Santa Barbara County Energy Assurance Plan
The County of Santa Barbara’s Energy Assurance Plan (EAP) seeks to address the risks associated with being at the end of Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas and Electric transmission lines; county residents and businesses are uniquely vulnerable to power outages. The EAP establishes goals for the growth of renewable energy, energy storage, demand flexibility, and resilience hubs in the county, both on County facilities and within the community.
Speaker
April Price, Energy Portfolio Manager, County of Santa Barbara
April Price is the Energy Portfolio Manager with the County of Santa Barbara where she manages the Tri-County Regional Energy Network (3C-REN's) Energy Assurance Services program and supports renewable energy and resilience projects. She also manages 3C-REN’s Home Energy Savings Single Family program, focused on engaging contractors in a Normalized Metered Energy Consumption (NMEC) incentive marketplace to grow energy efficiency and electrification opportunities for residents in the tri-county. April has broad experience in managing local distributed energy programs, leading stakeholder engagement, and supporting local government energy planning efforts. April has a Masters in Environmental Science and Management from UCSB’s Bren School.
Santa Barbara City Climate Action plan
In July 2024, Santa Barbara City Council unanimously passed the latest update to the City’s Climate Action Plan entitled Together to Zero. Together to Zero serves as to road map to reduce the City-wide emissions and implement sequestration techniques to equitably move the City towards its goal of carbon neutrality by 2035. This presentation will cover the development of Together to Zero, the lessons learned from the most recent GHG inventory and the priority actions in the City of Santa Barbara’s move towards carbon neutrality.
Speaker
Jefferson Litten, Energy and Climate Division Manager, City of Santa Barbara
Jefferson Litten is the Energy and Climate Division Manager at the City of Santa Barbara. In this role, he manages the implementation of the City’s Climate Action Plan; the City’s efforts to add solar, battery storage, EV charging, and electrification at its facilities; and the customer facing side of the City’s Community Choice Energy provider - Santa Barbara Clean Energy.
Prior to joining the city, Jefferson served as the Chief of Staff for Santa Barbara County Supervisor Joan Hartmann and as the Director of Energy and Climate Programs at the Community Environmental Council (CEC). Jefferson holds a B.A. from Tufts University and a master’s degree from the Bren School at UCSB
UCSB Clean Energy Master Plan
UCSB's recently generated a detailed Clean Energy Master Plan targeting a 90% reduction in Scope 1 emissions, primarily stemming from on-site fossil fuel usage in campus energy systems. The year-long study that resulted in the Plan’s creation included generation of multiple scenarios for achieving these reductions as well as associated cost estimating.
The plan emphasizes environmental justice and equity by identifying associated considerations during the transition to fossil fuel-free infrastructure. It leverages research and community outreach, aligning with the UC Framework for Incorporating Environmental and Climate Justice into Climate Action. The Plan also integrates climate action and resiliency planning within an academic framework. It identifies opportunities for research demonstrations, student projects, and knowledge sharing, fostering a living laboratory environment conducive to innovation and scalability.
Overall, UCSB's Clean Energy Master Plan embodies a holistic approach to decarbonization, considering financial, environmental justice, net-zero, and academic aspects to pave the way for a sustainable future.
Speaker
Renée Bahl, Associate Vice Chancellor, UC Santa Barbara
Renée Bahl is an Associate Vice Chancellor overseeing Design, Facilities and Safety Services at University of California, Santa Barbara. In this role she administers programs to design, build, operate, maintain and renew a sustainable, safe and healthy physical environment supporting the university’s instructional, research, and public service mission. She is currently Co-Chair of the Chancellor’s Sustainability Committee and Co-Chair of the Decarbonization Project Study Committee; the latter created UCSB’s Clean Energy Master Plan. Prior to her tenure at UCSB, she was an Assistant County Executive Officer at Santa Barbara County and the Arizona State Parks Director.