The Cambridge Net Zero Action Plan 5-Year Review and Update

Dear Reader, On the following pages you will find the latest and final version of the Cambridge Net Zero Action Plan 5- Year Review and Update. Much work has been done to reach this point. The original Net Zero Action Plan (NZAP) was adopted by City Council in 2015. The Plan included a commitment to review and update it every five years to ensure that it remains effective and responsive to current science, technology, policy, and social conditions.

The NZAP 5-year review process began in 2019 with staff and consultant-led technical analysis, followed by the selection of a Task Force in early 2020. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the start of the Task Force’s work to late 2020. The Task Force concluded its work in December 2021, producing a consensus based NZAP Update that forms the basis for this report. Early in 2022, the Task Force’s NZAP Update was submitted to the City Council and referred to the Council’s Health and Environment Committee.

We are grateful to the Committee Chair, Councillor Nolan, and Health and Environment Committee members, for their leadership and thorough review during three hearings over the course of the year to consider the Task Force’s work, incorporate input from the Climate Protection Action Committee (now the Cambridge Climate Committee), and provide additional feedback to strengthen the NZAP.

Community Development Department staff have worked with the Committee to update the document to reflect their feedback, building upon the NZAP Taskforce recommendations. Key changes from the Task Force recommendations include the following. Establish SMART goals for each action to increase accountability A priority of the NZAP update is to ensure accountability to ambitious and achievable goals for each action which can be tracked over time. To that end, this revision adds SMART goals for each action.

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Real, and Time-bound. Along with other indicators, progress towards the goals will be tracked as part of future NZAP annual progress reports. Adjust activity timelines to accelerate the pace of priority actions The urgency to act quickly to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to mitigate climate change continues to increase as climate impacts become ever more present and time to avoid tipping points decreases.

Therefore, all actions and activities were reviewed to seek opportunities to accelerate activity based on priority of action and impact. It is important to remember that the NZAP framework is designed to act together as a system, so while action will be taken as quickly as possible, there is a logical sequence to the actions that must also be followed for them to hold together.

Implementation of the updated NZAP is already underway, and progress will be tracked through annual reports. To stay in line with the original 5-year review timeline, the next comprehensive review and update will begin in 2025. While not far away, this pace of adjustment will help the NZAP keep up with quickly evolving science, technology, and societal conditions related to climate action.

We are grateful to all the stakeholders who contributed to this Plan, especially the members of the Net Zero Task Force, the Chair and members of the City Council’s Health and Environment Committee, and the Cambridge Climate Committee. We believe that this updated version of the NZAP reflects the input and guidance of all stakeholders, and it will serve as a valuable resource as we continue to work towards our sustainability goals. We look forward to our continued collaboration in the implementation of this Plan.

Sincerely,

Yi-An Huang

City Manager

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Acknowledgments

Executive Office

Yi-An Huang, City Manager

Owen O’Riordan, Deputy City Manager

City Council

Sumbul Siddiqui, Mayor

Alanna M. Mallon, Vice-Mayor

Burhan Azeem

Dennis J. Carlone Marc C. McGovern Patricia M. Nolan E. Denise Simmons Paul F. Toner Quinton Y. Zondervan

Net Zero Task Force Members

Henrietta Davis, Former Mayor/Representative of Cambridgeport

Peter Crawley, Representative of Cambridge Climate Protection Action Committee/East Cambridge

Gaurab Basu, Neighborhood Nine

Margery Davies, Mothers Out Front/Cambridgeport

Jan Devereux, Former Vice Mayor/Representative of Green Cambridge/West Cambridge

Adam Gould, Youth Representative/North Cambridge

David Adamian, West Cambridge

Kolin Loveless, Representative of Neighborhood Nine

Heather Henriksen, Harvard University

Julie Newman, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Rick Malmstrom, Alexandria Real Estate, Equities

Jane Carbone, Homeowners Rehab, Inc.

Ben Myers, Boston Properties

Eli Herman, Akelius Real Estate

Deborah Donovan, Takeda

Tom Evans, Cambridge Redevelopment Authority

Tom Sieniewicz, Cambridge Planning Board

Paul Lyons, Zapotec Energy

Andrea Love, Payette Architects

Chris Leary, Jacobs Architects/Kendall Square Association

Gabe Shapiro, All-In Energy

Steven Miller, Eversource

Dave Bisson, Resonant Energy

Lauren Baumann, New Ecology

Jen Stevenson Zepeda, Climable

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Community Development Department

Iram Farooq, Assistant City Manager for Community Development

Susanne Rasmussen, Director of Environmental and Transportation Planning

Seth Federspiel, Climate Program Manager

Thomas O’Neill, Sustainability Planner

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Table of contents

The Net Zero Action Plan Update has been completed

INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................................................................... 7 Background 7 Purpose and goals of the five-year review 9 Organization of report 10 APPROACH .................................................................................................................................................... 11

NZAP frameworks

11 2.2

Equity and Net Zero Task Force Engagement Process

12 GHG EMISSIONS: RECENT TRENDS AND IMPACTS OF ACTIONS TO-DATE .......................................... 16 Building sector GHG emissions profile 16 Impacts of NZAP to date 19 RECOMMENDED ACTIONS .......................................................................................................................... 21 4.1

Action Area 1 – Energy Efficiency

24 4.2

Action Area 2 – New Construction

35 4.3

Action Area 3 – Energy Supply

44 4.4

Action Area 4 – Financing and Capacity Building