Memorandum

City of Lawrence

City Manager’s Office

TO:	David L. Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Cynthia Wagner, Assistant City Manager
CC:	Peak Oil Task Force Diane Stoddard, Assistant City Manager
DATE:	July 22, 2010
RE:	Peak Oil –Status Report and Request for Extension for Final Report

At the August 12, 2008 City Commission meeting, following a presentation by the Sustainability Action Network (SAN), the City Commission directed staff to work with the Mayor, members of the SAN, and Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) to determine the best course of review for this issue.  Discussion resulted in a recommendation to establish the Mayor’s Task Force on Peak Oil, which was established by the City Commission September 2, 2008 by Resolution 6795. 

The function of the Mayor’s Peak Oil Task Force is to develop a response plan that will address both a sudden crisis-related reduction of fossil fuels and a long term depletion of fossil fuels.   The task force was tasked with:  assessing Lawrence’s exposure to diminishing supplies of oil and natural gas and making recommendations to address vulnerabilities; seeking input on negative impacts of peak oil and proposing solutions; acquiring and studying data on the issues of peak oil and natural gas depletion and the related economic and societal consequences; developing recommendations regarding strategies the City can take to mitigate the impacts of declining energy supplies; developing an emergency plan, if deemed appropriate; and proposing methods of educating the public about peak oil. 

Resolution 6795 requires presentation of a final report to the City Commission no later than 12 months from the initial meeting.  If a final report is not complete, a progress report including a timeline for completion is to be presented.

The initial meeting of the task force was January 20, 2009, with subsequent meetings on a monthly basis thereafter.  Many of the initial meetings were spent trying to identify the most urgent issues and format for a recommendation.  The task force also studied the work of similar groups in Portland, OR; San Francisco, CA; Austin, TX; Bloomington, IN; Oakland, CA; and Spokane, WA.  The group also conference called several communities with existing peak oil plans for information on the topics they studied and the plans they developed. 

Following this research and ensuing discussion, it was decided to focus recommendations in the following areas: 

· Food Security/Agriculture

· Transportation

· Water Supply and Treatment/ Waste Disposal

· Land Use Planning and the Build Environment

· Emergency Services and Emergency Planning

· Communications and Outreach

In December, 2009, the City Commission accepted an interim report on the progress of the group and granted an extension of the deadline for a final report to August 31, 2010.

Members of the task force have developed a draft report which is still being reviewed and refined.  Task force members wish to ensure concurrence by a majority of the members with the data and analysis of the issue as well as recommendations to be presented.  The group has stepped up its meeting schedule and is now meeting twice monthly to review and edit the recommended report to provide to the Sustainability Advisory Board for review and comment before providing to the City Commission.  Based on the current timeline, it is anticipated that final recommendations could be presented to the City Commission well before the end of the year, however an extension through the end of the year is requested in order to allow ample time to complete final editing and obtain agreement on final recommendations.

REQUESTED/RECOMMENDED ACTION

It is recommended that the City Commission grant an extension of the work of the task force in order to present a final recommendation by December 31, 2010.