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Encinitas sustainability staff previews draft Climate Action Plan update, highlights parks-related measures
Summary
Ryan Lampkin, the City of Encinitas sustainability analyst, presented the draft 2025 Climate Action Plan update to the Parks and Recreation Commission on March 18, outlining emissions, proposed 2030 and 2045 targets, and park‑relevant measures such as drought‑tolerant landscaping, tree planting and restrictions on gas landscaping equipment.
Ryan Lampkin, the City of Encinitas sustainability analyst, presented the draft 2025 Climate Action Plan update to the Parks and Recreation Commission on March 18, summarizing the emissions inventory, proposed targets and measures relevant to parks and open space.
The presentation said the plan uses 2016 as the greenhouse‑gas baseline and estimates the community emitted about 381,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide‑equivalent in that year. Lampkin said the draft sets a target of about 40% below the 2016 baseline by 2030 and 85% below the baseline by 2045 to align with state goals such as SB 32 and AB 1279.
Lampkin described the main sectors and high‑level strategies in the draft: building decarbonization to reduce natural gas consumption, increased renewable electricity, water‑efficiency measures, cleaner and more efficient transportation, zero‑emission equipment rules (including restrictions on gas landscape equipment), waste diversion and carbon sequestration through more tree planting. He highlighted several measures that apply directly to parks and public landscaping, including a measure (MWE‑1) to convert city‑owned landscape in parks and rights‑of‑way to drought‑tolerant or native species (5% of landscaping by 2030, 15% by 2045) and plant‑and‑maintain‑trees measures (MCS‑1).
Commissioners asked about the treatment of highway traffic and the scope of the city inventory. Lampkin said vehicle‑miles‑traveled (VMT) modeling used for the inventory only counts trips that begin or end in Encinitas, so pass‑through trips on I‑5 (for example) are not included in the city's inventory. Lampkin also said federal and state actions are incorporated into the forecast; the gray portion in the plan's forecast shows the remaining emissions the city would need to reduce to meet local targets.
The draft plan also proposes limiting gas‑powered landscape equipment beyond leaf blowers; Lampkin said an ordinance to limit other gas equipment would not begin until 2030 under the draft, and that incentives to help transition to electric equipment would be offered when an ordinance is adopted. The presentation noted litigation in California previously required the city to rescind an ordinance that would have required new buildings to be all‑electric; staff said the city is pursuing incentive‑based approaches that staff believes are legally supportable.
Lampkin reviewed implementation steps and next dates: the implementation cost analysis is being completed for the final document; a public comment period runs through April 11; a final workshop is planned for April 8; staff plans to take the draft to City Council on April 16, return to the Environmental Commission May 8 for a recommendation, and tentatively seek Council adoption May 28. He closed by inviting commission feedback and noting the draft is posted on the city website for review.
"A climate action plan or a CAP is a comprehensive roadmap for addressing climate change through goals and measures that aim to reduce community wide greenhouse gas emissions," Lampkin said during his opening remarks as he described the document's purpose.
The commission agreed to consider offering feedback at a future Parks and Recreation Commission meeting and to send comments to the sustainability division by the stated public comment deadline.
