Sustainability and Resilience
Our goal: Eliminate carbon emissions and create resilient, environmentally just communities.
SPUR’s Five-Year Priorities:
• Eliminate the use of fossil fuel in buildings.
• Use nature-based solutions to make communities resilient to sea level rise.
• Make sure that all people and ecosystems have the water they need to thrive.
• Make communities and infrastructure resilient to earthquakes.
SPUR Report
Watershed Moments
Climate scientists predict that California will experience longer, more frequent droughts as the climate warms. How can the Bay Area better manage the limited water it has? SPUR, Greenbelt Alliance and Pacific Institute teamed up to highlight six Northern California leaders who are pioneering more sustainable approaches to water use.
SPUR Report
Water for a Growing Bay Area
The Bay Area is projected to add 2 million jobs and as many as 6.8 million people in the next 50 years. But can we add more jobs and build more housing without using more water? New research from SPUR and the Pacific Institute says yes.
SPUR Report
Safety First: Improving Hazard Resilience in the Bay Area
The San Francisco Bay Area is both a treasured place and a hazardous environment where flooding, wildfires and earthquakes are common today. As a region exposed to multiple hazards, how can we manage for all of them at the same time?
Ongoing Initiative
The Resilient City
We know that another major earthquake will strike San Francisco — we just don’t know when. Since 2008, SPUR has led a comprehensive effort to retrofit the buildings and infrastructure that sustain city life. Our Resilient City Initiative recommends steps the city should take before, during and after the next big quake.
Article
Lessons Learned From California’s COVID-19 Water Debt Relief Program
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Legislature established the California Water and Wastewater Arrearage Payment Program to provide financial relief for unpaid water bills. But water affordability struggles won’t end with the pandemic. The state will need to build upon its first experiment with water bill assistance to weather ongoing climate change and income inequality. SPUR investigates the success of the $985 million program and looks at lessons learned.
Ongoing Initiative
Ocean Beach Master Plan
Ocean Beach, one of San Francisco’s most treasured landscapes, faces significant challenges. Since 2010, SPUR has led an extensive interagency and public process to develop the Ocean Beach Master Plan, a comprehensive vision to address sea level rise, protect infrastructure, restore coastal ecosystems and improve public access.
Updates and Events
Equity Coalition Calls for $200 Million for Low-Income Water Efficiency Assistance in the 2022-23 Budget
Advocacy LetterA coalition of environmental justice organizations call for $200 million over two years in state spending for Low-Income Water Efficiency Assistance. The program will make water bills more affordable for vulnerable households, and make communities more drought-resilient.
Proposed “Parking Cash-Out” Bill Aims to Level the Commute Playing Field for Non-Drivers
News /A bill to give California commuters more options for sustainable transportation is getting strong support. Assembly Bill 2206 would make it easier for employers to implement a California law known as parking cash-out, which requires companies that provide free employee parking to offer the cash equivalent to those who choose not to drive to work. SPUR explored the benefits of parking cash-out at a digital discourse earlier this year.
Setting California’s Clean Appliance Timeline
ResearchCalifornia has set out to be carbon-neutral by 2045. To help meet this goal, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District has proposed deadlines for ending the sale of gas furnaces, boilers and water heaters — but are they soon enough? SPUR’s research found that the proposed dates would transition roughly 90% of households to electric appliances by 2045. But to fully meet its climate goals, California will need to pair new sales standards with substantial incentives.
Lessons Learned From California’s COVID-19 Water Debt Relief Program
News /During the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Legislature established the California Water and Wastewater Arrearage Payment Program to provide financial relief for unpaid water bills. But water affordability struggles won’t end with the pandemic. The state will need to build upon its first experiment with water bill assistance to weather ongoing climate change and income inequality. SPUR investigates the success of the $985 million program and looks at lessons learned.
SPUR and Greenbelt's Comments to the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Control Board on their Amendments to the NPDES Permit
Advocacy LetterSPUR and the Greenbelt Alliance commented on the proposed amendments to the Municipal Regional Stormwater National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit.
How to Make California’s Budget Surplus a Good Deal for the Climate
News /California is dangerously behind on cutting carbon emissions, but this year’s budget surplus can be a weapon in the fight to address climate change, with Governor Newsom announcing plans to spend $37 billion over the next six years on climate resilience. Here are SPUR’s suggestions for how to focus those resources on eliminating fossil fuels in buildings, securing safe and abundant water, ending car dependence, improving transit, building affordable housing where we need it and more.