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Fort Lauderdale outlines energy, stormwater and urban‑forest plans as state bill threatens net‑zero goal
Summary
City sustainability staff detailed solar, fleet electrification, water‑conservation and stormwater projects and described Urban Forestry Master Plan actions including tree‑preservation changes and mangrove restoration; staff warned House Bill 1217 could preempt the city's net‑zero target while allowing other efficiency work.
Fort Lauderdale’s Sustainability & Climate Resilience team on Wednesday presented a suite of programs intended to reduce city energy use, expand resiliency and grow the urban tree canopy — while warning that a pending state bill could limit how the city frames those goals.
"We set a net 0 goal in 2021," said Glenn Hadwin, sustainability manager, describing the city’s planning timeline and targets. He told the Parks & Recreation advisory board that the state legislature has passed what staff identified in the meeting as House Bill 1217 and that "this bill will effectively preempt our net 0 goal," though the city can still pursue energy‑efficiency measures.
Hadwin walked members through operational steps already in the Capital Improvement Program, including solar installations on municipal facilities (the fleet facility is an early candidate) and a fleet electrification analysis that compares total costs over seven years. "Over seven years, the fuel cost for electric vehicles would be about $1,000,000, whereas for gasoline it would be…
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