ZERO CITIES PROJECT

FINDINGS & LESSONS LEARNED

ZERO CITIES PROJECT

The Zero Cities Project is a three-year effort to support both cities and their most impacted communities* to co-develop and implement roadmaps and policy strategies to achieve a zero-carbon building sector by 2050. Through a community collaboration process centering on equity and analysis that draws on city data, the project generated a planning model, common roadmap, and a suite of tools that support a broad network of cities.

The Zero Cities project team integrates expertise from the Urban Sustainability Directors Network/Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance, Architecture 2030, New Buildings Institute, Race Forward, Movement Strategy Center, and Resource Media.

In recognition of the remaining carbon budget and the need to limit warming to 1.5 degrees C above preindustrial temperatures, Architecture 2030 is dedicated to an updated, more ambitious, and necessary emissions reduction timeline of 50-65% reduction in emissions by 2030, and full decarbonization by 2040. Architecture 2030 has refocused its contributions to the Zero Cities Project to align with this timeline.

*Most impacted communities include low income people of color; women; indigenous, LGBTQ+, elderly, young, and disabled people, and others

 

FINDINGS AND LESSONS LEARNED TO DATE

Based on the building stock assessments of multiple cities, two outcomes are required in order to meet zero-carbon emissions targets:

  • Electricity grid decarbonization – power the building sector with carbon-free renewable electricity, and 
  • Building decarbonization – employ efficiency strategies and eliminate on-site fossil fuel use by fully electrifying all buildings and/or by sourcing carbon-free thermal energy. 

The following policies for new construction and existing buildings consistently emerge as pathways to achieve these two outcomes:

Policy for New ConstructionPolicy for Big Existing BuildingsPolicies for Small Existing BuildingsIncentives for Early Adoption

FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION: 

To achieve Zero-Net-Carbon (ZNC) in new building design and construction:

  • Adopt a ZNC Code Standard
    • A zero-net-carbon code is a building energy standard for new building construction that integrates cost-effective energy efficiency standards with on-site and/or off-site carbon-free renewable energy sources resulting in ZNC buildings. Architecture 2030’s ZERO Code is a national and international standard for commercial and mid- to high-rise housing. It includes prescriptive and performance paths for building energy efficiency compliance based on current standards that are widely used by municipalities and building professionals worldwide and on-site and off-site renewable energy requirements.
  • Require fully electric buildings and/or source carbon-free thermal energy.

Note: Due to jurisdictional variations in fuel consumption and electricity grid emissions, the prioritization of policies (e.g. grid decarbonization and building decarbonization) may vary from city to city.

FOR EXISTING BIG BUILDINGS: 

Due to the relatively small number of existing buildings affected, jurisdictions should consider short-term and long-term date-certain energy upgrade policies for big buildings that allow ample time for upgrades to align with capital improvement cycles. Date-certain policies for big building upgrades can include (but are not limited to):

  • Prescriptive Upgrades
    • Require individual building components that reduce energy use and emissions to meet increased performance criteria (e.g. specific energy efficiency measures, or switching heating systems to electric or district systems*).
  • Fossil Fuel Energy Caps
    • Establish maximum fossil fuel energy consumption targets for each building type, which can be met through energy efficiency upgrades, switching to electric or district systems,* and/or generating/procuring carbon-free renewable energy.
  • Greenhouse Gas Emissions Caps
    • Establish maximum greenhouse gas emissions intensity targets for each building type, which can be met through energy efficiency, switching to electric or district systems*, and/or generating/procuring carbon-free renewable energy.
  • Carbon-free Renewable Energy Requirements
    • Require buildings to generate/procure carbon-free renewable energy.

*Jurisdictions with GHG-intensive electricity or district energy grids must complement switching to electric or district systems with impactful mechanisms for carbon-free renewable energy generation and procurement to reach zero-emissions standards.

Note: Due to jurisdictional variations in fuel consumption and electricity grid emissions, the prioritization of policies (e.g. grid decarbonization and building decarbonization) may vary from city to city.

FOR EXISTING SMALL BUILDINGS: 

Small building energy upgrades can be accelerated by introducing policies that leverage specific building intervention points such as point-of-sale, point-of-lease, major renovations and equipment replacements. Policies at intervention points for small buildings include:

  • Prescriptive Upgrades
    • Require individual building components that reduce energy use and emissions to meet increased performance criteria (e.g. specific energy efficiency measures, or switching heating systems to electric or district systems*).
  • Carbon-free Renewable Energy Requirements
    • Require buildings to generate/procure carbon-free renewable energy.

†A “major renovation” is defined as the renovation of a building where (a) the total cost of the renovation related to the building envelope or mechanical/electrical/plumbing systems is higher than 25 % of the value of the building, excluding the value of the land upon which the building is situated, or (b) more than 25% of the surface of the building envelope undergoes renovation.

*Jurisdictions with GHG-intensive electricity grids must complement switching to electric systems with carbon-free renewable energy generation and procurement to reach zero-emissions standards.

Note: Due to jurisdictional variations in fuel consumption and electricity grid emissions, the prioritization of policies (e.g. grid decarbonization and building decarbonization) may vary from city to city.

For all buildings, incentives for early adoption of building energy upgrades can include:

  • Density or Building Height Bonuses
  • Fast-track Permitting
  • Low Interest Loans
  • Tax Abatements
  • Rebates

Note: Due to jurisdictional variations in fuel consumption and electricity grid emissions, the prioritization of policies (e.g. grid decarbonization and building decarbonization) may vary from city to city.

ROADMAPS

Zero Cities Roadmaps are currently under development and will be published here soon.

© Architecture 2030