Border Environment Cooperation Commission

Las Cruces , NM, September 2011.

Good Neighbor Board

Maria Elena Giner

General Manager 

Mitigation Policies Selected from the first phase

State Climate Action Plans in Baja California- Coahuila and Sonora

Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, and Transportation Project

Opportunities in the US-Mexico Border Region
BECC first steps

Climate Change initiative in the border region

¿What has BECC accomplished with the 

Regional Climate Change Initiatives ?

•Inventories: Promote, develop and conclude the “Green House Gas Climate Change

Inventories” for the six Mexican border states.

•Homogenization: A uniform methodology was used for both sides of the border and

the Mexican state inventories were validated by federal Mexican environmental agencies

such as the Instituto Nacional de Ecologia (INE).

•Local Capacity Building: A series of workshops for the development of the state

Climate Action Plans were held for the six Mexican states via three separate

simultaneous workshops in eight border cities with approximately 300 participants.
BECC first steps

“Green House Gas Climate Change Inventories” 

Relevant Mexican Green House Gas Data

• The 6 Mexican border states emitted in 2005 a total of 141.3 MTMCO2e (i.e. 21.7% of the

national emissions, with only 17.6% of the total population).

• The gross GHG emissions projected for 2025 are 225.7 MTMCO2e (i.e. 31% of the national

GHG emissions with only 19.4% of the nation’s population).
BECC first steps

“Green House Gas Climate Change Inventories” 

Relevant US border states Green House Gas Data

• The 4 USA border states emitted is estimated a total of 1,383 MTMCO2e

• The approximate emissions percentage by state: CA 34%; AZ 8.4%; NM 6.5%; TX 50.5%.
State Climate Action Plans

Baja California-Coahuila and Sonora: MITIGATION SELECTED PUBLIC POLICIES

BECC Support for the 1st Phase of the

Baja California, Coahuila and Sonora State Climate Action Plans

MITIGATION SELECTED PUBLIC POLICIES

1. EPA Border 2012 Funds administered by BECC were used to hire in 2010 The Center for Climate

Strategies (CCS) to support the 1st Phase of the State Climate Action Plans related to mitigation.

2. The 1st Phase has consisted of selecting public policies with the participation of academic

institutions, organizations and local experts on climate change.

3. A total of 134 mitigation policies were identified in the three states.

Policy Sector BC SON COAH

TOTAL 

Policies 

Energy generation 2 10 11 24

Residential, commercial and industrial 7 8 10 25

Transport and urban development 5 10 10 25

Agriculture, cattle, forest and waste 19 9 10 37

Cross-sectional policy elements 0 9 14 23

TOTAL 33 46 55 134

Number of Public Policies Selected by Sector and State 
Climate Change Action Plans (PEACs) for 

Baja California-Coahuila and Sonora

MITIGATION SELECTED PUBLIC POLICIES 

Baja California, Coahuila and Sonora. 

4. Coincidence: Of the 134 mitigation policies 43 of them, or 32%, coincide in each state. For example:

• Energy Efficiency Programs,

• Public Buildings and Street Lighting,

• Incentives for the development of Alternative Energies,

• Public Transport Modernization,

• Urban Light Rail Systems,

• Traffic Control Infrastructure,

• Vehicle Verification Programs,

• Methane Management in Rural Farms, etc.

5. Potential BECC project certification: Of the 134 policies identified 53 have potential for BECC certification and 29 of

these policies are high potential projects for BECC certification (22% of the total), which indicates a high probability

of requiring BECC technical assistance and NADB financing.

Type of Policies

Total of 

Selected 

Policies

Potential 

policies for 

projects

Policies with high 

potential for BECC 

project certification

Percentage of 

Policies with high 

potential for BECC 

project certification

Energy generation 24 9 5 21%

Residential, commercial and industrial 25 13 6 24%

Transport and urban development 25 14 8 32%

Agriculture, cattle, forest and waste 37 17 10 27%

Cross-sectional policy elements 23 0 0 0%

TOTAL 134 53 29 22%

Policies with high potential for BECC project certification (type of Policies) 
Renewable Energy, Energy Efficiency, and Transportation 

Project Opportunities in the US-Mexico Border Region

Green Jobs, Potential Projects and

State Technical Assistance Priorities
• This White Paper describes the current deficit in the

U.S.-Mexico border region in terms of renewable energy,

energy efficiency, and transportation projects focused on

the reduction of greenhouse gases.

• Primary reason this project deficit exists is due to:

I. Limited resources for project development

II. Lack of capacity building in the public and public-private sectors

• This document identifies Green Jobs, Potential Projects

and State Technical Assistance priorities
GREEN JOBS

Source:	Electric	Power	Research	Institute,	2001,	as	shown	in	report	by	Wei,	Patadia,	and	Kammen
GREEN JOBS: RENEWABLE ENERGY

 Landfill gas (long term jobs) and solar PV (short term jobs)

create the largest number of job-years per MWa.

 Biomass and wind energy tend to have more long-term

employment.

 Whether the job-years are short-term or long-term, these

five renewable energy sectors are the leading areas where

the public sector could benefit in economic terms.
 For every $1 million invested in energy efficiency projects

potentially 13 jobs are created (short-term/direct

installation and longer-term/equipment production jobs).

 In a California study, about 1.5 million full-time equivalent

jobs with a total payroll of $45 billion were generated from

energy efficiency savings of $56 billion in the 34-year

period from 1972-2006. *

 Source: * Copenhagen Climate Council, Green Jobs and the Clean Energy Economy, p. 16.

GREEN JOBS: ENERGY EFFICIENCY
GREEN JOBS: TRANSIT

 Bus rapid transit (BRT) routes creates new economic 

development.

 Transportation job creation that is focused on “public transit” 

tends to create jobs more directly linked to GHG reductions 

than jobs from new highway and bridge spending. 

 According to research done by the Economic Development 

Research Group*:

 23,788 jobs are created for every $1 billion spent on public transit (production 

of buses and construction of facilities)

 41,140 jobs are created for operations spending (O&M for bus and rail systems).

Source: * Center on Globalization and Competitiveness, Chapter 12 “Public Transit Buses”, pp. 28-29. 
POTENTIAL PROJECTS: 

STREET LIGHTING

Ciudad Juarez-

 The city has a population of 1.32* million and 95,122 public

streetlights citywide.**

 With the replacement of all public streetlights using LED

technology, under the assumption that the LED lighting systems

are estimated to reduce the energy consumption for the

municipality by 51% annually, the GHG reductions as a result of

the energy savings are projected to be the equivalent of

removing 9,047 vehicles per year.

 Additionally, beyond the energy savings, the municipality can

expect financial savings through reduced operations and

maintenance.

Sources: *Censo de Población y Vivienda 2010 INEGI. / ** Instituto Municipal de Investigación y Planeación de Cd. Juárez, Chih.
POTENTIAL PROJECTS: ENERGY

EFFICIENCY

World Bank 14 Mexican Border Utilities Study:

 At a 30% reduction of tons of GHG’s:

o 3,989 tons would be reduced 

o $7,087,632 in energy costs saved 

 These GHG reductions and energy cost savings would 

come from:

o pump replacements 

o motor retrofits, 

o process equipment upgrades, and 

o energy management systems installation
POTENTIAL PROJECTS: 

TRUCK STOP ELECTRIFICATION / ANTI-IDLING

(TSE/AI)

An example of a 90 minute wait for 3000 trucks average

crossings per day, the average at Otay Mesa in the Baja

California - California border, for 250 days per year, shows:

 approximately $3.4 M in diesel fuel is burned

 approximately $800,000 in O & M

 approximate cost to truck owners of $4.2 M p/y

Idling during this same period produces over 11,000 tons of

CO2; 4 tons of PM and 152 tons of NOx.
POTENTIAL PROJECTS: 

TRUCK STOP ELECTRIFICATION / ANTI-IDLING (TSE/AI)

Assuming drivers will cut idling time by 75% through an TSE/AI

strategy, they can:

Save:

 Over $3 million dollars per year

Reduce almost:

 8,500 tons of CO2 emissions

 3 tons of PM

 114 tons of NOx

Source: Truck Stop Electrification and Anti-Idling as a Diesel Emissions Reduction Strategy at U.S-Mexico Ports of

Entry. Prepared for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Ross and Associates Environmental

Consulting. April 2009.
POTENTIAL PROJECTS: HOUSING

The Guide Book on Methods for the Use of Energy and Water

Saving Technologies in Public Housing in Mexico, UNAMINE (2007-2008) shows:

That if the fourteen devices identified for saving water and

energy were installed:

 Household savings would be $1,576 annually which is

almost equal to 20% of the annual income of these

households, which is $8,025.
STATE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PRIORITIES

State Priority TA Needs

Baja 

California

 Feasibility and market analysis study on Linea Verde

 Statewide energy assessment (savings and generation) at 

wastewater treatment plants

 Assistance designing financial tools for funding largescale residential solar PV projects

 Energy audits of public facilities and public street lighting

Sonora  Statewide energy assessment (savings and generation) at 

wastewater treatment plants

 Energy audits of public street lighting

California  “Capacity building” funds to: 

o Help border communities with implementation and 

management of voluntary and mandatory programs 

(i.e. SB 375 – law mandating Metropolitan Planning

Organizations (MPO), the regional transportation 

planning entity, to develop GHG reductions plan for 

all vehicles in the state

o Community-level GHG inventories and action plans
STATE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PRIORITIES

Arizona  Energy audits for municipalities

 Capacity building for municipalities doing

energy projects:

o Project development process

o Technical issues

o Business and regulatory negotiation issues

o Financial analysis

New 

Mexico

 Energy audits for municipalities

 Fund demand side management plans for 

public sector entities

Chihuahua  Statewide solar and wind energy site 

assessments

 Statewide energy audit of water pumps at

treatment systems 
STATE TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PRIORITIES

Texas  Energy audits and opportunity assessments for 

municipal operations

Tamaulipas  Energy audits for municipal operations

Nuevo Leon  Statewide energy assessment (savings and 

generation) at wastewater treatment plants

 Statewide solar and wind energy site assessments

 Statewide assessment of waste-to-energy

generation potential from MSW operations

 Statewide assessment of animal waste-to-energy

generation capacity

 Energy audits for public buildings, public street 

lights, and water pumps
BORDER STATE PRIORITY PROJECTS

State Priority Projects 

Baja California  77MW wind energy project for development/implementation in 2011-2012

 21MW hydroelectric energy project for development/implementation in

2011-2012

 Linea Verde (“Green Line”) 320 kilovolt power line dedicated to 100% 

renewable energy binationaltransmission from Baja California to California

Sonora  Statewide public street lighting projects

 Bus rapid transit (BRT) project in Hermosillo to cover three major routes 

within the city

 Nogales waste-to-energy project

California  Solar PV projects with smaller communities

 Electric vehicle charging stations

 CNG/propane-fuel switch for school bus fleets

 Projects that improve regional mobility and land use planning as mandated

by SB 375. Intended to improve comprehensively the planning and design of 

transportation systems to reduce vehicular GHG emissions. (CA Climate Plan)

 Methane capture at municipal solid waste (MSW) facilities (CA Climate Plan)

 High-level recycling and zero waste programs for MSW facilities (CA Climate 

Plan)
BORDER STATE PRIORITY PROJECTS

Arizona  Municipal-level energy efficiency projects with public buildings, water treatment

plants

 Transmission lines dedicated to renewable energy (solar and wind) to move from 

remote generation zones to populated load centers

 Community-level solar projects between 2-20MW size

 Inter-community rail for Tucson to Nogales

 Increase MSW recycling and waste reduction projects (AZ Climate Action Plan)

 Purchase lower GHG emitting state vehicle fleet (AZ Climate Action Plan)

New Mexico  Demand side management projects in public sector (NM Climate Action Plan)

 Energy efficient building codes statewide (NM Climate Action Plan)

 Solid waste recycling, source reduction, and composting programs per statewide

mandate (NM Climate Action Plan)

 Renewable energy transmission and storage projects (NM Climate Action Plan)

 Low GHG emission vehicles for state agencies (NM Climate Action Plan)

 Truck stop electrification and anti-idling systems (NM Climate Action Plan)

Chihuahua  BRT projects in Chihuahua and Cd. Juarez 

 Statewide program to develop solar thermal systems for residential hot water

 1MW solar projects at the Technological University of Chihuahua, the

Technological University of Cd. Juarez, and the Technology Institute of Chihuahua

 Replacement of 700 water pumps at local water/wastewater utilities statewide
BORDER STATE PRIORITY PROJECTS

Texas  Community wind farms (10MW and less) for self-generation and merchant

power sales

 State lands for large-scale solar PV projects

 CNG fleet fuel switch for school bus and public bus fleets

Tamaulipas  161MW wind energy project (Los Vergeles) to provide electricity for 43 

municipios (statewide) for development and implementation in 2012-13

 Statewide vehicle emission testing programs

Coahuila  Statewide network of “solar schools” that help educate and demonstrate 

energy efficiency and clean energy systems to students and the community

 Statewide development of “green schools” that utilize the most up-to-date 

sustainability and green building techniques

 Methane capture projects at dairies and cattle feedlots

 Conservation and reforestation of urban tree populations

 Large-scale public transit projects to reduce GHG emissions

Nuevo Leon  BRT system for the Monterrey metropolitan area

 Metrorey line expansion to connect up with “Linea 3”

 Synchronized traffic lighting system for Monterrey (called “SINTRAM”)

 Landfill gas-to-energy projects with SIMEPRODE

 Anaerobic digesters (biogas-to-energy) at wastewater treatment plants

 Compact Fluorescent Light (CFL) replacement program for residential sector
Maria Elena Giner

General Manager

BECC, Cd. Juárez, Chih.

 (52-656) 688-4641

 mginer@cocef.org