Suggestions for the Laguna Beach Climate Protection Action Plan Renewal
In considering possible updates to the Laguna Beach Climate Protection action plan, I wanted to discuss some specific emission reduction methods that are under the control of the residents themselves.
Residents and Visitors to Laguna Beach may have been unwittingly participating in a great diversion of solar radiation and heating, which thus cools the earth. The Marine Layer extends along the West Coasts of both North and South America, as well as Africa. As we note flying over in an airplane, the reflection back into space is very bright, and goes far inland until it hits high mountains. So we have been giving up our sunny mornings with May Gray and June Gloom, not to mention August something, to be part of this coastal reflection climate mitigation scheme. The future of this remarkable set of reflective mirrors is being studied at UC Irvine, but involves simulations of clouds on very small scales. How it varies as climate change proceeds will be very important. There is some data that suggests that this may have decreased by a third over the past century.
The cool mornings and sometime cool days save an enormous amount of energy that would be used for cooling through air conditioning.
Laguna Beach housing has a Westward facing complex. This allows us to see the ocean and beautiful smog enhanced sunsets. Housing is also stacked up the hills with as much Pacific Ocean view and with Windows as large as physically possible. In the afternoon, when the sun descends below the rafters or patio cover, the heating from the sun becomes intense and spreads throughout the house. Residents can either turn on the air conditioning, or take passive sun protective actions. These actions can be sun protective Windows, reflective blinds, ceiling fans, or door or window fans pumping air from the shady side of the house. Even fans blowing on people are cooling. Fans use much less power than air conditioning does, and cost a lot less on your electricity bill. Having a ceiling vent that you can open will help hot air rise and leave the house. Even with air conditioning, you can turn it off when the sun sets and it cools outside. Air conditioning can also be concentrated to the rooms that you are actually occupying. Awnings and shades hung outside of the house are even more effective in stopping the heat, since the heat does not enter the house first.
Utilities have clean energy plans, where you pay more, but your money is used to buy more expensive clean energy. This gives the generators money to pay off or buy new clean energy sources.
Solar panels have gotten more efficient, at about 22%, versus older ones at 15%, so they are about 50% more efficient. Their cost has also continued to drop. Utilities can buy solar arrays cheaper than residents can, and they are much more efficient in the desert than under marine layers. This saves you the principal outlay or a financing plan, and the trouble of cleaning the panels.
Due to our hill and view structure, water has to be pumped up hill for household and garden use. Water saving gardens and trees also save energy. LB has reward plans for minimal water usage. LB should review that it’s pumping stations are using the most energy efficient pumps, and the least polluting energy sources. While recycled water is used in Irvine for large planted areas, at about half the cost of fresh water, it may be unreasonable to add a second water system to all of the already built houses. However, this might be considered for newly developed coastal areas.
LB gardening is essentially running a rain forest type carbon sequestration ecology. Trees and plants that ingest CO2 and produce Oxygen. They are cut back each year and shipped out for burial, thus sequestering the Carbon. LB should check if this system eventually produces methane, and how it is consumed so as to not add to greenhouse emissions.
There are two ways to accomplish emission saving goals. LB can pass a lot of regulations which irk many people, and consume an enormous amount of time in arguing and litigation, or foster changes through incentives and socially approving methods, which make everyone happy. I vote for change through happiness.
