The proposed Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO) was reported out of the Zoning and Planning (ZAP) Committee on Monday night, November 25, after two hours of contentious public comments. BERDO will now be discussed and voted on or amended at the full City Council meeting on December 2.
The ZAP Committee approved draft BERDO version b (beginning on page 37) which would require owners of large residential properties to report greenhouse gas emissions, but would not require emission reduction. At the meeting, public commenters argued that:
- Large residential buildings are much more efficient than the single-family homes that are not included in the proposed ordinance;
- The costs of electrification of large residential buildings and how it will change rents is unknown;
- There are only two known contractors in the area for large-building electrification; and
- Currently there is no way to convert a steam system to an electrical system.
The Committee agreed to collect data on large residential buildings and to study the issue further.
The ZAP Committee also changed the BERDO Advisory Committee (page 47) — which will assist in writing the regulations for BERDO — from 7 members appointed by the Mayor to 9 members (4 appointed by the Mayor, 4 appointed by the City Council President, and 1 from the Citizens Commission on Energy).
The ZAP Committee could not agree on a request by Newton Wellesley Hospital (NWH) to be exempt from the ordinance. During the public comment period, NWH stated that its Newton buildings have the oldest systems (some over 100 years), use steam heat, and have overhead electrical wires. Just this week, NWH had an electrical outage. NWH is required by Federal law to have a back-up power system. BERDO version b would allow NWH to apply every five years to the BERDO Administrator for an exemption. NWH is concerned that the Administrator could change and force it to electrify or pay large fines.
The ZAP Committee was unable to agree on an amendment for NWH and decided that after more than two years in ZAP, the issue should move to the full Council for debate. Many ZAP members noted that climate change is a burden that all need to face, that there is no time to waste, and that the City needs to plan for the future.
