Park City studies carbon footprint

PARK CITY — Everything from beer fermentation to the airline fuel used by tourists went into calculating Park City's comprehensive carbon footprint.

The $41,000 project is the first step in reducing citywide emissions by 7 percent between 1990 and 2012, as required by the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Written to advance the goals of the international Kyoto Protocol, the mayors' agreement was signed by Park City Mayor Dana Williams in 2005.

The city study is the first of its kind in Utah. It found that Park City residents and businesses emit a little more than 1 million tons of greenhouse gases annually. That figure is higher than the national average but takes into account tourism, the high mountain elevation and airline travel — factors not always considered, said Park City environmental sustainability manager Diane Foster.

A breakdown of the city emissions output shows that 43 percent of greenhouse gases there are created by electricity use, 31 percent by airline travel, 14 percent by vehicles, 11 percent by natural gas and propane use and 1 percent by solid waste.

In 2008, Park City completed a carbon footprint study for its municipal operations, including pumping water, electricity use in city-owned buildings and employee commuting. The study found that government operations in the trendy tourist town emit 17,000 tons of carbon emissions annually.

Within a few months, that figure will be cut by 10 percent, Foster said.

"After that, it gets hard for us," she said.

Foster predicted that cutting carbon emissions citywide will follow a similar pattern.

However, the municipality is taking several steps now in hopes of cutting emissions drastically.

Beginning Wednesday, it will post a survey on its Web site for resident input. Residents will be asked if they prefer ordinances or incentives and whether they have time to volunteer, among other things, Foster said.

The city is also using a $168,000 grant to create a new Web site and will host a "Save Our Snow" event this fall to spur community involvement.

"Even if you don't believe in climate change, using less energy and less water makes you more economically viable," Foster said.

Traffic congestion can be reduced and new jobs may be created by the city's environmental efforts, she said.

The report is available online at parkcityghg.editme.com/Roadmap.

E-MAIL: rpalmer@desnews.com