GHG Plan is organized into the following four chapters and three technical appendices.
• Chapter 1— Introduction provides an overview of the purpose and context of the GHG Plan,
describes Miami's new economy, and summarizes how community members were involved in Plan
development.
• Chapter 2 — Greenhouse Gas Emissions Context and Targets describes technical aspects of Plan
development, including the city's 2018 GHG inventory, future year emissions forecasts, and GHG
reduction targets.
• Chapter 3 — Miami's GHG Actions presents the Plan's goals and actions needed to meet the interim
2035 target and describes how the full list of Plan actions were prioritized to identify the top 20 for
immediate implementation.
• Chapter 4 — Monitoring Progress and Next Steps provides a framework for how the City will track
and report progress on the Plan's GHG targets and prioritized actions. In addition, there is a brief
description of what approaches the City can take to address any remaining emissions in 2050 to
demonstrate carbon neutrality.
• Appendix A — New Economy Report evaluates Miami's current new economy and identifies
strategies to grow the new economy and create inclusive economic opportunity for its residents and
workers while supporting the transition to a carbon -free future.
• Appendix B — Action Evaluation Results presents the full results of the action evaluation process
used to identify the Plan's prioritized actions.
• Appendix C— Implementation Roadmap includes implementation next steps, City leads, community
partners, time frame, and tracking metrics for the Plan's prioritized actions.
• Appendix D — GHG Calculators and Inputs explains how the City's emission reduction pathway was
developed using the C40 Pathways tool and presents a table of Plan goals with corresponding GHG
calculators, technology -based strategy inputs, and GHG reductions.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Chapter 2: Greenhouse Gas Emissions Context
Miami's 2018 GHG Inventory
A base year inventory establishes a starting point against which GHG Plan progress can be measured.
Miami developed a 2018 base year inventory' that describes emissions resulting from different activities
in our community, like driving cars, powering our homes and businesses, and treating our wastewater.
This inventory follows global emissions accounting practices specifically designed to help cities
understand how much and from where emissions are created in their communities. In these inventories,
GHG emissions are typically reported as metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent or MT CO2e. This
metric helps to reflect the relative strength of different greenhouse gases, such as carbon dioxide,
methane, and nitrous oxide, in contributing to climate change. Miami followed the U.S. Community
Protocol developed by ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability when calculating the 2018 base year
inventory.' This protocol helps ensure that cities calculate their GHG contributions in a consistent and
transparent manner. Miami can also develop future inventories following the same protocol to support
an apples -to -apples comparison of emissions over time as one way to monitor overall GHG Plan
progress.
Following this process, Miami accounted for the total annual GHG emissions resulting from operating
our buildings and vehicles, providing potable water, and treating our wastewater. Citywide emissions
totaled approximately 3.3 million MT CO2e in 2018, and as shown in Figure 2.1 the majority came from
on -road transportation (e.g., cars and trucks), commercial building energy use (e.g., stores and offices),
and residential building energy use (e.g., homes and apartments). The remaining 2% of emissions came
from light rail operations, energy use in manufacturing, fugitive emissions from natural gas distribution6,
and wastewater treatment plant activity.
To contextualize the emissions City of Miami generates every year (3.3 million MT CO2e) is equal to78:
• Taking 717,684 passenger vehicles off the road for one year.
• The carbon sequestered by 4,043,086 acres of US forests in one year; that forest would be 175x
the land area of the City of Miami.
• The carbon sequestered by 54,566,199 tree seedlings grown for 10 years; that's 114 trees per
resident of Miami.
• The land area and height of two City of Miamis and one Miami Beach covered in 2 story
buildings i.e., 86.3 sq miles at 27 feet high.
4 https://www.miamigov.com/files/sharedassets/public/ghg-inventory-2018-full-report.pdf
5 Miami originally calculated its 2018 base year inventory using the U.S. Community Protocol. After review with
C40, the City updated its inventory to align with the Global Protocol for Community -scale Greenhouse Gas
Emission Inventories (GPC). This revision altered the total emissions value from the City's original GHG Inventory
document and the value presented in table 2.1 is the final baseline value for Plan purposes.
6 Fugitive emissions in the City's inventory are attributed to leaks within the natural gas transmission and
distribution system. Methane is the largest component of natural gas and is a potent greenhouse gas — 28 times
more powerful than carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere over a 100-year timeframe.
7 https://www.epa.gov/energy/greenhouse-gas-equivalencies-calculator
8 https://climate.mit.edu/ask-mit/how-much-ton-carbon-dioxide
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Figure 2.1— Miami's 2018 Base Year Inventory
2O%
Residential
Energy
Commercial
Energy
35% _.
■ On -Road Transportation
■ Residential Energy
■ Fugitive Emissions
■ Railways
On -Road
Transportation
4
Commercial Energy
■ Manufacturing/Construction Energy
■ Non -Specified Energy Sources
■ Wastewater
Table 2.1 shows the GHG inventory results organized into sectors and sub -sectors, as well as by fuel type
to provide additional detail about our emissions. This information also helps identify areas for GHG
reductions and specific GHG Plan actions that can reduce these emissions. This inventory accounts for all
greenhouse gas emissions in the calendar year 2018 induced by City of Miami residents and businesses.'
In the City of Miami, community -generated solid waste is sent to a waste -to -energy facility that
incinerates waste to produce energy to power itself and for the regional electric grid. Therefore, these
emissions are categorized as stationary energy emissions in our inventory and reported as emissions
from "energy sent to the grid." These emissions are documented but not counted in our total as they
are counted when the electricity created is used in other communities' building energy sectors and
addressed through their GHG Plan actions. The City has limited jurisdiction on the waste sector, but
recognizes that waste management has climate and environmental impact and has developed actions to
address waste.
9 PortMiami is not part of the City's jurisdiction. PortMiami is accounted for in the Miami -Dade County Climate
Action Strategy.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Table 2.1 — Miami's 2018 GHG Inventory
Emissions
Sector
Emissions Subsector
Fuel Type
Emissions (MT
CO2e)
% Total
Emissions
Buildings
Residential
Electricity
643,287
20%
Natural Gas
19,937
Commercial
Electricity
1,019,935
35%
Natural Gas
125,488
Industrial
Electricity
19,635
<1%
Natural Gas
4,128
Fugitive Emissions
Natural Gas Leaks
4,882
<1%
Transportation
Passenger Vehicles
Gasoline
1,045,928
43%
Diesel
20,768
Freight Vehicles
Diesel
339,065
Trolley System
Diesel
3,822
<1%
Metrorail and Metromover
Electricity
17,051
Wastewater
Wastewater Treatment -
Process
NA
12,386
<1%
Wastewater Treatment
Energy
Electricity
10,080
Natural Gas
28
Septic Treatment
NA
2,035
Water
Potable Water Supply
Electricity
7,254
<1%
Natural Gas
10
Total
3,295,718*
100%
*Emissions from solid waste were included in the 2018 GHG Inventory but have been removed, in compliance
with GPC guidance, as the primary method of solid waste disposal is waste -to -energy and these emissions are
thus accounted for in other categories. See Appendix D for more information.
Emissions Forecasts
Estimating future GHG emissions can help us understand how emissions could change over time if no
further action is taken, set realistic GHG reduction targets, and focus plan action development on the
highest priority emissions sectors. Miami forecasted emissions from the 2018 base year through the
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
2050 carbon neutrality target year to estimate the total amount of reductions needed to achieve this
target.
Each emissions source was projected using growth indicators that could serve as a proxy for how
emissions might grow in the community. For example, Miami's resident population growth was used as
a proxy for how residential energy emissions would grow. In this Plan, the indicators selected were
primarily based on local population and employment projections developed by the City of Miami
Planning Department. The Plan also used travel demand projections developed by Miami -Dade County
to estimate how on -road transportation emissions could change over time. Table 2.2 lists the emissions
sources and corresponding growth indicators used in the Plan.
Table 2.2 — Emissions Forecast Growth Indicators
Emissions Source
Growth Indicator
Source
Residential Energy
Population
Miami Planning Department
Commercial Energy
Employment
Miami Planning Department
Manufacturing Industries
Employment
Miami Planning Department
Fugitive Emissions
Natural Gas Growth
Natural Gas growth rates (based on three
sources above)
On -Road Transportation
Vehicle Miles Traveled
Miami -Dade County SERPM Travel Model
Railways
Vehicle Miles Traveled
Miami -Dade County SERPM Travel Model
Wastewater
Population + Employment
Miami Planning Department
These forecasts represent a "business -as -usual" scenario that shows how emissions will grow over time
in the absence of any new City climate policies or action from external stakeholders. Figure 2.2 shows
that without any additional action, Miami's emissions will increase by an estimated 38% from 2018 to
2050. This means that to achieve the City's 2050 carbon neutrality target, we need to reduce all
emissions in our 2018 base year as well as address all new emissions growth.
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5,000,000
4.500,00D
4.000.000
3,500,000
3.000.000
2,500,000
2,000,000
3-500.000
1.000,000
500,000
0
3,295,718
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Figure 2.2 — Greenhouse Gas Emission Forecasts — 2018-2050
4,64,995
3,972,.787
a
•Waste ■Traneportatlon Buildings
a
4,552,875
i
0
Emissions forecasting is an imprecise science and many variables can influence how our emissions will
change over time. However, it is still a useful analysis to frame one potential future emissions scenario
that reflects how we think Miami's population and economy will grow. Future GHG Plan updates will
revise these forecasts based on newer information to ensure we are continually planning our climate
actions in response to a changing emissions profile.
Defining Carbon Neutral and Miami's GHG Targets
C40's member cities have committed to supporting the global goals of the Paris Climate Agreement,
which stipulates that global average temperature rise should be kept to well below 2°C above
preindustrial levels, and ideally be limited to 1.5°C. To help limit warming to this 1.5°C scenario, the
world will need to collectively achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and cut emissions in
half by 2030. Net zero emissions means that GHG emissions have been reduced as much as possible and
any remaining emissions are completely cancelled out through offsetting or removed through carbon
dioxide removal (CDR) or emissions removal measures. Purchase of offsets (or carbon credits) is a
secondary and last resort measure as all efforts should be taken to eliminate sources of emissions.
Staying within the 1.5°C limit is technically possible, if global emissions are halved by 2030, but will
require rapid behavioral and technological transformation at all levels — countries, cities, private sector,
and individuals.
Miami has set a long-term target of net zero emissions by 2050 in accordance with the Paris Climate
Agreement. The City often uses the term carbon neutral to describe this goal as well. While definitions
vary, the City uses "carbon neutral" interchangeably with "net zero greenhouse gas emissions" to
indicate maximum reduction of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions plus balancing any
remaining emissions the city cannot reduce directly with carbon sequestration or offset actions.
The GHG Plan also establishes an ambitious nearer -term or "interim" 2035 target of 60% emissions
reduction below 2018 levels. The interim target was defined with input from City department staff and
the C40 Cities climate action planning team based on an analysis of the city's emissions forecasts and
GHG reduction opportunities. The target was also informed by research defining what is needed globally
to support the Paris Climate Agreement goals.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Figure 2.3 shows the city's GHG forecasts (top line) and GHG targets (bottom line); the gap between the
two lines represents the amount of GHG reductions needed to achieve the targets. For further
information on how the interim target was established, see Appendix D.
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5,000,000
4,500,000
4,000,000
3,500,000
3,000,000
2,500,000
2,000,000
1,500,000
1,000,000
500,000
Figure 2.3 — Miami's GHG Forecasts and Targets
Emissions trajectories from 2018 to 2050
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Chapter 3: Miami's GHG Actions
Achieving the 2035 Target
During GHG Plan development, the City evaluated several GHG target achievement options to better
understand the opportunities for action within the City's direct control and identify the necessary
contributions from outside agencies. The result of this analysis showed that most of Miami's emissions
fall outside the direct control of the City. For example, the City of Miami has limited or no control over
roadway design, regional transit system improvements, energy procurement within the electric grid, and
building code requirements. However, Miami is committed to aggressive emissions reductions in areas
where we do have jurisdiction and to coalition building and advocacy for aggressive actions by other
entities where needed, in order to achieve our GHG targets.
Using C40's GHG scenario planning tool (Pathways), Miami developed the GHG reduction pathway
shown in Figure 3.1. This figure illustrates the City's GHG forecasts (top line), GHG targets (bottom line),
and reduction strategies selected to achieve the 2035 target and move toward carbon neutrality by
2050. The colored wedges represent different sectors of GHG action and align with the Plan's GREEN
goals. The gap in emissions reductions that begins in 2035 (area with no color) will be addressed in
future updates of this GHG Plan.
tonnes/CO a/year
5,000,000
4,500,000
4.000.000
3,500,000
3.000,000
2,500,000
2,000,000
1,500,000
1,000,000
500,000
0
Figure 3.1 — GHG Reduction Pathway
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Page 15
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Within the Plan's GREEN goal framework, four quantified objectives and five qualitative objectives')
were also defined in relation to the 2035 GHG target. The objectives and their representation within
Figure 3.1 are defined below.
• G — Getting Around Miami
o Objective: 15% less private vehicle trips compared to 2018 levels by 2035 (magenta
wedge)
• R — Renewable Energy
o Objective: 100% carbon free electricity by 2035 (orange wedge)
o Objective: 35% reduction in on -site natural gas emissions compared to 2018 levels by
2035 (light blue wedges)
• E — Electric Vehicles
o Objective: 40% of registered passenger vehicles are electric by 2035* (pink wedge)
• E — Energy Efficiency
o Objective: Improve energy efficiency in buildings to decrease overall energy consumption
and support achievement of Goal 2: Renewable Energy (dark blue wedge)
• N — New Economy
o Objective: Grow the Green Economy Ecosystem
o Objective: Recruit and Retain Green Workforce
o Objective: Open Occupational Pathways
o Objective: Welcome and Support Green Industry
*Using County data as proxy for City until better data sources are available.
Miami's GHG pathway reflects existing and planned actions as well as aggressive but feasible new
actions by the City, county, state, and federal entities. More information about how we will be tracking
progress on our goals can be found in Chapter 4.
Action Selection and Prioritization Process
Miami's GHG Plan actions were assessed using the C40 Cities Action Selection and Prioritization (ASAP)
tool —a software tool that documents actions and provides outputs to support the climate action
decision -making process through a comparison of action benefits and challenges. ASAP helps users
assess the impact of actions based on multiple evaluation criteria, including primary benefits (e.g., GHG
emissions reduction), co -benefits (e.g., public health and employment) and feasibility (e.g., costs).
Miami used ASAP to evaluate individual actions' relative emissions reduction potential and their impact
on nine co -benefit and feasibility criteria. The GHG reduction scores were based on local city data,
relevant studies, and results from similar action implementation to evaluate their emissions reduction
potential. The co -benefit and feasibility evaluation criteria were developed to align with community and
City priorities (see Table 3.1 for a list of criteria and definitions).
'The Energy Efficiency sub -goal will be quantified once more information is gathered via the BE305 program.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Table 3.1 —Action Evaluation Criteria and Definitions
Evaluation Criteria
Definition
Primary
Benefits
Greenhouse Gas
Emissions Reduction
An estimation of the relative greenhouse gas emissions
reduction potential.
Co -Benefits
Public Health
Improve public health through reduced incidents of
diseases and/or death attributed to improved indoor and
outdoor air quality, protection from extreme heat, active
transport, water quality, access to nutrients, etc.
Greenspace and Green
Infrastructure
Increase greenspace or green infrastructure conservation,
creation, or regeneration.
NOTE: Greenspace is a principle considered across all
actions, but no specific greenspace actions are included in
this plan. For greenspace and tree canopy initiatives, see
Miami Forever Climate Ready adaptation strategy.
Employment
Increase employment rate and/or total number of jobs.
Cost of Living
Reduce daily expenses and provide savings (e.g., utility
costs, travel costs, etc.) to residents.
Climate Justice
Actively address an existing inequity and/or one that
would be created via action implementation in climate
justice communities.
NOTE: For actions that scored negatively, City should work
with community climate advocates and related groups to
develop zero harm criteria for implementation.
Feasibility
Criteria
Additional City Costs
Beyond any funding that is currently secured or identified,
how much additional capital would be required to
implement, operationalize, and maintain the action?
Additional Private Costs
Beyond any costs that would otherwise already be
incurred, how much additional private capital would be
required for businesses or building owners to implement,
operationalize, and maintain the action?
Complexity for the City
to Implement
Does the City have the authority to implement this action?
Does this action require a policy change and involve
multiple departments? How much time and what is the
logistical difficulty of completing this action? Are external
resources needed?
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Political Acceptability
Is this action politically popular or would it be politically
challenging to implement (e.g., public opinion, stakeholder
support or pushback, the number and power of
stakeholders)?
The results of the ASAP evaluation were then used to prioritize 20 actions which will help the City:
■ Highlight actions that would benefit from deeper analysis in the implementation roadmap
■ Sequence first actions that are foundational to our success
■ Elevate actions the City must move on in the next 3 years
■ Identify action leads, partner departments, and external entities
■ Create a short-term workplan
The prioritized actions are highlighted in green in each of the Goal sections. Seven building energy
efficiency actions and five electric vehicle actions were prioritized due to their high level of direct GHG
impact, city authority to implement, and co -benefits to residents. The remaining actions address carbon -
free energy (two actions), mobility (three actions), and additional enabling actions (three actions). Fewer
actions were prioritized in these categories because they do not result in large direct GHG reduction
impacts or are promoting actions that fall primarily outside of the City's direct control, like advocacy for
transportation infrastructure improvements. Complete results from the ASAP evaluation process for all
Plan actions can be found in Appendix B.
The list below presents a summary of the 20 prioritized actions that will be further developed in the
implementation roadmap. Appendix C provides an implementation roadmap for these prioritized
actions including key milestones and metrics.
G-1: Reduce emissions for City employee commute.
G-2: Collaborate with Miami -Dade County and local advocacy groups to increase utilization of biking as
a transit method by implementing the Bicycle Master Plan and expanding the number of protected,
green bikeways. $$
G-3: Expand micromobility options throughout the entire city including Citibikes, scooters, and electric
bikes. $$
R-1: Starting in 2024, require all new buildings to be solar -ready and storage -ready.
R-4: Provide additional policy and financial incentives to encourage private solar installations and
identify incentives that would appeal to owners of affordable housing. $$
EV-1: Develop EV Master Plan to support the growth of electric vehicle ownership.
EV-2: Develop technical guidance for building owners/managers to facilitate in EV charging
infrastructure installations in existing buildings.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
EV-3: Partner with major employers and multifamily building owners to install EV chargers in parking
lots/garages. $$
EV-4: Build on EV Capability Ordinance to require EV charger installations in new developments
starting in 2025. $$
EV-6: Electrify 100% of public vehicle fleet, including trolleys by 2035.
E-1: Implement Building Efficiency 305 (BE305) program requiring energy benchmarking and disclosure
for commercial, multi -family residential, and City of Miami municipal buildings over 20,000 sq. ft. $$
E-2: Improve public benefits and green buildings tracking to increase program participation and
impact.
E-3: Require all new public buildings to be built to zero net energy standards starting in 2025.
E-4: Adopt a residential, single-family home energy rating and disclosure ordinance. $$
E-5: Adopt building performance standard for commercial, multi -family residential, and City of Miami
municipal buildings over 20,000 sq. ft. $$
E-6: Establish residential, single-family home energy conservation requirements. $$
E-9: Make all non -emergency energy use in existing public buildings carbon -free by 2035. Explore and
adopt as much carbon -free emergency energy generation and storage as possible.
A-1: Improve city data on waste streams and disposal. Establish a per capita waste goal.
A-2: Train City employees on emerging resilient and sustainable buildings initiatives and technologies
including solar PVs, energy storage, EV charging, energy efficiency, electrification, and climate
adaptation policies.
A-11: Develop a financial and technical assistance program that helps residents, particularly low-
income, to pursue climate action. $$
GHG Plan Goals and Actions
The following pages introduce the GHG Plan's 55 actions, organized within the overarching goals. Of
these 55 actions, 33 address GHG mitigation, 9 address the new green economy, and 13 are additional
enabling actions. As the energy, buildings, and transportation sectors produce 98% of the city's total
emissions, Miami has focused its current efforts on actions in these sectors since they will have the
largest immediate impact. The additional enabling actions apply across each of the goal areas and
include advocacy actions that identify initial ways the City can try to influence the policy framework for
emissions sources outside its direct control.
Many of the actions in this plan will be initiated by the Division of Resilience and Sustainability (DRS, a
division of the Department of Resilience and Public Works), but progress will be implemented in
collaboration with relevant City departments and external stakeholders. As many of these actions are
new ideas, DRS will help facilitate research, stakeholder engagement, and planning before actions are
enacted.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Key:
■ Implementation Phases:
o 1 = significant progress in 1-3 years (by end of 2024)
o 2 = significant progress in 4-6 years (by end of 2026)
o 3 = significant progress in 7 or more years (2027 and beyond)
■ Actions that are bolded and highlighted in green are the City's prioritized actions.
■ Actions that have been noted with "$$" have green economy opportunities.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Goal 1: GETTING AROUND MIAMI
In 2018, approximately 85% of total passenger trips in Miami were taken in private gas and diesel
vehicles. These passenger trips alone generate 32% of total city-wide emissions. The first step to
reducing transportation emissions is to reduce the number of miles traveled in private cars by
facilitating a transition to other modes of transportation, like Metrorail, Metrobus, trolley, walking,
rolling, or biking. To facilitate this shift, we must utilize land use and transportation planning to integrate
jobs, housing, and other daily uses with an efficient transit and active transportation (e.g., walking,
biking, e-scooters) network. To achieve the stated GHG reductions for this goal, Miami has established a
objective for a 15% reduction from 2018 levels of private vehicle trips to other forms of transportation
by 2035. This goal is in alignment and will work in concert with the Miami -Dade County Climate Action
Strategy goal for a 10% shift away from single occupant vehicles by 2030.
Travel mode shifting can reduce the total number of vehicle miles traveled in the city and the total
emissions generated per mile traveled, while simultaneously reducing traffic congestion and providing
public health benefits from reduced local pollution and increased exercise. Meeting this goal requires
City action to promote transit and active transportation, County and Transportation Planning
Organization (TPO) action to implement the SMART Plan, and resident action to voluntarily switch to
lower -emissions transportation options as part of their daily lives. Travel mode switching can also
reduce the total number of private vehicles to be electrified in Goal 3 Electric Vehicles.
Objective: 15% less private vehicle trips compared to 2018 levels by 2035
City Authority:
• The City manages the Miami trolley system (Dept of Resilience and Public Works), owns many of
the City's lower capacity local roads, and has local land use planning authority, via Miami21
Zoning Code and the Miami Comprehensive Neighborhood Plan (MCNP) (Planning Dept), to
define the type, location, and mix of different land uses. However, Miami -Dade County owns
and manages the major public transportation system, including Metrorail and Metrobus. In
addition, the State of Florida and Miami -Dade County have authority over many of the major
arterial streets in the City. Parking is overseen by the quasi-judicial entity Miami Parking
Authority.
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
G-1: Reduce emissions for
City employee commute.
COVID-19 demonstrated that working
remotely is possible and effective for City
employees and some local businesses. The
City should continue to permit employees
to work from home and monitor
participation. Additional measures to
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
consider would be improving public transit
benefits and implementing a parking fee.
G-2: Collaborate with
Miami -Dade County and
local advocacy groups to
increase utilization of
biking as a transit method
by implementing the
Bicycle Master Plan and
expanding the number of
protected, green
bikeways. $$
As the County controls most public
streets, collaboration is necessary for
Miami to implement its Bicycle Master
Plan. This action includes greening the
bicycle network and installing shade,
water fountains, and bike repair
infrastructure along bike paths to improve
rider comfort and safety.
Resilient305
ACTION 12: Develop
Mobility Hubs in the 305
MFCR
Goal 4 Phase 2: Update
and implement bicycle
master plan to improve
safety and connectivity of
bicycle routes.
G-3: Expand micromobility
options throughout the
entire city including
Citibikes, scooters, and
electric bikes. $$
Currently, most micromobility options are
concentrated in District 2 and safety
concerns will need to be addressed prior
to expanding. This action can aid residents
without cars and considers free service for
specific users.
Resilient305
ACTION 12: Develop
Mobility Hubs in the 305
ACTION 14: Drive Into the
Future
G-4: Develop a Trolley
Master Plan including a
long-term vision for the
program and route
updates. $$
This work is currently in progress and aims
to ensure the trolley program is
sustainable long-term, connects with
other multimodal options and key
locations, is aligned with the Better Bus
County bus rerouting, and maintains high
quality service across the City.
Resilient305
ACTION 13: Design a
Better Bus Network
MFCR
Goal 4: Implement new
trolley route
recommendations from
the Better Bus Project to
better coordinate trolley
system with other public
transit options. Improve
ease of use of trolley
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
system by updating user
interface of trolley app.
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
G-5: Build upon existing
transit -oriented
development policies in
Miami21 to increase
residential density, access
to goods and services, and
decrease single -occupancy
vehicle use focusing on
areas surrounding
Metrorail stations.
Transit -oriented development (TOD) is a
type of urban development that centers
communities around public transit.
Miami's existing TOD policies could be
enhanced to include increased
inclusionary zoning and mixed -use zoning
near Metrorail stations, increased density
within a certain distance of a Metrorail
station, free commuter parking lots
outside the downtown area with shuttle
service into the city, increased
investments in green space and parks near
Metrorail stations, etc.
Resilient305
ACTION 12: Develop
Mobility Hubs in the 305
G-6: Establish parking
disincentives, such as
parking maximums and
dynamic parking prices, to
discourage the use of
single occupancy gas
vehicles.
Expansion of parking maximums through
TODs and Parking Management Districts
will discourage the use of vehicles in
downtown areas. Dynamic parking prices
can maximize revenue (potentially to fund
other GHG Plan actions) and can
encourage mode switching in areas close
to transit.
G-7: Adopt transportation
demand management
ordinance to require
certain employers and
developers to establish
plans to reduce single-
occupant vehicle use and
Transportation demand management
(TDM) includes strategies for reducing
demand for road capacity primarily during
peak periods (e.g., incentives for transit,
carpooling, and telework). The current
Miami TDM suggested measures could
become a requirement. Additionally, a
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
traffic during peak hours
among employees and
residents.
zoning ordinance could require any
project receiving a parking discount to
adopt TDM measures.
G-8: Work with partner
entities to create bus lanes
in strategic, key corridors.
$$
Adding bus -only lanes to busy corridors
will motivate residents to use transit to
reduce commuting time. The City of Miami
does not own the arterial streets that are
ideal candidates for bus lanes but does
have influence as these street run through
City boundaries.
Resilient305
ACTION 13: Design a
Better Bus Network
G-9: Work with Miami-
Dade County and local
advocacy groups to
increase utilization of
public transit through
investments in safety,
improving public transit
literacy, and campaigns.
The City will support and enhance
outreach campaigns for the public transit
system through actions such as investing
in safety measures and improving public
transit literacy.
Resilient305
ACTION 13: Design a
Better Bus Network
G-10: Improve pedestrian
experience and safety
through investments in
sidewalks such as ADA
compliance measures and
increasing number of
crosswalks, especially in
low -medium income areas.
$$
Increasing quality pedestrian
infrastructure will encourage residents
and visitors to walk to their destinations.
Strategies include increasing the amount
of shaded walkways and greening right -of -
ways as well as completing the Baywalk
and Riverwalk.
Better Bus Network
Two out of three transit riders in Miami use buses for their commute. Redesigning the bus network is
an opportunity to immediately improve transit service for the largest number of people. That's why,
over a two-year period, Transit Alliance Miami developed a redesigned bus network for Miami -Dade
County based on community input and a data -driven process. The Board of County Commissioners
unanimously approved the proposed Better Bus Network in October 2021; this new network is
expected to launch mid-2022. As a next step, Transit Alliance is supporting pilot dedicated bus lanes
to determine how to make them faster, more reliable, and more competitive against car travel.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Goal 2: RENEWABLE ENERGY
Electricity in Miami is used to cool and heat buildings, provide lighting, heat water, and power
appliances among other activities. Florida Power and Light (FPL) is the primary electricity provider in
Miami, while some residents and businesses also generate their own electricity through on -site
renewables like solar power. In 2018, 24.5% of FPL's electricity was generated from carbon -free fuel
sources: 1.5% renewables and 23% nuclear. As carbon -based sources currently make up the majority of
the electric grid's fuel mix that powers Miami's high electricity consumption, electricity use was
responsible for more than half (52%) of the city's total GHG emissions in 2018. To reduce these
emissions and ensure that transportation and building electrification programs reach their maximum
potential, Miami's electricity sources must be 100% carbon -free by 2035. This goal is in alignment with
the Biden administration's stated goals and will work in concert with the Miami -Dade County Climate
Action Strategy approach to expand on -site and off -site renewable energy generation.
FPL projects that its electric grid mix will be 37% carbon -free (17% from renewables) by 2029. To provide
100% carbon -free electricity to residents and businesses, Miami needs to drastically increase the
amount of local renewable energy development, encourage a higher carbon -free electric mix from FPL,
and promote solar -friendly policies at the state level. The City will also monitor climate action from the
Biden administration, including its goal to achieve 100% carbon -free electricity in the national power
sector by 2035. The achievement of this goal is an underlying assumption of this report and the City's
carbon neutrality pathway; therefore, national leadership is essential for the City to reach its goal. This
assumption helped to highlight the remaining reductions that are needed from City and regional actions
after this sector is fully addressed. On -site photovoltaics, energy storage, and solar thermal hot water
can not only assist the clean energy transition but also save constituents money and create greater
energy resilience.
New Green Economy
Today, the renewable energy industry in Miami provides over 400 jobs, which is Tess than 30% of the
total jobs in Miami's energy sector. However, renewable energy jobs have grown by 16% in the past
decade, showing that there is consistent local growth in this industry.11This growth is driven by
purchases from Miami's traditional industry sectors (e.g., government, healthcare, tourism). In 2019,
traditional industries spent nearly $600 million on renewable energy in Miami. The actions listed
below both support GHG reductions and increase demand for renewable energy, which will increase
demand for renewable energy jobs.
In Miami, natural gas is primarily used in buildings for water heating, space heating, and cooking.
Though only 5% of total emissions in 2018 came from natural gas use in buildings, the building sector is
one area where the City has relatively high regulatory control and all emissions sources will need to be
addressed to achieve Miami's carbon neutrality goal. By increasing building efficiency, electrifying
building systems or powering with zero -carbon energy sources and ensuring that the electric grid is
100% carbon -free, Miami can achieve net zero building sector emissions.
11 AECOM analysis, Emsi 2019 industry data.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
The number of buildings in Miami — homes, offices, stores — is also projected to increase to meet
demands of the growing population and workforce. The longer this new construction is permitted to
install mixed -fuel systems (e.g., natural gas and electric appliances/equipment), the more building
retrofits will be required in the future to achieve the carbon neutrality target. Therefore, it is in the
City's best interest to minimize the development of new natural gas pipelines and connections to avoid
these future emission sources altogether.
Objective: 100% carbon free electricity by 2035
City Authority:
• The City of Miami cannot directly control the utility fuel mix but does have control over our own
buildings and parcels (GSA and DREAM), as well as the zoning code and building permits that can
influence building requirements to an extent (Planning Dept). We can leverage this influence to
expand solar photovoltaic and solar thermal systems and grow municipal on -site solar and
storage capacity.
Objective: 35% reduction in on -site natural gas emissions compared to 2018 levels by 2035
City Authority:
• In 2021 the state of Florida passed legislation that limits local governments' ability to enact or
enforce any policies that restrict or prohibit the types or fuel sources of energy production.l2
Though the City cannot require our residents to replace their existing natural gas systems, we
can encourage and incentivize upgrading to electric appliances, use of carbon -free energy
sources, and the construction of net zero buildings. Meeting this objective will depend heavily
on voluntary action by residents and buildings owners but can be further encouraged with City -
provided incentives. This objective also includes a target of 5% net zero emissions new
construction by 2035. Via Miami21 and the permit process (Planning and Building Dept), the City
can regulate new construction. In addition, the City holds its own franchise agreements with
natural gas providers.
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
R-1: Starting in 2024, require
all new buildings to be solar-
ready and storage -ready.
This requirement would also apply to
existing buildings at the time of substantial
retrofit. In the future, the policy could be
expanded to require new buildings to
install solar. Installing a storage -ready solar
Resilient305
ACTION 16: Expand
Renewable Energy
12 SB 1128/HB 919, https://www.flsenate.gov/Session/Bill/2021/919/BillText/er/PDF
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
system will reduce future battery
installation costs.
R-2: Join FPL SolarTogether
program to purchase City's
building electricity from
solar.
To support utility -level solar and address
emissions from City buildings, the City can
purchase its electricity from installed solar
from FPL. The program will open to cities
for enrollment in 2022-2024.
R-3: Promote community
participation in FPL
SolarTogether program,
especially among renters, to
purchase 100% of their
electricity from solar.
SolarTogether is a community solar
program that allows customers to
voluntarily pay a monthly premium for
solar electricity and later receive credits for
savings produced by the program. The
program increases access to solar for those
who cannot directly install it.
Resilient305
ACTION 16: Expand
Renewable Energy
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Resilient305 / Miami
Actions
Action Details
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
R-4: Provide additional
Solar incentives are necessary to
Resilient305
policy and financial
encourage residents and businesses to
incentives to encourage
voluntarily install solar. The City will need
ACTION 16: Expand
private solar installations
to engage the development community to
Renewable Energy
and identify incentives that
understand new areas of opportunity in the
would appeal to owners of
Zoning code as the City already has solar -
affordable housing. $$
friendly permitting. In addition, the City
can promote existing financing pathways
including Property Assessed Clean Energy
(PACE), Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF),
and Solar United Neighbors (SUN) Co-op.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
R-5: Install solar and storage
in public buildings or parking
structures where feasible,
prioritizing critical facilities.
Resilience Hubs can be used as solar pilot
locations to showcase solar and storage
systems within a facility designated
to provide critical services during power
outages. First step will be feasibility
assessments for selected facilities.
Resilient305
ACTION 16: Expand
Renewable Energy
ACTION 38: Support
Resilience Hubs
ACTION 57: Leverage
the Power of
Purchasing
R-6: Partner with community
organizations such as local
non -profits, trade
organizations, and electric
and gas utilities, to develop a
building electrification
education program to
provide information and
technical assistance. $$
As building carbon -free may be a new
concept to property owners and
contractors, a comprehensive program is
needed to guide citywide carbon -free
building projects. This program may include
a PSA campaign on the benefits of carbon -
free energy and resources to provide
information about relative benefits of
carbon -free energy choices. Resources will
be split between new construction and
renovation projects.
FPL SolarTogether
In 2019, Florida Power and Light (FPL) announced their 30-by-30 plan to install more than 30 million
solar panels by 2030. By 2030, FPL projects that 40% of their fuel mix will be carbon -free with solar
accounting for 16%.13 To help meet their goal, FPL launched the SolarTogether program wherein
customers can subscribe and meet up to 100% of their energy usage from solar generated at FPL's
current and future Solar Energy Centers — one of which is located in Miami -Dade County. Both utility -
grade solar and rooftop solar thermal and photovoltaics are essential to reaching carbon neutrality.
Building Decarbonization
The building sector makes up 55% of City of Miami's greenhouse gas emissions. To decarbonize the
building sector and get to zero greenhouse gas emissions, cities must electrify appliances, end use of
fossil fuels on -site, and increase energy efficiency. Despite projected growth in population, square
footage, and energy use, continued efficiency improvements, are projected to largely avoid emissions
growth in the commercial sector and drive modest emissions reductions in the residential sector,
13 https://source.fpl.com/company/pdf/10-year-site-planl.pdf
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
through 2050.14The remaining emissions can be mitigated through electric appliances that are
powered by carbon -free energy.
14 Decarbonizing U.S. Buildings I Center for Climate and Energy Solutions:
https://www.c2es.org/document/decarbonizing-u-s-buildings/
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Most of Miami's private vehicle trips are from gas and diesel vehicles. Understanding that not everyone
can use public transit or active transportation options, these vehicles must be electrified and powered
with 100% carbon -free energy if we are to meet our carbon neutrality goal. Miami has set a objective of
electrifying 40% of registered passenger vehicles compared to 2018 levels by 2035, which works in
tandem with Goal 2: Renewable Energy as the greenhouse gas reduction potential of EVs is dependent
on the fuel source for the electricity used to charge vehicles. This goal is in alignment and will work in
concert with the Miami -Dade County Climate Action Strategy goals to electrify the County fleet and shift
30% of community vehicles to electric by 2030.
Objective: 40% of registered passenger vehicles are electric by 2035*
* Using County data as proxy for City until better data sources are available
City Authority:
• The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) comes down to consumer choice, but the City can help
create a hospitable market and ecosystem that makes buying and owning an EV easier and more
attractive. Miami Parking Authority is a quasi -jurisdictional entity of the City of Miami and is
therefore a reliable partner in the expansion of EV chargers in public parking. Miami21 can set
requirements for new construction but existing parking, especially privately owned, is more
challenging. Lastly, the City has full control over its own fleet (GSA), which includes the trolley
system (RPW), but does not own or operate the Metrobus system or public school buses.
New Green Economy
Critical to accelerating EV adoption will be the availability charging station infrastructure, electricians
to support charging station infrastructure, and technicians to support EV maintenance. With more EVs
scheduled to arrive in the market within the next year and car companies transitioning to all -electric
vehicle stocks, demand for EV mechanics is already expected to grow in the coming years, and the
actions presented below will further catalyze this demand. Mechanics, particularly bus and truck
mechanics, make well above the living wage ($24 per hour compared to the living wage of $18 per
hour), so increased demand for these jobs will create important opportunities for Miami's workforce.
While Miami -Dade College already offers an EV mechanic training program, additional training
programs could be offered, along with targeted marketing and recruitment strategies. Likewise,
increasing awareness of the opportunities and benefits of the electrical trade, and specifically the EV
charging station certification, including the trade's wage and growth benefits, will ensure that Miami
has a workforce that is able to support widespread EV adoption.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
EV-1: Develop EV Master Plan
to support the growth of
electric vehicle ownership.
A Master Plan would help the City
anticipate and support the growing
electric vehicle market. Through this
process, the City would develop
private sector partners, policies,
metrics, and an expanded charger
network map. Overall, this plan should
help the City understand what
supporting infrastructure is needed
and where.
Resilient305
ACTION 12: Develop
Mobility Hubs in the 305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
EV-2: Develop technical
guidance for building
owners/managers to
facilitate in EV charging
infrastructure installations in
existing buildings.
Technical barriers to installing EV
chargers can be overcome with the
proper guidance and troubleshooting
related to common building
types/challenges in Miami. Additional
guidance will be provided to help
private fleets transition to EVs.
Resilient305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
EV-3: Partner with major
employers and multifamily
building owners to install EV
chargers in parking
lots/garages. $$
Key employers include hospitals,
banks, universities, and more. The City
can provide free and/or expedited
permitting.
Resilient305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
ACTION 57: Leverage the
Power of Purchasing
EV-4: Build on EV Capability
Ordinance to require EV
charger installations in new
developments starting in
2025. $$
The current EV Capability Ordinance
requires new construction over a
certain size to install EV-ready spaces
for 20% of new off-street parking.
Miami could expand upon this
ordinance to require the installation of
EV chargers.
Resilient305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
EV-5: Partner with existing
electric vehicle non -profits to
promotepublic awareness of
the benefits and real costs of
EV purchasing and ownership,
especially addressing low -
This campaign includes promoting
awareness on the typical cost of EV
chargers, cost of charging,chargingACTION
g
locations, life -cycle comparisons,
Resilient305
15: It's Electric
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
income drivers and their
concerns.
incentives, approved vendors,
dealerships, and test drive events.
PHASE 3 (7+ YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
EV-6: Electrify 100% of public
vehicle fleet, including
trolleys by 2035.
The City will work with the
Electrification Coalition and other
technical support teams to develop an
EV transition plan. The City will
develop information on lessons
learned through this process to share
with private fleet managers.
Emergency response vehicles have
been excluded in the near -term, but
they will upgrade when feasible.
Resilient305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
MFCR
Goal 1 Phase 2: Conduct a
fleet analysis to determine
best vehicles for future
electric vehicle (EV)
changeover.
Goal 4 Phase 2: Support
expansion of EVs by
installing EV charging
stations at City -owned
properties and changing
over fleet vehicles to EVs
when possible.
EV-7: Evaluate the potential to
implement a low emission
zone in the urban core.
A low emissions zone is a defined area
where access by some polluting
vehicles is limited. This would promote
the use of EVs, alternative fuel
vehicles, and active transportation
options in downtown areas.
Resilient305
ACTION 12: Develop
Mobility Hubs in the 305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
EV-8: Evaluate implementing
an electric vehicle -sharing
program within
This action increases access and
familiarizes EVs in low-income
neighborhoods and areas of low car
Resilient305
ACTION 15: It's Electric
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 3 (7+ YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
neighborhoods with low car
ownership.
ownership. Los Angeles and
Sacramento have similar equity -
focused EV carshare programs.
Coral Gables Electric Vehicle Fleet
Since 2016, the City of Coral Gables has added over 65 electric vehicles to its city fleet, making it one
of the largest government EV fleets in the state. This equates to over 12% of its City fleet being
electric, which ranks it near the top of EV fleets around the Country. As part of the City's 10-year
Sustainability Management Plan, Coral Gables continues to add to it EV fleet each fiscal year with a
established a goal of 78 EVs, which represents 60% of their administrative fleet. The City purchases
these EVs via a statewide procurement contract and has supported the fleet by installing dedicated
EV support equipment at its maintenance facility, City Hall parking lot, municipal parking garages, and
surface parking lots. The City has been able to fund this through its annual vehicle replacement
budget. To date, the City has installed over 34 charging points throughout the City, with a goal of
expanding to 52 charging points. Similar to City of Miami, the City updated its zoning code in 2019 to
require any new developments with 20 or more off-street spaces to require 2% of the parking spaces
for EV's with the associated charging stations; 3% be "EV Ready" with the infrastructure installed
except EV station and 15% be "EV Capable" with the conduit run with capacity in electrical panels. All
of these actions have enabled and inspired the community to start transitioning away from traditional
gasoline powered vehicles.
EV Car Sharing Programs
Cities across the country are launching electric vehicle (EV) car sharing programs as a way to socialize
EVs with residents, reduce tailpipe emissions, and provide a transportation option to those who do
not own a vehicle. Many of these programs have also included equity considerations and investments
like sliding -scale payments for low-income residents and installation of EV chargers in neighborhoods
that have more low-income residents and lower air quality due to transportation pollution. Notable
programs include Boston's Good2Go, Colorado Carshare, Los Angeles' partnership with BlueLA, and
the Twin Cities Electric Vehicle Mobility Network. St. Louis launched a program in summer 2020 called
St. Louis Vehicle Electrification Rides for Seniors (SILVERS) which granted electric vehicles to social
service agencies that serve low-income seniors to help them run errands.
Low Emission Zones
Low emission zones (LEZs) and clean air zones are at the center of many cities' efforts to tackle the
related problems of air pollution, greenhouse gas emissions and traffic congestion. Zones are
powerful tools for enacting policies within a designated zone, rather than a whole city, which can
allow for cities to pilot innovative policies. In 2008, London began a Low Emission Zone program in
the urban core focused on diesel emitting vehicles. The program was enhanced to create a stricter
Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) in London's inner cordon in 2019 wherein only vehicles that meet
Page 33
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
strict emissions standards (electric, hydrogen, and plug-in hybrids) are from the ULEZ charge. A 2019
impact evaluation of the ULEZ six month after it was launched indicated that 13,500 fewer polluting
cars were being driven into central London every day and there was a significant drop in harmful air
pollution.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Goal 4: ENERGY EFFICIENCY
56% of Miami's citywide emissions come from building energy use via electricity and on -site natural gas.
Increasing energy efficiency is the first and easiest step to reducing building emissions. This can be done
by replacing inefficient appliances, ensuring mechanical and electrical systems are properly maintained,
using intelligent monitoring and control systems, or simply changing occupant behaviors.
The buildings sector is one area where the City has relatively high regulatory control. Though increasing
building efficiency will depend heavily on voluntary action by residents and buildings owners, the City
can implement building transparency and performance standards that would require certain buildings to
demonstrate emissions reductions through energy efficiency projects or other retrofits. This goal is in
alignment and will work in concert with the Miami -Dade County Climate Action Strategy approaches to
benchmark, retune, and retrofit existing buildings and to build ultra -low energy buildings.
Objective: Improve energy efficiency in buildings to decrease overall energy consumption and
support achievement of Goal 2: Renewable Energy's
City Authority:
• The Florida Building Commission adopts and updates the Florida Building Code, which sets
minimum energy efficiency requirements in all new buildings and buildings undergoing major
renovations. The Miami Building Department enforces the Code and can also require higher
levels of compliance through the City's Zoning Code, Miami21.
New Green Economy
The green buildings sector, which includes energy efficiency contractors, electricians, and other
specialty contractors, accounts for 35% of Miami's green jobs. Today's green building sector is the
result of traditional industries investing in green buildings and retrofits. In 2019, traditional industries
spent over $2 billion in Miami's green buildings industry. The buildings sector also offers the
opportunity for the growth in green jobs: green building jobs are currently just 13% of all buildings
jobs, leaving 87% of jobs in this industry with the opportunity to become green. As implementation of
the GHG Plan takes off and demand for green buildings and retrofits grows, there will be
corresponding demand for specialty contractors. Miami's workforce will need to be prepared to fill
these green buildings jobs or otherwise risk losing them to people outside the region. It will be critical
for the City and economic development actors to market green jobs in the buildings industry,
particularly to young people, and to develop and expand training pathways tailored to these jobs.
New or expanded green workforce development opportunities will need to offer training to people
entering the workforce and to re-skilling those already within the buildings and construction industry.
Since these jobs tend to pay at or above the living wage, special attention should be given to
recruiting and training potential employees from historically underinvested and climate justice
communities.
'The Energy Efficiency sub -goal will be quantified once more information is gathered via the BE305 program.
Page 35
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
E-1: Implement Building
Efficiency 305 (BE305)
program requiring
energy benchmarking
and disclosure for
commercial, multi -family
residential, and City of
Miami municipal
buildings over 20,000 sq.
ft. $$
Tracking and reporting energy
consumption is the first step to
understanding GHG reduction
opportunities in buildings. Larger buildings
produce a higher percentage of GHG
emissions, so they are targeted through
these actions. Implementation would
include the education and training of
building owners.
Resilient305
ACTION 17: Building
Efficiency 305
MFCR
Goal 4 Phase 1: Institute
Building Efficiency 305
Program
E-2: Improve public
benefits and green
buildings tracking to
increase program
participation and
impact.
Currently, there is a lack of centralized
information about LEED certified buildings,
cool roofs, installed rooftop solar and more
that can help the City understand how the
built environment is responding to climate
change. We need to understand the impact
and implementation of our current policies
if green building requirements are to
expand.
Resilient305
ACTION 17: Building
Efficiency 305
MFCR
Goal 5 Phase 1: Increase
enforcement of existing
requirement for buildings
over 50,000 sq. ft. to be
LEED certified or
equivalent.
Goal 5 Phase 1: Refine
application and review
process for Special Area
Plans (SAP) and
development on City -
owned property
E-3: Require all new
public buildings to be
built to zero net energy
Requiring all -electric, zero net energy new
public building construction would help
demonstrate the feasibility of net zero
Resilient305
ACTION 17: Building
Efficiency 305
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
standards starting in
2025.
construction in Miami and allow the City to
lead by example.
ACTION 21: Train for
Construction
MFCR
Goal 4 Phase 1: Refine
design criteria for ensuring
new capital projects are
designed and constructed
with triple bottom line
performance goals.
E-4: Adopt a residential,
single-family home
energy rating and
disclosure ordinance. $$
A home energy rating identifies
opportunities for energy improvement to
homeowners and sends market
signals about the benefits of building
efficiency. Low-income populations will
need financial assistance to improve their
ratings.
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Resilient305 / Miami
Actions
Action Details
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
E-5: Adopt building
Implementing an energy or emission
Resilient305
performance standard
performance standard is the next step
for commercial, multi-
after adopting a benchmarking and
ACTION 17: Building
family residential, and
reporting ordinance. Large building owners
Efficiency 305
City of Miami municipal
will be required to meet energy or GHG
ACTION 37: Prepare Your
buildings over 20,000 sq.
reduction targets over a set period.
Property
ft. $$
Compliance measures can include periodic
audits and retro-commissioning. Certain
performance requirements could also be
met at point of sale or lease. Fines can be
implemented for non -compliant buildings
that can be used to help fund retrofits,
audits, retro-commissioning, etc.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
E-6: Establish residential,
single-family home
energy conservation
requirements. $$
Residential property owners would be
required to make energy conservation
improvements in their homes, potentially
at the point of property sale or
lease. Implementation could include a
prescriptive list of improvements, a list
of options for user selection, and/or a
maximum investment threshold. Low-
income populations will need financial
assistance to help with compliance. Similar
policies, called Residential Energy
Conservation Ordinances (RECOs), have
been passed in other cities.
E-7: Develop energy
reduction targets for City
of Miami municipal
buildings.
Once City of Miami better understands and
tracks the energy use of its buildings, we
can set informed goals on energy reduction
and determine most impactful strategies
for achievement.
MFCR
Goal 1 Phase 1: Establish
GHG emission reduction
goals and develop
multiyear action plan for
both City operations and
communitywide.
E-8: Provide incentives
for construction firms to
use locally -sourced
materials with low-
embodied carbon and
high -efficiency fixtures.
This action will contribute to local
economic growth, reduce emissions from
transporting materials, and reduce
operational emissions from the use of
efficient fixtures.
Resilient305
Action 23: Buy Local
PHASE 3 (7+ YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
E-9: Make all non-
emergency energy use in
existing public buildings
carbon -free by 2035.
Energy assets will be inventoried with
feasibility analysis for carbon -free
replacements, and appliance/equipment
replacements will be planned in the capital
Page 38
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 3 (7+ YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 / Miami
Forever Climate Ready
Alignment
Explore and adopt as
much carbon -free
emergency energy
generation and storage
as possible. $$
spending budget. As the City has leased
many of its buildings, green initiatives in
lease agreements can be considered.
Residential Energy Conservation Ordinances (RECO)
Residential Energy Conservation Ordinances (RECOs) typically mandate that a home meet certain
energy (and often water) efficiency requirements and establish a process for verifying that such
standards have been satisfied. Property owners can comply with a RECO by meeting a prescriptive
checklist of energy efficiency and water conservation measures and undergoing a verification
inspection by a certified inspector. A RECO can be designed to establish different actions that initiate
the compliance process, such as sale of the property, the rental license inspection process, when the
property undergoes significant renovation, or as part of a safety inspection. Examples of cities with
RECOs or similar programs include: San Francisco, CA; Burlington, VT; and Ann Arbor, MI.
Building Efficiency 305 (BE305)
Building energy consumption accounts for 55% of City of Miami's GHG emissions, and buildings waste
up to 30% of energy and water due to inefficiencies and poor operations. Just 2% of buildings are over
20,000 but they account for over 40% of the floor space. BE305, requires these large buildings to
track their energy and water consumption so they can use this information to eliminate inefficiencies:
saving owners and residents money, reducing carbon footprints, and easing the transition to
renewable energy. The program is projected to save buildings owners and residents over $60 million
by the end of 2030.
Page 39
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Goal 5: NEW GREEN ECONuiv►
Miami's economy will necessarily be transformed by the implementation of the GHG Plan and broader
resilience goals. For Miami's climate mitigation and adaptation efforts to be successful, residents and
businesses must economically benefit from the green policies, programs, and investments, which have
the potential to accelerate job growth and encourage economic diversification in addition to achieving
GHG mitigation goals and adapting to climate change. For this reason, the New Green Economy is a
central tenant of Miami Forever Carbon Neutral in anticipation of the way Miami's climate actions will
help drive an emerging economic sector and diversify the local economy. Growing a New Green
Economy — and, thus, achieving our GHG targets and resilience goals - requires building out Miami's
green economy ecosystem.
Today, Miami's green economy ecosystem includes many actors that are operating, for the most part,
independently of one another and without a supportive ecosystem helping them to grow, hire, increase
their impacts on the local economy and provide equitable opportunities. Our goal is to ensure that
green industries have a pathway for growth and that the City plays an active role in paving the way for
new green economic growth and employment. This includes preparing underemployed workers for new
green opportunities, engaging with the current and potential green job holders, fostering connections
between stakeholders, and building business and workforce training capacity and synergies across the
entire ecosystem.
While the New Green Economy actions will be implemented by the City, efforts to grow the green
economy need to involve the Greater Miami region and its economic and workforce development
institutions, including the Beacon Council, the Chamber of Commerce, plus a deep bench of colleges,
universities, and foundations. All these actors are already active in Miami's green economy ecosystem in
some sort of capacity, either by supporting workforce and educational development, recruiting green
industries, or funding community needs. Proposed actions for partners are included in Appendix A.
Objective: Grow the Green Economy Ecosystem
Objective: Recruit and Retain a Green Workforce
Objective: Open Occupational Pathways
Objective: Welcome and Support Green Industry
City Authority:
• Just as the City of Miami faces practical constraints on its ability to influence all GHG emissions,
the City has similar constraints on its ability to direct and influence the local economy. We can
directly make change through a few select channels. For example, we can play an impactful role
in creating demand for green goods and services by purchasing those items for City use (such as
EVs, EV infrastructure, and building retrofits), investing in green goods and services for public
use (such as sustainable transportation and EV infrastructure), making GHG-friendly
requirements through permitting and contracting, and through partnerships. The City of Miami -
led New Green Economy actions leverage the City's existing resources (e.g., staff), programs
(e.g., Summer Youth Connect program, Opportunity Center), authority (e.g., zoning and
procurement), and regional leadership to influence Miami's economy.
Page 40
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Action
Action Details
Resilient 305 & Miami Forever
Climate Ready Alignment
NE-1: Work with regional
partners to identify a regional
green economy champion and
align resilience and adaptation
goals.
While ecosystems are not created
overnight, coalition building with regional
partners, including Miami Dade County,
Beacon Council, the Chamber of
Commerce, CareerSource, and non
governmental organizations (NGOs), to
identify a green economy champion and
align resilience and adaptation goals from
Resilient305, Miami Forever Climate
Ready, and Miami Forever Carbon
Neutral to intentionally foster creation of
a functioning, inclusive ecosystem which
advances equity and opportunity through
innovation. This "champion" will need to
have long-term staying power, credibility
with a broad array of stakeholder groups,
an intense focus on the green economy
and climate justice, and access to
operational funding.
R305: Action 20: Build an
Inclusive Economy,
Action 21: Train for
Construction, &
Action 27: Expand Youth Career
Opportunities
MFCR: Goal 1: Ensure decisions
are data -driven and human
centered Goal 2: Inform,
prepare, and engage our
residents and businesses
NE-2: Dedicate staff to
support green economic
development goals and
implementation of the GHG
Plan.
Dedicate additional full-time equivalent
(FTE) employee capacity within existing
City departments (planning, resiliency,
housing & community development) to
support the green economy champion
and to lead the City's role in growing the
green economy ecosystem (which
includes the actions detailed in this
table).
NE-3: Develop a plan for
expanded, permanent
economic development
capacity.
Develop business model for expanded
City -level economic development
capacity, either as a city department or as
a public private partnership, to sustain
development of a functioning green
economy ecosystem, including economic
development incentives and workforce
development resources to support career
and training pathways. This would build
upon Venture Miami efforts.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
NE-4: Develop green economy
performance metrics.
Performance metrics are essential in
placing climate investments and
associated job creation in a broader
economic, social, and environmental
context, and documenting progress
toward future goals. The metrics
identified in the GHG Plan (e.g., the
number of Electric Vehicles in use) will
serve as a proxy for measuring the new
green economy. The City will develop
separate metrics for tracking equity
goals, including demographic makeup of
industries and occupations, workforce
training recruitment and participation,
and employment retention.
NE-5: Offer relevant job
The City's Opportunity Center and other
R305: Action 20: Build an
trainings through the
training entities can partner with local
Inclusive Economy,
Opportunity Center and
connect job seekers to local
employers.
green businesses to surface job orders,
locate trainings in the City, and prioritize
Action 21: Train for
Construction
recruiting displaced, underemployed, or
MFCR: Goal 1: Ensure decisions
unemployed workers from climate justice
are data -driven and human -
communities. Through this process the
City will gain a better understanding of
centered, Goal 2: Inform,
prepare, and engage our
barriers to employment in the green
economy and build relationships with
workforce and education partners to
develop programming to bridge the
identified gaps.
residents and businesses
NE-6: Expand the Miami
Introducing Miami youth to green jobs,
Action 27: Expand Youth Career
Summer Jobs Connect
particularly jobs that offer living wages
Opportunities
program to include
internships that align with the
new green economy.
and long-term growth opportunities,
early in their career can ensure that
Miami has a supply of qualified workers
to support green economic growth and
climate action goals.
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Action
Action Details
R305 & Miami Forever Climate
Ready Alignment
Page 42
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
NE-7: Strengthen the City's
Update the language in Chapter 22.5 of
R305: Action 20: Build an
procurement requirements so
the City Code, Articles I and III, to require
Inclusive Economy, Action 57:
that green and sustainable are
City departments to purchase green
Leverage the Power of
not only the preferred option,
but the required option.
goods and services rather than consider
Purchasing
them.
MFCR: Goal 2: Inform, prepare,
and engage our residents and
NE-8: Facilitate expedited
Expedited review will reduce costs and
businesses
design and permitting review
encourage developers, contractors, and
of projects that will achieve
related businesses to pursue sustainable
Miami's GHG and resilience
goals.
opportunities.
NE-9: Preserve or enhance
Growth of Miami's green economy will
zoning that supports green
also change land use needs. It will be
industries.
important for the City to identify changes
in land -use needs and preserve or create
zoning that supports green industry
needs. Zoning that supports green
industries will also facilitate location -
based economic development strategies.
Formalize resilience and green economy
priorities in the City's comprehensive
plan.
Regional Carbon Neutrality Plans
In April 2021, Miami -Dade County Public Schools established of goal of 100% clean energy use by 2030 for
better student health and financially responsible stewardship. To achieve this goal, they established a Clean
Energy 2030 task force and will deliver an implementation plan no later than February 2022. In October 2021,
Miami -Dade County released their Climate Action Strategy, a communitywide plan to cut greenhouse gas
emissions 50% by 2030, while creating jobs, improving health, and enhancing quality of life. Both of these
commitments align with City of Miami's goals and the global goal of halving emissions by 2030 and reaching
global carbon neutrality by 2050. As City of Miami, Miami -Dade County Public Schools, and Miami -Dade County
all have large purchasing and political power, the collective influence of these commitments can positively push
Miami's economy towards greater sustainability and equity.
Page 43
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
ADDITIONAL ENABLING ACTIONS
As many emission sources are outside of the City's direct control or influence, enabling legislation and
programs are needed to significantly reduce these emissions. Miami can advocate for progressive
climate policies at the federal and state levels, or from utility providers, as well as create their own
programs that may indirectly provide emissions reductions, such as a jobs training program. Actions that
do not have separately quantified GHG reductions but are necessary to support City -led climate action
are included below.
Objective: Advocate and Educate
Objective: Integrate Climate into Governance
Objective: Reduce Solid Waste
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
A-1: Improve city data
on waste streams and
disposal. Establish a
per capita waste goal.
To better understand opportunities
for waste reduction, the City will
need an updated waste stream
characterization study and data from
private haulers who service multi-
family buildings and commercial
businesses. Miami -Dade County has a
goal to reduce landfill waste per
person by 50 by 2030.
Waste
Reduction
A-2: Train City
employees on
emerging resilient and
sustainable buildings
initiatives and
technologies including
solar PVs, energy
storage, EV charging,
energy efficiency,
electrification, and
climate adaptation
policies.
City staff need to be familiar with
green and resilient building practices
in order to facilitate permitting and
sustainable development. The City
will evaluate initial areas of
opportunity based on history of
permits and current policies.
Resilient305:
All Goals
ACTION 47: Train
Employees to Be
Resilient
MFCR
Goal 2 Phase 2:
Build staff capacity
by incentivizing
city employees to
pursue relevant
professional
certifications.
Page 44
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
A-3: Implement green
and sustainable special
events program.
Beginning with guidelines and then
transitioning to requirements, the
City will work with special events in
the City to generate less waste, use
more sustainable materials, and be
more energy efficient.
All Goals
A-4: Train City staff on
climate change.
Educating City staff on climate
change can help ensure that public
decisions are made with climate
considerations in mind. This training
is intended to cover the basics of the
issue and local impacts.
Resilient305:
All Goals
ACTION 47: Train
Employees to Be
Resilient
ACTION 48: RISE to
the Rescue
MFCR
Goal 2 Phase 1:
Inform, Prepare,
and Engage
Residents and
Businesses
(multiple actions)
A-5: Work with existing
advocacy organizations
and non -profits to
improve citywide
climate literacy and
awareness.
Literacy initiatives should go beyond
social media posts and achievements
should be communicated widely. The
City should provide funding to local
organizations to develop PSAs,
promote City initiatives, and educate
residents.
Resilient305:
All Goals
ACTION 48: RISE to
the Rescue
ACTION 40: Create
a K-12 Plan for
Resilience Literacy
MFCR
Goal 2 Phase 1:
Inform, Prepare,
and Engage
Residents and
Businesses
(multiple actions)
Page 45
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
A-6: Improve recycling
participation and
reduce contamination.
Recycling is required citywide;
participation is high but so is
contamination. Multi -family buildings
with more than three units and
commercial businesses must contract
recycling services through a private
waste hauler but not all do. The City
can provide information for residents
on how to get recycling started. In
addition, new information about
contamination in the City's recycling
stream will help determine metrics
and focus areas to improve the
quality of recycled items.
MFCR
Waste
Reduction
Goal 2 Phase 1:
Enhance existing
educational anti
litter and cleanup
programs and
implement data
based policies
A-7: Work with
community composting
organizations to
increase household
composting.
Composting greatly reduces the
emissions that come from landfilling
or combusting organic waste. Having
options such as backyard
composting, compost pickup/drop-
off and community composting at
City parks will help make composting
more accessible to residents.
Waste
Reduction
A-8: Help restaurants
and businesses reduce
their waste stream by
connecting them with
resources to reduce
single -use plastic,
integrate composting,
and recover and
redistribute surplus
food.
Single -use plastics are a major source
of marine debris and food waste is a
major source of landfill emissions.
Restaurants and businesses can
voluntarily opt to partner with a
number of local organizations who
can help educate them on the
environmental impacts of their waste
stream and provide guidance on how
to mitigate. The City can encourage
participation and promote these
opportunities.
Waste
Reduction
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
A-9: Lobby for climate-
forward policies at the
state and federal level.
Lobby the federal government, Public
Service Commission (PSC) and State
of Florida in support of policies and
funding that promote climate
resilience and carbon mitigation. The
PSC is responsible for regulating FPL
and the State is responsible for many
impactful policies and funding
programs including the Florida
Building Code.
Resilient305
Energy
Efficiency
and Carbon -
Free
Buildings
Carbon -free
Electricity
ACTION 17:
Building Efficiency
305
ACTION 16:
Expand Renewable
Energy
ACTION 17:
Building Efficiency
305
MFCR
Goal 5 Phase 2:
Advocate for
changes to the
Florida Building
Code and
participate in the
voting process to
further strengthen
flood risk
mitigation and
energy and water
efficiency
measures.
A-10: Advocate for
climate -forward policies
from FPL that support
carbon -free energy at
scale and energy
efficiency.
The City can use its soft power to
advocate for policies that make solar
more economical for customers and
encourage the utility towards utility-
scale clean energy as expeditiously as
possible. Additionally, the City can
advocate for energy efficiency
retrofit programs for low-income
households.
Resilient305
Carbon -free
Electricity
Energy
Efficiency
and Carbon -
Free
Buildings
ACTION 16:
Expand Renewable
Energy
MFCR
Goal 4 Phase 1:
Prioritize and
improve
coordination and
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
PHASE 1 (1-3 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
communications
with FPL around
protocols and
efforts to improve
energy grid
reliability.
PHASE 2 (4-6 YEARS)
Actions
Action Details
Resilient305 /
Miami Forever
Climate Ready
Alignment
GHG
Reduction
Alignment
A-11: Develop a
financial and technical
assistance program
that helps residents,
particularly low-
income, to pursue
climate action. $$
This action includes education,
investigating financial mechanisms
and revenue streams to fund
incentives and rebates, and technical
support. The City will work across
departments to develop easily
accessible guidance that span carbon
mitigation and climate resilience.
Resilient305
Energy
Efficiency
and Carbon -
Free
Buildings
ACTION 37:
Prepare Your
Property
A-12: Establish
construction and
demolition waste
diversion requirements.
Construction and demolition (C&D)
waste can be a substantial part of the
solid waste stream. Establishing
diversion requirements can ensure
C&D waste is reused or recycled.
Waste
Reduction
A-13: Develop end -of-
life requirements for
solar PV and other
relevant renewable
energy technologies,
including battery
storage.
Solar panels and batteries contain
toxic chemicals that can pollute the
environment and impact public
health if not disposed of properly.
Developing disposal or recycling
requirements for these items can
reduce their environmental damage
at end -of -life.
Waste
Reduction
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Action Summary
Goal 1: GETTING AROUND MIAMI
Goal 1 Actions:
G-1: Reduce emissions for City employee commute.
G-2: Collaborate with Miami -Dade County and local advocacy groups to increase utilization of biking as
a transit method by implementing the Bicycle Master Plan and expanding the number of protected,
green bikeways. $$
G-3: Expand micromobility options throughout the entire city including Citibikes, scooters, and electric
bikes. $$
G-4: Develop a Trolley Master Plan including a long-term vision for the program and route updates. $$
G-5: Build upon existing transit -oriented development policies in Miami21 to increase residential density,
access to goods and services, and decrease single -occupancy vehicle use focusing on areas surrounding
Metrorail stations.
G-6: Establish parking disincentives, such as parking maximums and dynamic parking prices, to
discourage the use of single occupancy gas vehicles.
G-7: Adopt transportation demand management ordinance to require certain employers and developers
to establish plans to reduce single -occupant vehicle use and traffic during peak hours among employees
and residents.
G-8: Work with partner entities to create bus lanes in strategic, key corridors. $$
G-9: Work with Miami -Dade County and local advocacy groups to increase utilization of public transit
through investments in safety, improving public transit literacy, and campaigns.
G-10: Improve pedestrian experience and safety through investments in sidewalks such as ADA
compliance measures and increasing number of crosswalks, especially in low -medium income areas. $$
Goal 2: RENEWABLE ENERGY
Goal 2 Actions:
R-1: Starting in 2024, require all new buildings to be solar -ready and storage -ready.
R-2: Join FPL SolarTogether program to purchase City's building electricity from solar.
R-3: Promote community participation in FPL SolarTogether program, especially among renters, to
purchase 100% of their electricity from solar.
R-4: Provide additional policy and financial incentives to encourage private solar installations and
identify incentives that would appeal to owners of affordable housing. $$
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
R-5: Install solar and storage in public buildings or parking structures where feasible, prioritizing critical
facilities.
R-6: Partner with community organizations such as local non -profits, trade organizations, and electric
and gas utilities, to develop a building electrification education program to provide information and
technical assistance. $$
Goal 3 Actions:
EV-1: Develop EV Master Plan to support the growth of electric vehicle ownership.
EV-2: Develop technical guidance for building owners/managers to facilitate in EV charging
infrastructure installations in existing buildings.
EV-3: Partner with major employers and multifamily building owners to install EV chargers in parking
lots/garages. $$
EV-4: Build on EV Capability Ordinance to require EV charger installations in new developments
starting in 2025. $$
EV-5: Partner with existing electric vehicle non -profits to promote public awareness of the benefits and
real costs of EV purchasing and ownership, especially addressing low-income drivers and their concerns.
EV-6: Electrify 100% of public vehicle fleet, including trolleys by 2035.
EV-7: Evaluate the potential to implement a low emission zone in the urban core.
EV-8: Evaluate implementing an electric vehicle -sharing program within neighborhoods with low car
ownership.
Goal 4: ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Goal 4 Actions:
E-1: Implement Building Efficiency 305 (BE305) program requiring energy benchmarking and disclosure
for commercial, multi -family residential, and City of Miami municipal buildings over 20,000 sq. ft. $$
E-2: Improve public benefits and green buildings tracking to increase program participation and
impact.
E-3: Require all new public buildings to be built to zero net energy standards starting in 2025.
E-4: Adopt a residential, single-family home energy rating and disclosure ordinance. $$
E-5: Adopt building performance standard for commercial, multi -family residential, and City of Miami
municipal buildings over 20,000 sq. ft. $$
E-6: Establish residential, single-family home energy conservation requirements. $$
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
E-7: Develop energy reduction targets for City of Miami municipal buildings.
E-8: Provide incentives for construction firms to use locally -sourced materials with low -embodied carbon
and high -efficiency fixtures.
E-9: Make all non -emergency energy use in existing public buildings carbon -free by 2035. Explore and
adopt as much carbon -free emergency energy generation and storage as possible.
NE-1: Work with regional partners, including Miami -Dade County, Beacon Council, and non -governmental
organizations (NGOs), to align sustainability and adaptation goals. $$
NE-2: Dedicate staff within existing City departments to support green economic development goals and
implementation of the GHG Plan. $$
NE-3: Develop a Mayor -approved plan for expanded, permanent economic development capacity. $$
NE-4: Strengthen the City's procurement requirements so that green and sustainable are not only the
preferred option, but the required option. $$
NE-5: Facilitate expedited design and permitting review of projects that will achieve Miami's GHG and
resilience goals. $$
NE-6: Preserve and increase flexibility of job -supportive land uses. $$
NE-7: Develop green economy performance metrics based on the GHG Implementation Plan. $$
NE-8: Expand the Miami Summer Jobs Connect program to include internships that align with green
economy. $$
Additional Enabling Actions
A-1: Improve city data on waste streams and disposal. Establish a per capita waste goal.
A-2: Train City employees on emerging resilient and sustainable buildings initiatives and technologies
including solar PVs, energy storage, EV charging, energy efficiency, electrification, and climate
adaptation policies.
A-3: Implement green and sustainable special events program.
A-4: Train City staff on climate change.
A-5: Work with existing advocacy organizations and non -profits to improve citywide climate literacy and
awareness.
A-6: Improve recycling participation and reduce contamination.
A-7: Work with community composting organizations to increase household composting.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
A-8: Help restaurants and businesses reduce their waste stream by connecting them with resources to
reduce single -use plastic, integrate composting, and recover and redistribute surplus food.
A-9: Lobby for climate -forward policies at the state and federal level.
A-10: Advocate for climate -forward policies from FPL that support carbon -free energy at scale and
energy efficiency.
A-11: Develop a financial and technical assistance program that helps residents, particularly low-
income, to pursue climate action. $$
A-12: Establish construction and demolition waste diversion requirements.
A-13: Develop end -of -life requirements for solar PV and other relevant renewable energy technologies,
including battery storage.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Chapter 4: Monitoring Progress and Next Steps
Successful GHG Plan implementation will require communitywide support — from residents, local
businesses, community organizations, City staff, and elected officials — as well as significant policy
support beyond the Miami community as described in this plan.
The City is committed to providing the necessary resources and technical support to ensure successful
plan implementation, including the following steps:
• Future GHG inventories — the City will prepare a GHG inventory every two years to support top -
down monitoring of total community emissions. These updates will also include comprehensive
action level updates on the GHG Plan and adaptation plan.
• Future plan updates — the City will also perform a comprehensive review of the GHG Plan every
five years, at most, to determine if updates are needed to reflect new information and revise its
approach, as needed, based on implementation monitoring results.
• Communication channels — the City will maintain communication with the public to facilitate
collaboration and accountability on plan implementation with residents, other community
stakeholders, and Miami -Dade County and adjacent cities.
o www.miamigov.com/climatechange will continue to serve as the City's central hub for
updates on all climate plans including Miami Forever Climate Ready.
o Progress on the Resilient305 strategy can be found at www.resilient305.com.
Implementation Monitoring Approach
When monitoring GHG Plan implementation, two evaluation considerations are important: total
community GHG emissions trends and individual action performance. GHG inventories will provide "top
down" information about the City's overall emission changes, in total and with more granularity at the
emissions sub -sector level. These inventories will be conducted every two years which allows for direct
comparison to the 2018 base year inventory and measurement of progress toward the City's 2035 and
2050 reduction targets. This information can help understand which of the Plan's goals are showing
progress and which aspects of the community's emissions are facing challenges.
It is also important to understand the effectiveness of each Plan objective and action, which can be
considered a "bottom up" evaluation approach. Evaluating progress of individual goals and actions will
improve the City's ability to manage and implement the GHG Plan, highlighting opportunities to
reinforce successful actions or the need to reevaluate or replace under -performing ones. These updates
will also be provided as part of the GHG inventory update.
To track objective and action performance, the City will need to collect important pieces of data that are
related to each. While some of the data may be available from existing reports or processes,
improvements in data collection will likely be needed to minimize City efforts during Plan monitoring.
We must establish data collection methods that are consistent, simplified, and integrated into daily
operations to support long-term Plan monitoring. We will evaluate methods for alignment with the
strategic plan and regular Clearpoint reporting, establishing scheduled status updates at internal
Resilience Action Forum meetings, and leveraging the Climate Resilience Committee for external
accountability.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
The City developed an implementation roadmap (see Appendix C) that provides further useful
information to support monitoring for the prioritized actions, including identification of lead
departments and implementation tracking metrics.
Tracking Our Goals
The Plan is organized around five overarching goals, including four quantitative objectives and five
qualitative objectives related to 2035 GHG target achievement. The following table provides a
framework for tracking GHG-reduction goal progress (excluding the New Economy goal as success
metrics have not yet been determined), including baseline information, implementation metrics, and
potential sources for each metric listed. The City will coordinate with staff to update progress on these
metrics every two years during their GHG inventory update.
Table 4.1— Goal Tracking
Goal 1: GETTING AROUND MIAMI
Objective: 15% less private vehicle trips compared to 2018 levels
Target: 72% of total trips are in private vehicles by 2035
Baseline Information
Implementation Metrics
Metric Sources
■ 85% passenger trips by private
vehicles (interpolated for 2018
from 2015 and 2045 County-
level data)
• Primary Metric: Percent of
passenger trips from
private vehicles
• Miami -Dade County TPO
Transportation SERPM Model
■ 70% of commuters drove
alone to work (2015-2019 City
of Miami ACS 5-Year Estimate
data)
• Supporting Metric:
Commuting travel mode
splits
• American Community Survey
5-Year Estimates —
Commuting Characteristics
Goal 2: RENEWABLE ENERGY
Objective: 100% carbon -free electricity
Target: 100% of electricity is generated by carbon -free sources such as solar, nuclear, and
wind/elimination of fossil fuels from the main electricity fuel mix by 2035
Objective: 35% reduction in on -site natural gas emissions compared to 2018 levels
Target: Reduce total natural gas emissions to 94,500 MTCO2e or less by 2035
Baseline Information
Implementation Metrics
Metric Sources
■ 2018 electric grid mix: 24.5%
carbon -free sources (1.5%
renewable sources, 23%
nuclear
■ Primary Metric: Electric
grid resource mix
• FPL
• Supporting Metric: City
solar installation permit
data with system kW
information
• Building Department
■ Residential on -site natural gas
— 3,748,422 therms consumed
in 2018
• Primary Metric: Residential
and commercial natural gas
therm consumption
• TECO, Florida City Gas
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
■ Commercial on -site natural gas
— 23,593,957 therms
consumed in 2018
■ Supporting Metrics:
• City building permit
data describing equipment
replacement and fuel
switching
• Permits for all -electric
new construction and
permits for mixed -fuel new
construction
• Building Department
Goal 3: ELECTRIC VEHICLES
Objective/target. 40% of registered passenger vehicles are electric*
Baseline Information
Implementation Metrics
Metric Sources
■ <1% registered vehicles are EV
(2020 County -level data)
• Primary Metrics:
• Total registered autos
and pickups
• % of all registered
autos that are electric
vehicles
• EV Hub — State and County
EV Registration Data
• FLHSMV — Registered Vehicle
and Vessel Report Statistics
■ Supporting Metric: City EV
charger installation permit
data
• Building Department
Goal 4: ENERGY EFFICIENCY
Objective: Improve energy efficiency in buildings to decrease overall energy consumption and support
achievement of Goal 2: Renewable Energy
Baseline Information
Implementation Metrics
Metric Sources
■ Residential:
• 3,748,422 therms
consumed in 2018 (on -site
natural gas)
• 2,100,317 MWh consumed
in 2018 (electricity)
■ Commercial:
• 23,593,957 therms
consumed in 2018 (on -site
natural gas)
• 3,330,062 MWh consumed
in 2018 (electricity)
• Primary Metrics:
• Residential and
commercial natural gas
therm consumption
• electricity MWh
consumption
• TECO, Florida City Gas, FPL
• Supporting Metrics: ACEEE
City Energy Efficiency
Scorecard
• ACEEE Website
* County -level data is the best readily available source currently known, but city -level sources may become
available in the future
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Remaining Emissions in 2050
Remaining Emissions Sources
Miami's GHG Plan shows how to reduce local emissions to the maximum extent feasible and focuses on
emissions reductions from the city's largest emissions sources, including building energy use,
transportation, and the electric grid. Currently, there are technological, regulatory, economic, and other
barriers that prohibit elimination of 100% of carbon emissions. Based on the city's emissions forecasts,
the aforementioned barriers, and the GHG actions presented in this plan, we are likely to still have
emissions in 2050 from several sources, shown in Figure 3.5, including:
tonnes CO2e/year
• passenger vehicles, trucks, and transit buses that have not converted to electric options yet
• natural gas cooking appliances in commercial (e.g., restaurants, hotels, schools) buildings
• natural gas used in the potable water supply
• fugitive emissions from natural gas distribution
• wastewater treatment activities
600,000
600,000
400,000
300,000
200,000
100,000
0
Figure 3.5 — Emissions Remaining in 2050
11.1On-road
11.2 Railways 0
11.3 Waterborne 0
0 0 0 0 0
11.4 Aviation
11.5 Off -road
III.1 Soli d waste
f4
v
O
O
111.3 Incineration
111.4 Wastewater .3.393
These sources represent the remaining emissions that need to be reduced or balanced by 2050 for the
City to demonstrate achievement of its carbon neutrality target, and total approximately 690,000 MT
CO2e/yr. Global best practices on how to balance these remaining emissions are currently in
development and the City will take a "wait -and -see" approach to determine what is the best solution
when the time approaches.
Barriers to GHG Reductio
There are multiple barriers to eliminating 100% of the City's carbon emissions; some are technological
while others will require additional funding or more complete market transformations to achieve
maximum reductions.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Figure 3.5 shows that the most significant remaining emissions are from on -road transportation, and
reflect continued gas and diesel use in a segment of the community vehicle fleet. To completely reduce
emissions in this sub -sector, all vehicles must be converted to EV or zero -emissions options. Current EV
forecasts anticipate accelerating use of this technology starting in the 2025-2030 timeframe, but only
predict 31% global fleet electrification by 2040 and do not anticipate 100% market penetration by
2050.16 And, it would be difficult for Miami to transition all private vehicles to electric options without
substantial external assistance in the form of aggressive state or federal legislation or generous financial
incentives that prompt residents and businesses to replace fossil fuel vehicles with EVs before their end
of useful life. While the City will continue to push for widespread vehicle electrification, a parallel focus
on reducing single occupancy vehicle use through increased transit and supportive land use
development patterns can also help to reduce the total number of vehicles that would need to be
electrified in the future. An additional barrier to full vehicle electrification is the City's lack of control
over public bus fleets, including Metrobus and school buses. Electrification efforts for these vehicles
have already begun with Miami -Dade Transit and Miami -Dade County Public Schools, and future Plan
updates will be able to reflect GHG reductions from these actions. Miami -Dade County's Climate Action
Strategy has committed to electrifying 50% of buses by 2030 and Miami -Dade County Schools has
committed to 100% clean energy use by 2030.
Because the City does not own or operate the public rail or bus fleets and lacks control over many of the
major arterial streets in the City, we ultimately have limited authority to influence transit service,
infrastructure expansion, or roadway design decisions to increase space for non -automotive travel.
These factors limit the City's ability to directly influence travel mode shift to transit, beyond partnership,
to overcome the limited regional vehicle travel reduction projections for 2035 and beyond.
In 2021, the state of Florida passed SB 1128/HB 919 that limits local governments' ability to enact or
enforce any policies that restrict or prohibit the types or fuel sources of energy production. Therefore,
Miami cannot restrict or ban the use of fossil fuels in buildings, which will delay the City's progress
toward electrification or using carbon -free energy sources. Because the City can no longer mandate the
use of certain fuels, we will need to invest heavily in programs that incentivize voluntary building
retrofits or net-zero/all-electric new construction.
Much like on -road emission sources, the City does not have direct control over its water supply or
wastewater treatment process and therefore has minimal opportunities to fully reduce these emissions.
Technological barriers in wastewater treatment can also limit opportunities to achieve zero emissions in
this category. Community efforts to reduce water consumption through water -efficient appliances or
other best practices could provide some related GHG reductions in these sub -sectors, but ultimately
decisions to fully reduce these emissions fall outside the City's direct control. Therefore, remaining
emissions in these sub -sectors are likely to be addressed through the approaches described in the next
section.
Many commercial businesses may prefer to use natural gas kitchen equipment over electric options
given high upfront costs to replace existing equipment, comfort and proficiency in using existing gas
equipment, or specific business needs that require gas equipment. The Plan focuses on encouraging
16 BloombergNEF Electric Vehicle Outlook 2020. https://about.bnef.com/electric-vehicle-
outlook/#:' :text=Passenger%20EV%20sales%20iumped%20from,sales%20spread%20to%20new%20markets
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
adoption of electric appliances at the end -of -useful -life of natural gas appliances, but the City is pre-
empted from enacting electrification requirements.
Finally, fugitive emissions from natural gas transmission and distribution are associated with leaks in an
infrastructure network maintained by utility companies and overseen by state and federal regulators.
The City's best option to reduce these emissions is to minimize use of natural gas citywide through
implementation of GHG Plan strategies. The City will also continue to work with utilities on improving
efficiency of these distribution systems to minimize leaks and fugitive emissions. Future GHG inventory
updates will help demonstrate how these actions have contributed to emissions reductions in this sub -
sector too.
Achieving Carbon Neutrality
Cities can demonstrate carbon neutrality in different ways, but each method generally tries to balance
any remaining emissions with actions that cancel out those emissions elsewhere. These actions can
include natural carbon sequestration (such as through forest restoration or regenerative agricultural
practices), industrial -based carbon removal and storage practices, or purchasing carbon credits from a
verified global marketplace to support GHG reduction activities occurring in other locations.
During Plan updates, the City will maintain channels of communication that support ongoing dialogue
among residents, community organizations, businesses, elected officials, and City staff. Part of this
conversation will include discussing community preferences for how we balance any remaining
emissions in 2050 to demonstrate achievement of our carbon neutrality target.
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Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Acknowledgements
The development of this plan was led by City of Miami's Department of Resilience and Public Works
Division of Resilience and Sustainability with key guidance and technical expertise from AECOM and C40
Cities. This plan would not be possible without the input, feedback, and collaboration of climate
champions in the Miami community and within City of Miami staff.
Individuals from the following organizations both contributed to this report and will be key partners as
City of Miami works towards carbon neutrality:
AECOM Florida International University
Allapattah CDC Florida Power and Light
Beacon Council Food Rescue South Florida
Brickell Energy Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce
Building Association of South Florida ICLEI
Building Owners and Managers Association JP Morgan Chase
C40 Cities Miami Climate Alliance
Catalyst Miami Miami -Dade County
City of Miami, especially the Resilience Action Miami -Dade Transportation Planning
Group Organization
City of Miami Beach Miami Parking Authority
City of Orlando Oojee
City of San Francisco Overtown Community Champions
CLEO Institute TECO Gas
Climate Resilience Committee Transit Alliance
Downtown Development Authority The Miami Foundation
Dream in Green University of Miami
Florida City Gas Ygrene
Lastly, thank you to all the members of the public who participated in our engagement opportunities
throughout the development of this plan and provided their feedback. Whether you live, work, play or
just care about the City of Miami, we appreciate your advocacy and encourage you to continue as we
work to build Miami forever and for all.
Page 59
Term
Definition
Baseline
Climate conditions or greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions snapshot against
which to begin tracking adaptation or reduction progress
Carbon -free
electricity/energy
Energy produced by a resource that generates no carbon emissions, such
as solar, nuclear, or hydroelectric
Carbon Neutral
GHG emissions have been reduced as much as possible and any remaining
emissions are completely cancelled out through offsetting or removed
through carbon dioxide removal (CDR)/emissions removal measures; also
known as net zero emissions
Greenhouse Gas
Gases that absorb and emit radiant energy within the thermal infrared
range, causing the greenhouse effect. The primary human -produced
greenhouse gases are carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide
Micromobility
Transportation by lightweight, low -speed vehicles such as scooters or
bicycles, either mechanical or electric
Mitigation
Reduction of annual GHG emissions from a source
Teleworking
A work arrangement in which employees do not commute or travel to a
central place of work, such as an office building, warehouse, or store; also
called remote working
Zero Carbon
No carbon emissions are being produced (e.g., zero -carbon electricity
could be provided by a 100% renewable energy supplier)
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Page 3
Acronyms
• °C = degrees Celsius
• °F = degrees Fahrenheit
• ADA = Americans with Disabilities Act
• ASAP = Action Selection and Prioritization
• BRT = Bus Rapid Transit
• CO2e/CO2eq = carbon dioxide equivalent
• CO2e/yr = carbon dioxide equivalent per year
• EV = electric vehicle
• EVSE = electric vehicle supply equipment
• GHG = greenhouse gas
• GHG Plan = Greenhouse Gas Plan
• HVAC = heating, ventilation, and air conditioning
• IPCC = United Nation's International Panel on Climate Change
• kWh = kilowatt-hour
• MFCR = Miami Forever Climate Ready
• MiPlan = Miami Climate Action Plan
• MT CO2e = metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent
• MWh = megawatt -hour
• PV = photovoltaic
• R305 = Resilient305
• TDM = Transportation Demand Management
• TOD = Transit Oriented Development
• tonne = Metric tonne (roughly 1.1 US tons)
Miami Forever Carbon Neutral
Page 4