[This document is currently just a draft, but it represents the first time a regional body has integrated planning for peak oil into their overall plan. We highlight the energy chapter here, but the Land Use and Housing chapter and the Transportation chapter are also relevant and well done. Drafts for these chapters are available on the RCP webpage.
The Energy chapter is excerpted below. You can read or download a PDF of the draft energy chapter here. -Ed.]

About the RCP

The Regional Comprehensive Plan (RCP) will present a vision of how Southern California can balance resource conservation, economic vitality, and quality of life. It will serve as a blueprint to approach growth and infrastructure challenges in an integrated and comprehensive way. Ultimately, the RCP will be an action plan that will spell out measurable objectives and targets to measure our progress toward meeting ambitious goals for a sustainable region. ...

This plan is taking shape with input from task forces and working groups comprised of elected officials, city planners, academics, business leaders, scientific experts, environmentalists, community representatives and other stakeholders. Its publication will be the result of three years of collaborative efforts.

The RCP will feature nine chapters; each based on a specific area of planning or resource management. A finance strategy will accompany each chapter, identifying funding opportunities.

The chapters are:

• Land Use and Housing
• Solid Waste
• Energy
• Air Quality
• Open Space and Habitat
• Economy
• Water
• Transportation
• Security and Emergency Preparedness

Energy

The Challenge

Clean, stable and sustainable sources of energy for Southern California are critical to supporting a healthy and resilient region. In developing future plans, SCAG must fully weigh and consider energy supply, efficiency, consumption, and environmental impacts such as greenhouse gas emissions. California relies on petroleum-based fuels for 96 percent of its transportation needs. The SCAG region consumes over 23 million gallons of petroleum per day, roughly half of California’s oil consumption and vehicle fuel consumption in the region has increased 20 percent over the last ten years. Furthermore,
only 15 percent of the electricity consumed in the region is generated from renewable sources. At the same time, SCAG forecasts significant growth in population, households, and jobs that will place new demands on energy production and increase pollution and greenhouse gases.
...
The world supply crunch will impact the SCAG region. A fuel shortage will take a toll on California’s economy as consumers are spending more of their household income on gasoline than ever before, particularly with development patterns that create long commutes without access to public transportation. High fuel prices also reduce profit margins for the manufacturing and industrial sectors, which pass the higher cost of their goods and services to consumers. Since September of 2004, the monthly average price of gasoline has increased by more than 35 cents per gallon, costing consumers an additional $6.1
billion for gasoline.
...
The demand for oil must decline at a similar rate of production in order to avert economic and social consequences of increased prices. If oil and gas become scarce and expensive, it will have profound implications for our economy and way of life. A recent study funded by the U.S. Department of Energy determined that viable mitigation options exist but must be initiated more than a decade in advance to avoid severe economic disruptions.

The Plan

The RCP lays out a strategy to reverse the current trends and diversify our energy supplies to create clean, stable, and sustainable
sources of energy that address energy uncertainty and environmental health. This plan includes strategies that the region can take to reduce fossil fuel consumption and increase the use of clean, renewable technologies. SCAG will continue to work with stakeholders at the federal, state, regional and local levels to promote these policies and encourage their implementation. However, leadership is needed to coordinate and provide an ongoing forum for local and regional programs to implement an energy savings program.

As stated in the 2006 State of the Region, we can prepare for these inevitable energy challenges by encouraging community participation, reinvesting in public transportation, and revising land use, zoning and building codes to optimize the consumption of our energy resources. There are numerous strategies that the public sector can undertake to address our energy challenges. These make up the bulk of the proposed Action Plan to promote a more sustainable energy supply.