April 16, 2024
DVRPC, in collaboration with the Wilmington Area Planning Council (WILMAPCO) and South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization (SJTPO), released the Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) for the Philadelphia Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).
The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), in collaboration with the Wilmington Area Planning Council (WILMAPCO) and South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization (SJTPO), released the Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) for the Philadelphia Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). It meets the requirements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program, which provides funding to develop and implement plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollution. The PCAP allowed the region to be eligible to apply for a portion of the $4.6 billion of competitive funding available nationally for implementation of programs, policies, and projects.
The PCAP builds on existing climate action planning and implementation efforts from within the region, best practices from peer jurisdictions, and detailed input and feedback from key stakeholders. “From the beginning of this eight-month planning process, DVRPC and partners strove to center the needs of and opportunities for communities that have been most burdened by the pollution and costs associated with our existing energy systems,” said DVRPC Executive Director Ariella Maron. “Our stakeholder approach focused on strengthening relationships with community-based organizations across the MSA and co-designing the engagement process for the forthcoming Comprehensive Climate Action Plan with them to set the foundation for an inclusive process that results in equitable outcomes.”
The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD MSA is geographically comprised of Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland. Mercer County, New Jersey, was added to the CPRG geographic area, as it is one of DVRPC’s member governments.
The PCAP includes:
- A regional Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory;
- Analysis on impacts and risks facing the Philadelphia MSA’s federally designated low-income and disadvantaged communities (LIDAC); and
- Nine priority GHG reduction measures in transportation, buildings, electricity generation, and waste sectors.
Completing the PCAP is the first phase of the Climate Action Plan process. Between April 2024 and June 2025, DVRPC will continue to work with partners to develop a regional Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP). The CCAP will identify impactful GHG reduction measures across all economic sectors that together will achieve net zero GHG emissions for the region by 2050.
Learn more and read the Greater Philadelphia Priority Climate Action Plan.
“The Priority Climate Action Plan is the result of the largest federal investment in climate action to date. We are thrilled to join forces with DVRPC in this endeavor. This collaboration marks the beginning of our concerted efforts to address climate action, with the plan serving as a cornerstone for attracting substantial additional investment in projects and programs within our MSA,” said Jennifer Marandino, Executive Director, SJTPO. “Focused on practical and achievable initiatives, the plan prioritizes enhancements in transit, bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, adoption of electric vehicles, integration of renewable energy in municipal operations, promotion of energy efficiency in homes and businesses, and reduction of waste.”
“The Priority Climate Action Plan is a big step in the right direction. The actionable measures it outlines create opportunities to reduce enduring social inequities through significant investments in clean energy, mobility, waste reduction, and more,” said William Swiatek, Principal Planner, WILMAPCO. “There is still much to do in our next phase of work – more residents we need to talk with and more economic sectors to address. We look forward to collaborating with DVRPC, SJTPO, and communities across the region to create a robust Comprehensive Climate Action Plan in the coming months.”
Priority GHG Reduction Measures
Through the development of the PCAP, DVRPC and the Philadelphia MSA steering committee, with input from stakeholder engagement, identified nine measures. Each measure in the plan includes a description of the context and action required; GHG emissions reductions calculations; benefits to LIDAC communities; implementation timeline; metrics to track progress; availability of other funding to implement the measure; and case studies of successful, ongoing work in the region.
The nine PCAP measures are:
- Measure 1: Support Decarbonization of Local Governments Operations
- Measure 2: Implement Energy Efficiency, Electrification, and Clean Energy for Residential Buildings
- Measure 3: Implement Energy Efficiency, Electrification, and Clean Energy for Commercial Buildings
- Measure 4: Transition Light Duty Vehicles to Low- or No-Carbon Emission Vehicles
- Measure 5: Expand and Improve Transit
- Measure 6: Implement Bicycle, Pedestrian, and Active Transportation Improvements
- Measure 7: Implement a Clean Electricity Grid and Ensure Grid Reliability
- Measure 8: Reduce Waste and Better Manage Waste Generated
- Measure 9: Reduce Emissions at Wastewater Treatment Plants and Increase Generation of Biomethane
Next steps
The PCAP allowed the region to be eligible to apply for a portion of the $4.6 billion of competitive funding available nationally for implementation of programs, policies, and projects. The next step is to develop a Comprehensive Climate Action Plan, an all-sector plan that identifies how the Philadelphia MSA will get to net zero GHG emissions by 2050. Going beyond the PCAP, this plan will identify transformative, long-term GHG reduction actions in all sectors including transportation, buildings, electric generation, food waste, highly warming gasses, and natural working lands. The CCAP is due to the U.S. EPA in the fall of 2025.
Get Involved
Visit DVRPC’s Climate Action Plan website to learn more, submit questions and project ideas, and sign up for updates. For more information, contact Liz Compitello, Manger, Office of Sustainable Energy, at ecompitello@dvrpc.org.