Background
Contra Costa County’s Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative (Initiative) is a cluster-based regional collaboration (6 cities and several unincorporated communities) that provides a framework for approaching emerging 21st century economic opportunities responsibly, with a focus on job creation and economic well-being. The Northern Waterfront Initiative supports and implements regional prosperity and income mobility with identified beneficial outcomes such as:
• Provide economic opportunities for low and moderate income workers and unemployed individuals;
• Provide jobs near worker housing and priority development areas;
• Promote clean and green manufacturing;
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions;
• Generate 18,000 additional jobs.
In order to achieve these beneficial outcomes, the Initiative is pursuing a cluster-based strategy. Industry clusters are regional concentrations of related industries. Clusters consist of companies, suppliers and service providers, as well as government agencies and other institutions that provide education, information, research and technical support to a regional economy. Clusters are a network of economic relationships that create a competitive advantage for the related firms in a
particular region. This advantage then becomes an enticement for similar industries and suppliers to those industries to develop or relocate to a region. The Northern Waterfront Initiative is targeting five advanced manufacturing industry clusters: 1) Clean Technology; 2) Advanced Transportation Fuels and Technologies; 3) Biomedical; 4) Food Processing, and; 5) Diversified Manufacturing. These five advanced manufacturing clusters were chosen for the following primary reasons:
• Advanced manufacturing occupations pay a livable wage,
• Potential anchor companies engaged in these industries already exist within the Northern Waterfront area from which to seed a growing cluster and many are located close to priority development areas,
• Advanced manufacturing occupations offer opportunities for middle-skill workers,
• It is estimated that 56% of Contra Costa residents employed in a manufacturing occupation commute out of the County for their job, and approximately 50% of residents out-commute daily, and
• A manufacturing job creates additional jobs by enjoying a multiplier effect of 3-5.
Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative and GHG Reduction
In the framework and the beneficial outcomes outlined above is the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. The Initiative is addressing GHG reduction on several different fronts including land use and transportation, waste, water, energy, brownfields, and rising tides.
Land Use and Transportation: Given that 56% of manufacturing workers out-commute daily, creating manufacturing jobs along the Northern Waterfront will result in reduced vehicle miles traveled. For example, Emerald HCP International’s research regarding zip code 94531 (Southeast Antioch), determined that the average commute to work was 1 ½ hours each way with the majority traveling congested Highway 4. These types of commutes are deleterious to quality of life, as well as GHG emitters. In addition, as noted with the industry cluster adoption, clusters are primed for development around several of the transit-oriented priority development areas.
Several of the potential job opportunity sites offer multi-modal opportunities with access to water transportation, rail, and truck. By attracting companies that utilize water and rail, significant GHG reductions will occur. For example, expanded use of freight rail offers a meaningful way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions without harming the economy. On average, railroads are four times more fuel efficient than trucks. That means moving freight by rail instead of truck reduces GHG emissions by 75 percent. A single freight train can replace several hundred trucks. Moving freight by rail instead of trucks also reduces highway wear and tear and the pressure to build costly new highways.
Waste: The Initiative is addressing waste on several levels: methane, recycling, and advanced transportation fuels.
Currently, Mango Materials is working with Delta Diablo to produce a naturally occurring
biopolymer from waste biogas (methane) that is economically competitive with conventional oil-based plastics. ReThink Green, Inc., a firm we have been working with since 2014, has recently purchased an approximately 8 acre heavy industrial zoned parcel in the unincorporated Martinez area to build a manufacturing facility. ReThink Green is establishing a carpet recycling facility that will process post-consumer carpet tiles, nylon carpet, and polypropylene carpet into PVC crumb, nylon pellets, PP pellets, and CaCO3 concrete additive. This proposed project will significantly help achieve the goals of increasing carpet diversion (AB 2398) and recycling rates (AB 241) while reducing GHG emissions. As information, the U.S. EPA has designated post-consumer carpet as a high priority waste stream with diversion solutions having the second highest potential for reducing overall greenhouse gas emissions. This project will employ 80 to 100 people.
The California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development has expressed much interest regarding the suitability for the Northern Waterfront to host California-approved green advanced transportation fuel projects, such as biodiesel made from 100% renewable raw materials (vegetable oils).
Water: Ironhouse Sanitary District, Delta Diablo, and Central Sanitary District provide recycled water for residential, commercial, and industrial use along the Northern Waterfront. Between the three District’s, over 15 million gallons daily are produced.
Energy (CCE): The Northern Waterfront contains 61% of Contra Costa County’s industrial-zoned land, several brownfields, and an energy generation capacity over 3,500 MW. As noted by MRW and Associates in their January 17 Board of Supervisor’s presentation, "Community Choice Energy in Contra Costa County", the Northern Waterfront area contains enough technically feasible locations for renewable generation to meet a significant proportion of electricity demand. These clean energy projects will provide jobs and contribute to economic growth without generating pollution. According to the Technical Study for Community Choice Energy Program in Contra Costa County, produced by MRW & Associates, LLC, Economic Development Research Group, Boston, MA, and Sage Renewables, San Francisco, CA, “The CCE could create approximately 500 to 700 additional annual jobs on average in the County.”
Brownfields: In working with the Hazardous Materials Commission, it has supported an effort to assess the re-use potential of contaminated vacant or underutilized industrially-zoned sites within the Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative for the purpose of maximizing the benefit from their eventual development. The Commission understands that brownfield sites within the Initiative area are not necessarily equally well-positioned for industrial or commercial reuse and that potential can differ based on the cost of clean-up, compatibility with surrounding land uses, impacts from sea level rise, access to amenities and value for other types of uses. The Commission recommends an assessment and prioritization of re-use potential to help determine which sites should be focused on first for development as industrial or commercial uses, and which sites should be developed later or potentially re-purposed for different uses. It is further suggested that the appropriate types of alternative uses may be identified as part of a brownfield reuse assessment through the prism of a Health Impact Assessment.
Rising Tides: As Jody London, Sustainability Coordinator, reported during the April 11, 2017, Northern Waterfront Economic Development Initiative Ad-Hoc Committee meeting in early 2015, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) convened and staffed a planning process, Adapting to Rising Tides (ART), to understand how current and future coastal and river flooding may affect communities and shoreline in Contra Costa County from Richmond to Bay Point.
The project investigated how flooding may impact transportation and utility networks, industrial facilities and employment sites, residential neighborhoods and community facilities, and shoreline park and recreation facilities. The project considered the consequences of flooding, both within and beyond the project area, and in particular the potential for disproportionate impacts on certain community members. Data from the study will inform the upcoming update of the County’s General Plan, particularly the safety element, and can be similarly used by the other jurisdictions and organizations in the study area.
The ART study area did not include the eastern part of Contra Costa County. That region is not in BCDC’s jurisdiction, even though it will likely experience rising tides due to climate change. The Delta Stewardship Council has approached County staff and BCDC about extending the study to the eastern part of the County, and has funding for this purpose. Staff finds this to be an exceptional opportunity to extend the study at little or no cost to the County. This will assist the cities in eastern Contra Costa County as well as the County and other stakeholders. Although this area is not in BCDC’s jurisdiction, BCDC is best positioned to continue the work it started with the western part of the County. When performing studies outside of its geographical boundaries, BCDC requests that affected cities and counties request BCDC’s involvement. Staff therefore recommends that the Board of Supervisors invite BCDC to extend the ART planning process to eastern Contra Costa County. The Board will receive a briefing on this on May 23, 2017.
The fiscal impact of participating in the next phase of the study will be zero or minimal, as the grant from the Delta Stewardship Council would include $10,000 to cover time for County staff, but the information gathered is critical.
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