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Compact Development
Required to Reduce Climate Change Gases
Meeting
the housing needs of South Central Alaska’s growing population
by developing walkable  neighborhoods
with convenient retail development could significantly shrink
Alaska’s carbon
footprint while giving people more housing choices, according
to a team of urban planning researchers.
In
a comprehensive review of dozens of studies, the researchers
conclude in a report published by the Urban Land Institute that
development patterns are both a key contributor to climate change
and an essential factor in combating it.
The
report, released by the Anchorage Citizens Coalition warns that
if sprawling development continues to fuel growth in driving,
projected growth in driving will overwhelm expected gains from
vehicle efficiency and low-carbon fuels.
Nationally, even with technological improvements, carbon
dioxide emissions from vehicles would be 41 percent above today’s
levels, well over the goal of reducing CO2 emissions to below
1990 levels by 2050, according to Growing Cooler:
The Evidence on Urban Development and Climate Change.
“Anchorage
has done the right thing by signing on to the national Mayor’s
Climate Change Agreement,” said John Weddleton, President of
Anchorage Citizens Coalition, “but to meet the challenge, we
need to start driving down our growth in vehicle emissions.”
“Anchorage
has a particular challenge because of expected residential growth
in the Matanuska-Susitna area, and the billions of dollars planned
for roads to accommodate commuters from the valley.
While the Anchorage
bowl population is expected to grow by 28 percent, our traffic
is expected to double.”
Alaska’s
statistics show the number of registered drivers has outstripped
its population growth, growing from 55 to 73 percent of the
total population between 1980 and 2005.
On
average, Americans living in compact neighborhoods where cars
are not the only transportation option drive a third fewer miles
than those in typical automobile-oriented places. The report cites real estate projections showing that two-thirds of development expected to be
on the ground in 2050 is not yet built, meaning that
the potential for change is profound.
The paper calculates that shifting 60 percent of new
growth to compact patterns would save 85 metric tons of CO2
annually by 2030, equivalent to a 16 percent increase in fuel
economy standards.
In
Anchorage, the 2000
U.S.
census shows 31 percent of downtown (north of 9th
Avenue) residents walk or bike to
work, compared with 2 percent of residents living near Jewel
Lake. Local transportation studies show Northwest
Anchorage residents, close to downtown make 5.7
vehicle trips per household, compared with 13.9 vehicle trips
per household by Hillside residents.
(A trip is defined as a destination reached, or each
time the driver turns off the engine and gets out of the car.)
The
report finds that Americans who move into compact neighborhoods
are making as big a contribution to fighting global warming
as those who buy the most efficient hybrid vehicles, but remain
in car-dependent areas. While demand for such smart growth development
is increasing, government regulations, spending and policies
still favor sprawling, auto-dependent development.
The paper recommends changes in all three areas to make
green neighborhoods more available and more affordable. It also calls for smart growth strategies as
a fundamental tenet in climate change plans at the local, state,
and federal level.
“Being
able to spend less time behind the wheel will benefit our health,
our pocketbooks and the environment,” said Dianne Holmes. We urge Mayor Begich to implement the land use
and transportation goals of Anchorage 2020 as a key strategy
to mitigating global warming in Alaska.”
The
study represents a collaboration among
leading urban planning researchers at the University
of Maryland, the
University of Utah,
Fehr and Peers Associates, the Center
for Clean Air Policy and the Urban Land Institute.
Smart Growth America coordinated the multidisciplinary
team that developed the recommended policy actions and is leading
a broad coalition to develop those strategies further.
ACC
and ACE are pleased to be part of the release of the Urban Land
Institute's book Growing Cooler: The Evidence on Urban Development
and Climate Change.
Enjoy!
Growing
Cooler Executive Summary
Growing
Cooler 9-18-2007
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