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Council will get info on JPA for energy

 

Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) is an obscure and opaque term with a mouthful of syllables that leaves most people at first glance scratching their heads.

It is, however, a vitally important concept with significant economic and environmental consequences for cities and counties all across California and the Sonoma City Council will take a hard listen to a CCA presentation on Monday night.

The concept behind the syllables is actually quite simple.

Communities - such as a group of Sonoma County cities - come together to create what amounts to a joint powers authority to buy and resell energy - in this case electric power purchased form PG&E.

This is notable, in part, because CCA allows communities to make decisions on the sources of their electricity and can select more renewable power sources if they choose. Some CCA arrangements also have the potential of rate reductions.

CCAs are also notable because PG&E spent $46 million in 2010 trying unsuccessfully to pass Proposition 16, which would have required a two-thirds public vote before a CCA could be created. Also on Monday's council agenda is a status report on the Solid Waste Advisory Committee (SWAG) which is exploring a long-term solid waste strategy.

Current SWAG objectives are to achieve a range of waste diversion goals, including 90 percent diversion of solid waste (away from landfills) by 2020, developing greater economic efficiencies and promoting more local control over waste management.

The council will also undergo some self-examination by discussing council rules for agendizing meeting items and utilizing city staff time; council members will explore policies and procedures and discuss the possibility of creating a committee on policies and procedures.

There will also be a proposal to consider temporarily disbanding the council's swimming pool committee, as well as discussion of extending the term of the city's honorary alcalde from one year to two as a money-saving move.

Also on the agenda will be a proclamation honoring Rick Arendt, a state parks docent who served as president of the Sonoma/Petaluma State Historic Parks Association. Arendt died on June 11.

The City Council will meet in closed session at 5 p.m. and in regular open session at 6 p.m. in the Community Meeting Room, 117 First St. W.