US Clean Energy Facts From Obama's 1st Term

There is no doubt that clean energy sources increased significantly in President Obama's first term in office. Here are some of the highlights:

1. Boosted fuel standards for cars and trucks that is expected to reduce climate-warming pollution (like CO2) by 6 billion metric tons.
2. Wind energy production has doubled in the last 4 years.
3. Solar installations have increased 6-fold in the last 4 years.
4. In 2007 the Supreme Court ruled that carbon emissions are indeed a pollutant as defined by the Clean Air Act.

However, despite the advances in clean energy right now in the US "Energy Independence" is still code for more mining and more drilling but it doesn't need to be so in the future. Energy independence needs to become more interrelated to weaning ourselves off of fossil fuels with renewable energy. Subsidies for renewable energy are being reduced and in some cases coming to an end.

On the other hand, oil subsidies remain stronger than ever even after decades of exponential industry growth and multiple economic downturns and hardly come into to question. Moreover with all of the big craze around natural gas in the US, many are forgetting that methane that escapes from drilling and pumping natural gas is 70 times more harmful than CO2 emissions.

In fact the head of the Environmental Defense Fund, Fred Krupp says that "Fugitive gas is the biggest unknown of all the US emissions sources."

The Electric Vehicle Chicken and the Egg Problem

Transitioning to Electric Vehicles (EVs) is not just about getting more vehicles on the road, it also requires additional infrastructure investments to help support charge/power EVs. Thus while EV subsidies to end users are helpful to increase the EV customer base (public or commercial) there also needs to be a plan/strategy - some financial help would also be ideal - for infrastructure improvements like EV chargers.

Interestingly progressive countries like Spain already have about 1850 EV chargers, but even more interesting is that Spain wants to increase that number to 85000 in the next 2 years. That's a lofty and very commendable goal, however how is that going to happen. For instance EV chargers are not very expensive, but policies are needed to help facilitate the actual installation. And then there is the elephant in the room that everyone is talking about: the actual cleanliness of the energy sources used by the EV charger.

Today EV's in a way its like the chicken and the egg problem, automobile manufacturers are hesitant to bring to EVs to countries that are not attempting to put forth EV strategies, but governments are also hesitant to put forth EV strategies if they do not see much of a public demand.

Before we can get to the "How green is your EV charge source?" question, we must first address the question of "Who should take the risk, government or private industry?

More on how US Exports Benefit from NAFTA

I'm not the only one obsessed with the US-Mexico trade numbers, the Washington Post ran a story in their
Sunday, September 9th edition: "Middle-class Mexicans snap up more products ‘Made in USA’."

About 6 million jobs in the United States depend on trade with Mexico (Source: Trade Partnership Worldwide 2008)

US exports to Mexico 2011 FACT highlights from the article and infographic:

• Texas exports more than 70 percent of the chickens it ships out of Texas to Mexico
• California exported $9.3 billion in computers and electronics
• New Jersey exported about $1 billion in pharmaceuticals 
• Iowa exported $121 million in pork (us Mexicans love "carnitas") 
• Montana exported $59 million in copper and molybdenum
• New York exported $500 million in jewelry (I don't think this accounts for the amount of jewelry Mexican tourists purchase on their visits to The Big Apple especially at Tiffany's)
• Tennessee's biggest export south of the border was transportation equipment, totaling $855 million
• Michigan exported $3.6 billion in transportation  equipment, mostly for the automobile industry

The Latest NAFTA Numbers Just in from the BTS

[Network of North American SuperCorridors. (Map by Infranet Lab.)]

While there have been many critiques of NAFTA and other trade agreements, NAFTA seems to be the trade agreement that keeps on giving to the US, Canada and Mexico for almost 20 years since 1994.

The Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) at the US Department of Transportation announced today that surface trade between Canada and Mexico Rose 6.6 Percent from June 2011 to June 2012.

The numbers show that in the last 10 years the US has gotten the better end of the bargain, by almost 20%. Exports were up by 90.8% and imports were only up by 69.7% since June 2002. In 2012 87.7% of trade between the NAFTA countries moved via land (including by truck, rail, pipeline, mail, Foreign Trade Zones, and other modes of transport) , 8.3% moved by vessel, and 4% moved by air.

The top commodity traded between the U.S. and Canada by land in June was vehicles, valued at $9.9 billion. The top commodity traded between the U.S. and Mexico by land in June was electrical machinery (including equipment and parts), valued at $7 billion.

Envision Solar set for partnership with Al Habtoor | utilities-me.com

Envision Solar set for partnership with Al Habtoor | utilities-me.com

Excerpt:

Aconfort president and CEO Aquilino Ornia, speaking on the deal, said, “It is a tremendous opportunity to partner with Envision Solar to expand the Solar Shaded Parking market in the UAE, Qatar and Spain. In the Middle East, the sun shines almost 365 days a year – we must take advantage of this opportunity to capture so much free energy and to also generate clean electricity that will help protect the environment. We selected Envision’s Solar Tree arrays because they are the best and will be most appealing to the market where we operate.”

FTA FY2012 Discretionary Grant Appropriations

Curious about which projects the Federal Transit Administration gave discretionary grant funding too? Well so was I. The US Department of Transportation just released a cool interactive map with info about the $787 million allocated by State of Good Repair, Bus Livability and Transit Asset Management Project grants to 255 projects across 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rio.

Here are the grant appropriations for transit systems of cities that I have lived in the US:

New York City - $34,468,000

The New York City Department of Transportation got $14,680,000 State of Good Repair grant to "rehabilitate 20 miles of existing bus lanes. Many of these lanes are in a state of poor repair, and NYCDOT has worked with the Pennsylvania State University to develop a more effective method of applying red lane markings that addresses past maintenance problems and greatly prolongs longevity." They also got a $3,400,000 Bus Livability grant to "implement a package of improvements along Utica Avenue in Brooklyn, making intermodal connection improvements such as better sidewalks, lighting, bus stop amenities, way finding, and subway station stairs."

The NY Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) got $24,000,000 State of Good Repair grant to "replace its obsolete bus radio system and construct a modernized bus command center. Bringing the bus radio system to a state of good repair is critical for day-to-day bus operations and will improve safety, service reliability and overall operating efficiency." They also got a $5,600,000 Transit Asset Management grant for the Integrated Whole Life Asset Management Planning System for the NYCT Bus Rolling Stock Revenue Fleet.

Los Angeles - $20,000,000

The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) got $10,000,000 State of Good Repair grant to "replace buses in its fleet that have met or exceeded their useful life with Clean Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles." They also got a Bus Livability grant of $10,000,000 for the Metro Orange Line Bus Enhancement project that will provide a pedestrian connection improvements to the North Hollywood Red Line Station.

San Diego - $13,000,000

The San Diego Metropolitan Transit system (MTS) got $10,000,000 State of Good Repair grant to "expand and modernize its East County Bus Maintenance Facility in Cajon. The buildings at this location were originally constructed in 1959, are no longer compliant with city and state building codes, and are hindering MTS' ability to maintain it nealy 100% CNG vehicle fleet. These renovations will also incorporate the use of solar panels to reduce the carbon footprint and energy use of the facility." They also got a $3,000,000 Transit Asset Management grant that is aimed at helping agencies "develop and implement new or improved transit asset management systems and cost-effective ways to manage and maintain the condition of their systems."

NYC Internet Speeds and Infrastructure Map - Inequity at Play?

While doing research about smartphones and urban access I came across this great map of Internet speeds and infrastructure in NYC.

From this map it seems as though low-income neighborhoods have slower internet speeds on the megabytes per second scale and that this is related to the amount of fiber optic in areas. A possible explanation is that there are not many commercial office uses in low-income neighborhoods. However, if you consider the Lower East Side (LES) that is not exactly bustling with commercial office spaces and yet there is an abundance of fiber optic infrastructure it is hard to wonder if this is not just another example of systematic inequities at play.

Great interactive data visualization of energy consumption and production by The Guardian courtesy of data from BP.

Abraham Lincoln on the Role of Government

President Obama likes to quote President Lincoln in his speeches for High Speed Rail. One of his favorite quotes to use is the following 1854 quote:

“The legitimate object of government is to do for the people what needs to be done, but which they cannot, by individual effort, do at all, or do so well, by themselves ...Making and maintaining roads, bridges, and the like...”

Absolutely classic!

Parking an Amenity, Not a Right

My perspective on easing parking violation policies in New York City is that they should not happen. Parking is not a right, at most it is an amenity. No one likes parking tickets, but it comes with the territory and the privilege. It is the driver’s responsibility to know the conditions of the public or private parking space they use, and decide whether to leave the car or not, and to plan accordingly. Parking tickets are a part of driving, drivers need stop complaining and simply have better parking sense and practice better parking patterns. 

For more on NYC's recent parking policies: http://t.co/74KCB0AX

Mexico the New G-20 Chair & Other Interesting Country Specs

I'm writing a paper on Mexico City's Metrobus. I won't necessarily be able to include some of the facts I find in my study, but they are quite interesting not to share and leave them buried in the google search abyss.

One of the more interesting facts I came across is on the IMF site: "Mexico takes over as Chair of the G-20 on December 1 (Today) and will assume a major role in forming the policy agenda for the G-20 in the next 12 months." Go Mexico...Viva Mexico!

In my opinion this raises the stakes higher for the upcoming presidential election in Mexico in  July (2012). Interestingly, today (especially in the US press) there hasn't been much news about Mexico assuming this power role in world politics. Two weeks ago, the Guardian did have an article that does not support President Calderon's soon to be position. Though, Calderon does seem to be doing the most he can to get some stage time from the G20 role, there is only so much he can do to use the position to help his party, the PAN, to win the upcoming presidential election.

On a different note, the BBC doesn't take much mercy on Mexico and just puts out how they really feel on their Country Profile of Mexico. They start off with the bold heading: "Mexico is a nation where affluence, poverty, natural splendour and urban blight rub shoulders." It is hard to disagree with their statement, even though I'm sure many government officials would say that the government is trying to lessen income inequality throughout the country. However, the gap still remains and the BBC's statement holds true.

One fact that I would contest is their assessment of the country's major religion. Sure Catholicism is a derivative of Christianity, but as a Mexican-American, I still, like many in Mexico think of Mexico as a "Catholic"country not a Christian one. Just saying, small clarification.

A bigger fact and more amusing fact is one highlighted by the US State department: Mexico is 7th largest oil producer in the world and second largest supplier of oil to the US. This fact makes me laugh because earlier this year a few people asked me what is it that Mexico produces and when I said oil, they were surprised, at which point I repeated: "Yes, Mexico produces a lot of oil and the US buys a lot of it."

Former Gang Members Changing the Discourse

This whole week the Institute of the Americas in San Diego brought together key law enforcement players from the public and non-profit sectors in Latin America for a training on Community Crime Prevention. 


Today as I sat in on panel discussion from the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, law enforcement consultants and former gang members. I couldn't help be but moved and inspired by the stories of the two ex-gang members. They have changed their lives and are now helping bring a new sense of help and hope to their communities. 


It's amazing what desire for change and determination can do to help us push through hard times. It is my guess that at one point they had to make a decision to continue their lives as they were or choose life over violence. 


They changed their life around and as happy as I am for them I can't help but feel a bit spoiled since to date I have fortunately have not had to choose between life and death. I am grateful that my perspective has been enriched by hearing about their experiences and the great collaboration that is happening in Los Angeles between the police department and the community.

2011 UN Conflict, Security and Development Report Highlights

The UN provides 9 Chapters of Strategies and Best-Fit and Good Fit solutions for a multitude of conflict situations that in the end share similar adverse impacts to development and economic vitality in a given country.

Today’s violence occurs in repeated cycles

Recurring civil wars have become a dominant form of armed conflict in the world today. Every civil war that began since 2003 was a resumption of a previous civil war.

Development impacts of violence

Poverty reduction in countries affected by major violence is on average nearly a percentage point slower per year than in countries not affected by violence.

One reason for the persistence of low growth in conflict-affected countries may be the difficulty of reassuring investors, both domestic and foreign. A civil war reduces a country’s average rating on the International Country Risk Guide by about 7.7 points (on a 100-point scale); the effect is similar for criminal violence.  For the first three years after conflict subsides, countries have a rating 3.5 points below similar non-conflict countries.

When military spending increases and commensurately reduces investments in development and human capital.

Economic stresses

Low incomes reduce the opportunity cost of engaging in violence....Capturing this perspective, the leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, John Garang, said, “Under these circumstances the marginal cost of rebellion in the South became very small, zero, or negative; that is, in the South it pays to rebel.”

Transformation takes time

Leaders, stakeholders, and the international community must remember that societies will go through multiple cycles of confidence-building and institutional reform before they can achieve the resilience to violence necessary for “development as usual.”

Going Forward: "Peace Infrastructure”

More effective international support to risk reduction requires (1) combined tools that link citizen security, justice, jobs, and associated services, and (2) structural investments in justice and employment capacity.

Where infrastructure is constructed in violence-affected areas, care should be taken to use labor-intensive technologies and provide for local labor to avoid tensions over the benefits. In some regions, discussions about shared economic infrastructure with joint benefits could also create an opening for later political or security discussions.

To view the full report click here

Zoning As We Use It Today In NYC

"Zoning has also become a sophisticated public-policy tool, helping to preserve iconic structures...supporting retail corridors...protecting topography...and opening up access to the waterfront across the city." 

Vin Cipolla 

President of The Municipal Art Society of New York

Over the past 50 years, since 1961 since New York City's second zoning resolution the City and zoning has changed a lot. More than 900 pages have been added, including 41 residential zoning districts, 85 commercial districts and 43 special districts. 

Check out Vin Cipolla's article in Crain's: "Revamp rezoning for city's new age"

A Look Back at Urban Renewal

A theory of Urbanism?...Urban Renewal

Some food for thought on the legacy of the federal urban renewal program that by virtue of providing money to cities influenced development patterns of the time between 1949 and 1974 (this date is debatable, but I'm going with it, b/c Robert Caro used it and Bob Beauregard seem to overlap on it and I trust their judgement). 

From Robert Beauregard's When America Became Suburban: 

"Cities used urban renewal to eliminate obsolete buildings, create large-scale real-estate projects with critical mass to keep existing businesses from leaving and attracting new businesses into the downtown." (2006)

"Urban renewal and public housing were linked." The slums targeted by the public housing program were often adjacent to the main commercial districts, and their condemnation and demolition were central to the vision of the renewed downtown. Multiple mid-to-high-rise buildings set amid lawns and playgrounds replaced slums." (2006)

LA Transit Culture, Will it ever stick?

Mass Transit and LA in the same sentence always seems to garner up a sense of: "Are you serious? Nope, never going to happen." The thing is, that it is happening. Los Angelenos do ride public transit, but not enough to make positive headlines. So the question is, "If they build it, will they come?." I think the problem is that everyone is trying to solve is the basic home to work commute problem, but for travel needs go beyond the simple work and home point A to point B commute.

For some, even if the new infrastructure is in place (as it is) and makes it easy for them to get from home to work and vice versa they won't choose mass transit over their car for two reasons. One,people are obviously obsessed with their cars and the other is that life is just not that simple. People need more than just mobility options to and from work. For instance, if you have a work meeting in the middle of the day and mass transit is not an option, how will you get there? Taxis? Unlike in New York, London and Paris, in LA it is only legal to hail a cab in downtown LA (meaning the City of LA, not the County of LA which is comprised of 66 cities)...exactly, it makes you think twice about leaving the MINI at home.

I'm optimistic, once there are better options, and better interconnectivity between mass transit agencies I think mass transit will become more popular in LA and better yet a real option to go from many point As to a multitude of points Bs and Cs. Need evidence? Just look at the way Angelenos embraced the Prius (Sorry Toyota, it wasn't aesthetics). Even Beverly Hills residents traded in their European luxury toys and SUVs for the Prius. Thus my advice for Toyota: watch out, Angelenos will eventually move to greener solutions, the Prius must go greener!

BTW check out an interesting NY Times article on the state of mass transit in LA: "In Los Angeles, Big Step Ahead for Mass Transit."

"Smart from the Start," Salazar Promotes Offshore Wind Energy

This past spring I worked on a project, project managing a delegation of Spanish renewable and transportation companies with the Madrid Chamber of Commerce. The delegation got the brief tour of the renewable energy and transportation world in California visiting my hometown San Diego, my other home base Los Angeles and of course San Francisco and Sacramento. It was an action packed week meeting with commissions, agencies and potential private sector partners. More importantly everyone left very happy and with a better sense of how things work in California and made some good connections.

From this project I learned that the renewable energy sector is a lot more dynamic than I had originally thought and it spurred an interest in the renewable energy sector. This was the first time I learned about offshore wind energy, which is basically wind turbines out in the ocean, one of our delegates specialized in ocean platforms for wind turbines. Thus, I was very excited to see the NY Times article: Salazar Aims to Streamline Offshore Wind. On Tuesday, November 23, 2010 Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced a new program, "Smart from the Start," that will accelerate the adoption wind energy. This is great news for most in the wind energy business and a very big win for the renewable energy sector. Go Green!

Greening the White House

Walking the Green Walk: Today, U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu, announced that in the very near future the White House residence will be installing solar panels and a solar hot water heater.

The aim is multi-purposed. On the one hand, this is clearly a step in the right green sustainable direction as the administration explicitly shows its commitment to renewable energy. Secondly, this also demonstrates that American solar technologies are "available, reliable, and ready for installation throughout the country." As a result, as Secretary Chu puts it, the nationwide deployment and implementation of clean energy technologies will help "America lead the global economy for years to come" and create more local clean energy jobs.

For more info on state, local, and utility rebates for renewable energy generation throughout the country visit the Database of State Incentives for Renewable and Efficiency website.

This is just another reason Obama still Rocks!

New York City Land Use News

The Charter Review Commission is looking at ways to improve New York City's Uniform Land Review Process (ULURP).

ULURP allows local communities and elected representatives/officials to have a voice in the City's major land use development decisions.

Columbia Expansion Plan Updates

Wow, it is so exciting to follow the development of this project...My work at Columbia's Facilities Department helped me to find my passion for urban planning.

I know this is a controversial project...but the controversy is what sparks my interest!

In news today, the New York Times reports that the New York State Supreme Court upholds Columbia's campus expansion plan.

Link to article: Court Upholds Columbia Campus Expansion Plan
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