Title
Energy Commission Resolution in Support of Accelerated Action on an Ordinance to Ban Natural Gas Connections in New Construction and Major Renovations and in Support of Devising and Implementing Interim Measures to Incentivize All-Electric Construction
Body
WHEREAS, gas combustion in Ann Arbor's buildings generated 520,000 metric tons CO2 equivalent emissions in 2021, which represents 28 percent of the city's total emissions that year, according to the city's 2022 greenhouse gas inventory report;
WHEREAS, Strategy 2, Action 1 of the A2ZERO plan, "Promote home and business electrification," includes the following assumption: " All new residential and commercial buildings are designed and built to operate without the use of natural gas, reducing the increased cost associated with retrofitting existing systems;
WHEREAS, Strategy 3, Action 2, "Update building codes," includes the following assumption: "All new construction from 2022 through 2030 (and beyond) is built to net zero energy standards, which includes no natural gas consumption."
WHEREAS, as of February, 2023, approximately 50 cities and counties nationwide had adopted ordinances banning or restricting natural gas connections in new construction;
WHEREAS, the ZERO Code Appendix to the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code(r) (IECC) requires that commercial, institutional, and medium- to high-rise residential buildings achieve net zero energy use, either with on-site or off-site energy generation;
WHEREAS, the A2 ZERO plan, strategy 3, action 2 assumes adoption by the state of the ZERO Code Appendix in 2021, enabling subsequent adoption by the city;
WHEREAS, the state Bureau of Construction Codes will not adopt the ZERO Code Appendix in the current revision cycle;
WHEREAS, Ann Arbor is undergoing a building boom that is already adding substantially to the city's inventory of gas-burning buildings;
WHEREAS, as of February 1, 2023, thirty separate development projects in the city ...
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