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SAN LEANDRO SHORELINE DEVELOPMENT DRAFT EIR <br />CITY OF SAN LEANDRO <br />GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS <br />4.6 GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS <br />This chapter evaluates the potential for land use changes associated with adopting and implementing the <br />San Leandro Shoreline Development (Project) to cumulatively contribute to greenhouse gas (GHG) <br />emissions impacts. Because no single project is large enough individually to result in a measurable <br />increase in global concentrations of GHG emissions, global warming impacts of a project are considered <br />on a cumulative basis. This chapter is based on the methodology recommended by the Bay Area Air <br />Quality Management District (BAAQMD) for project -level review, based on preliminary information <br />available. Transportation sector emissions are based on trip generation provided by Kittelson & Associates, <br />Inc. GHG emissions modeling is included in Appendix D, Air Quality and Greenhouse Gas Modeling, of this <br />Draft EIR. <br />4.6.1 ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING <br />Scientists have concluded that human activities are contributing to global climate change by adding large <br />amounts of heat -trapping gases, known as GHGs, to the atmosphere. The primary source of these GHGs is <br />fossil fuel use. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has identified four major GHGs— <br />water vapor, carbon dioxide (COA methane (CH4), and ozone (03)—that are the likely cause of an increase <br />in global average temperatures observed in the 20th and 21st centuries. Other GHGs identified by the <br />IPCC that contribute to global warming to a lesser extent are nitrous oxide (N20), sulfur hexafluoride (SFA <br />hydrofluorocarbons, perfluorocarbons, and chlorofluorocarbons (IPCC 2001).""' The major GHGs are <br />briefly described below. <br />■ Carbon dioxide (COA enters the atmosphere through the burning of fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and <br />coal), solid waste, trees and wood products, and respiration. It can also enter as a result of other <br />chemical reactions (e.g., manufacture of cement). Carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere <br />(sequestered) when it is absorbed by plants as part of the biological carbon cycle. <br />■ Methane (CH4) is emitted during the production and transportation of coal, natural gas, and oil. <br />Methane emissions also result from livestock, other agricultural practices, and from the decay of <br />organic waste in landfills and water treatment facilities. <br />■ Nitrous oxide (NZO) is emitted during agricultural and industrial activities as well as during the <br />combustion of fossil fuels and solid waste. <br />1 Water vapor (H20) is the strongest GHG and the most variable in its phases (vapor, cloud droplets, ice crystals). <br />However, water vapor is not considered a pollutant, but part of the feedback loop rather than a primary cause of change. <br />2 Black carbon contributes to climate change both directly, by absorbing sunlight, and indirectly, by depositing on snow <br />(making it melt faster) and by interacting with clouds and affecting cloud formation. Black carbon is the most strongly light - <br />absorbing component of particulate matter (PM) emitted from burning fuels such as coal, diesel, and biomass. Reducing black <br />carbon emissions globally can have immediate economic, climate, and public health benefits. California has been an international <br />leader in reducing emissions of black carbon, with close to 95 percent control expected by 2020 due to existing programs that <br />target reducing PM from diesel engines and burning activities (CARB, 2014). However, State and national GHG inventories do not <br />yet include black carbon due to ongoing work resolving the precise global warming potential of black carbon. Guidance for CEQA <br />documents does not yet include black carbon. <br />3 Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, 2001. Third Assessment Report: Climate Change 2001, New York: <br />Cambridge University Press. <br />PLACEWORKS 4.6-1 <br />