Climate Smart Communities

Capital Region Climate Smart Communities

As of June 1, 2014, there were 18 local governments that adopted the CSC pledge; they include the cities of Albany, Cohoes, Rensselaer, Saratoga Springs, Schenectady, Troy, and Watervliet; the towns of Bethlehem, Cairo, Clifton Park, Copake, East Greenbush, Hunter, Jewett, and Niskayuna; the Village of Green Island; and the counties of Albany and Schenectady.

A community profile was developed for each CSC participant. These profiles include all pertinent information on the current climate protection efforts and the details of any action on pledge elements, and will serve as documentation of the status of each CSC participant in addressing the ten elements of the CSC pledge. The community profiles were developed through research completed by project team staff. This research included review of public documents, municipal websites and other available anecdotal information. These profiles are essential to developing a baseline of each community’s activities as well as familiarizing the project team with the municipality’s structure and level of commitment to the CSC pledge. Baseline information will be collected for any new CSC participant that signs the pledge.

Each community that met with the Pilot team also received a custom service strategy. These strategies summarized the in-person meeting and outlined what the action item was, how it will be delivered, who will provide it and when it will be completed. The strategies provided to each CSC were derived from each community’s needs and baseed on the actions a community has already completed to fulfill the CSC pledge and the results of the in-person consultation. The community profiles, strategies, and technical assistance deliverables developed during the first year of the Pilot program are included below.

Location Map

Larger Map

Community Profiles and Custom Service Strategies

Pilot Project Technical Assistance Deliverables

While many of the technical assistance deliverables below have been developed for individual communities, they can benefit all of the local governments in the Region as examples of how communities address the 10 Climate Smart Communities Pledge Elements.

Year One

City of Albany Green Business Certification Program

Town of Bethlehem Green Development Strategies

City of Watervliet Multifamily Energy Efficiency Campaign

Town of Hunter Feasibility of Installing a Solar Photovoltaic System on the Closed Landfill

City of Rensselaer Green Building Incentives

City of Saratoga Springs & Town of Clifton Park Summary of Energy Efficiency Training
     City of Saratoga Springs & Town of Clifton Park CSC Building Energy Training Presentation

City of Schenectady Water Conservation Education Campaign

Schenectady County Benchmarking Municipal Energy Performance

Year Two

Capital Region Municipal Organics Recycling Report

CSC Draft Guide for Climate Action Planning

Albany Sustainability Roadmap

Bethlehem Vulnerability Assessment Presentation
     Bethlehem Vulnerability Assessment Report
     Bethlehem LWRP Adaptation Strategies
     Map: Projected Aggressive Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Infrastructure
     Map: Projected Conservative Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Infrastructure
     Map: Projected Aggressive Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Social and Environmental Features
     Map: Projected Conservative Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Social and Environmental Features
     Map: N. Riverfront Dist. Projected Aggressive Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Social and Environmental Features
     Map: N. Riverfront Dist. Projected Conservative Sea Level Rise Flooding Impact on Social and Environmental Features

Cairo Solar Farm

Clifton Park GHG Inventory
     Clifton Park GHG Inventory Spreadsheet

Cohoes GHG Inventory
     Cohoes GHG Inventory Spreadsheet

Niskayuna CAC Roadmap

Troy Meeting Report on Organics Recycling

Watervliet Community-wide Climate Action Plan Outline
     Watervliet Climate Action Plan Implementation Matrix

CSC Training Presentation Slides

Year One

Climate Vulnerability Training

Resources to Support Local Adaptation

NYSERDA Program Opportunities

Regional GHG Inventory Effort

New York State’s Sustainability Programs

Bethlehem Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee

Completing the Street for a Walkable, Bikeable Community

Year Two

Albany Electric Vehicle Feasibility Study

Capital District Regional GHG Inventory for 2010

Workshop Climate & Energy Session

Climate Smart Communities Program Overview

Reducing Flood Risk and Minimizing Flood Insurance Costs

Schenectady County: A Climate Smart Community

Anchor Projects

The Pilot program also identified and summarized anchor projects, which are innovative, replicable projects that can serve as case studies for other communities. Examples of two anchor projects appear below.

Quail Street Complete Streets Project – Albany, NY
The concept for this project is to develop a Complete Street which promotes safe modes of transportation for pedestrians, bicyclists and vehicles as a way to achieve the specific vision for the Albany Education District: “Create a safe, welcoming and vibrant activity center” that capitalizes “on the opportunities provided by the District’s unique character”. The green infrastructure practices incorporated into the project will support this vision by promoting a healthy and livable community. The linked document outlines the project objectives, describes the methods for integrating green infrastructure practices and includes an estimated project cost for completion.

Curbside Organic Waste Recycling – City of Watervliet, NY
The City of Watervliet is a compact urban municipality located six miles north of Albany on the western side of the Hudson River. The City launched the Watervliet Organic Waste (WOW) program and is showing Climate Smart Communities that they can:

• Cost-effectively implement organic waste collection at the curbside.
• Successfully site and operate composting on a variety of existing municipal sites.
• Save money, reduce GHG emissions, and create renewable energy using organic waste.
• Effectively troubleshoot the program by launching in pilot mode with volunteers.