City Considers Plan To Reduce Emissions

City councillors warmly received a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in Cambridge by encouraging fuel economy, recycling and alternative energy sources at a meeting this week.

The Climate Protection Plan, which calls for a 20 percent reduction in city emissions by 2010, was developed over the past two years by a 20-person task force, including three representatives from Harvard.

“The idea is just to start from the bottom up and not wait for any government,” said Antje Danielson, a geochemist and program manager for the Green Campus Initiative at Harvard who served on the task force.

A federal report projects that temperatures in Boston will match those of present-day Richmond, Va. within the next 100 years. City officials are worried that climate change would lead to a rise in sea levels, damage the local economy and increase the risk of natural disaster.

Most of the changes would come in public transport, construction and industry.

“These are very complex issues that are not just simply reducing emissions. It’s a set of decisions around land use and energy consumption and at the same time not stifling the business community,” said task force member Thomas E. Vautin, Harvard’s associate vice president of facilities and environmental services.

The plan uses zoning incentives to promote more environmentally friendly buildings. Businesses would also be encouraged to use renewable energy sources and to create new open spaces with trees.

“I’ve been surprised by how many companies have been interested in operating this way,” City Councillor Henrietta Davis said.

The city also aims to increase the rate of recycling to 60 percent and to set up compost piles for large institutions.

For individuals, the changes would be less drastic.

“Most of the things we recommend are very easy to do, like switch off your computer at night,” Danielson said. “Some of the larger changes won’t even be obvious to people other than their work environment might improve.”

“There [are] a lot of detailed recommendations,” said Beth C. Rubenstein, associate city manager for community development. “Working together, in the aggregate we expect it to have a significant impact.”

Because of programs such as the Green Campus Initiative, Harvard is ahead of the city in reducing emissions.

In fact, Danielson said that the initiative hopes to be involved in the planning in Allston, although it is too early to say how.

Because of the dangers of climate change, many task force members see this set of changes as only the first step.

“[For] most climates, scientists now assume that we have to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions possibly up to 70 percent below 1990 levels,” Danielson said.

Davis agreed that the Climate Protection Plan might eventually become more rigorous.

“I heard of some people who wish it was even more stringent,” she said. “It is pretty far-reaching and it’s the first step, and at some point, we may need to adjust it to be more stringent.”

The plan is expected to pass the council within the next few weeks, according to Rubenstein.

“It got a very warm reception,” she said. “It’s an action plan, and I think it’s a really good one. I think it’s going to be a welcome addition to the landscape.”

Cambridge has been a part of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) since May 1998, when the city council voted to join the Cities for Climate Protection Program (CCPP). More than 100 U.S. cities participate in CCPP, which encourages municipalities to take steps to reduce global warming.