Agenda Packets - 2013/02/04 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Program Design Recommendations provider of technical assistance) • Provide information resources on the program, including Web site • Promote information -sharing between program participants • Market and promote the program and the cities participating in the program The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCAs) Prevention and Assistance Division has conducted a number of activities that make them ideally suited for administering this program. This includes administering the Governor's Awards for Pollution Prevention, overseeing the Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP), and organizing the annual Eco Experience and Living Green Expo at the State Fairgrounds. The Division has active programs and expertise in greenhouse gas reduction, green building, energy, and local government assistance, most recently organizing with four local government associations a conference on local government opportunities for energy efficiency in St. Cloud. Over 325 staff and elected officials from cities, counties, schools, and townships attended this conference. It is anticipated that administering the program would take between 1.5 and 2 full time staff equivalents. Given the current economic environment, it is unlikely that new state funding would be made available for this effort. For this reason, it is recommended that the MPCA consolidate existing staff resources that provide assistance to local governments under the GreenStep Cities umbrella. These efforts could be further leveraged by organizing the program as a public- private partnership to fully utilize the potential of other groups that could help administer the program. While the MPCA would have primary control of the program, a public-private partnership would contribute significant involvement of nonprofits, businesses, academic institutions, and others with an interest in seeing the program 12 Minnesota GreenStep Cities Program Proposal succeed. The MCPA could help manage partner involvement through the creation of an advisory committee or committees to channel their participation. For example, the Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs) could play a key role. Over the past six years the Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs) have established a network of community members around the state who have helped develop clean energy projects, and who are promoting sustainability issues more broadly. We see CERTs as an organizing body to connect communities to the GreenStep Cities program and to encourage cities to take part in GreenStep as a simple, practical, effective way to kick-start sustainable development actions in both metro and smaller Greater Minnesota cities. CERTs could work to help cities track their progress and connect them to technical resources to implement best practices. The CERTs statewide presence and connections with technical resource providers can help build capacity of cities statewide to achieve these best practices. One possible initiative would be to have CERTs facilitate "Clean Energy Design Teams" as part of a city's GreenStep efforts to promote and mobilize community- wide participation. This would be modeled on the successful Minnesota Design Team program. Finally, CERTs can serve as a feedback mechanism to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and the Green Star Steering Committee, reporting challenges communities encounter as they work to implement select benchmarks, possible areas for program improvement, and success stories. CERTs could highlight city actions via case studies and their Monthly Update, and could help to ground -truth city actions and accomplishments. Utilities could also be important partners. Recent legislation has significantly increased utilities' need to develop programs that save energy. Because of its focus on greenhouse gas reduction and energy