HomeMy WebLinkAbout24-021 Joint Resolution of the Board of County Commissioners and the Port Townsend City Council Setting an Updated Climate Emissions Goal and New Sequestration Goal, Repealing and Replacing County Resolution No. 44-07 and City Resolution No. 07-022STATE OF WASHINGTON
County of Jefferson
Joint Resolution of the Board of County }
Commissioners and the Port Townsend }
City Council Setting an Updated Climate } County Resolution No.
Emissions Goal and New Sequestration }
Goal, Repealing and Replacing County } City Resolution No. 24-021
Resolution No. 44-07 and City Resolution }
No. 07-022 }
The Board of County Commissioners (BoCC) of Jefferson County Washington ("County") and the
City Council ("Council") of Port Townsend, Washington ("City") do hereby jointly resolve as
follows:
WHEREAS, the impacts of climate change will have far reaching effects on public health, local
economies, food production, water supplies, and power production; and
WHEREAS, Jefferson County and the City of Port Townsend jointly appointed a Climate Action
Committee (CAC) in March 2008, charged with developing a Climate Action Plan which would
provide recommendations for achieving a community standard of cutting greenhouse gas emissions
to levels 80% lower than 1990 levels by 2050 with preliminary reduction targets to be set for earlier
years (County Resolution 44-07 and City Resolution 07-022); and
WHEREAS, the CAC completed the 2018 GHG inventory which found that the community of
Jefferson County has made great progress toward achieving locally adopted goals. However, the
global community is not on track to reduce emissions sufficiently to keep warming below the 1.5°C
increase in temperature that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recommends,
and which was agreed upon in the 2015 Paris Agreement; and
WHEREAS, using the 2018 inventory as a baseline, in 2022, members of the CAC worked with the
Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) to create a Science -Based target for Jefferson County
that is designed to represent each community's fair share of the global emissions to meet the Paris
Agreement; and
WHEREAS, the CAC adopted a motion at its December 12, 2023 meeting to "Recommend the City
Council and BoCC approve updated GHG emissions reduction goals based on the IPCC
recommendations and science -based targets: 58.7% reduction from 2018 baseline levels by 2030
(absolute) and 95% below 2018 levels by 2050 (absolute) with reference to our previous goals
using 1990 baseline data." (The absolute indicates total emissions, regardless of population
changes); and
WHEREAS, in 2022 the Climate Action Committee approved a Jefferson C"oui t " f'�qrq is arld t rce
Greenhouse or sc Gas Inventory
r Mttty (>r 20()1-2016m and Next Steps, That inventory found that the forests and
trees across Jefferson County were sequestering (or removing) more than 13 times the amount of
greenhouse gases that were being emitted, as measured in the 2018 Inventory of Greenhouse Gas
Emissions. Therefore, opportunity to impact the net greenhouse gas contribution of Jefferson
County — and Washington State — is highly influenced by the forests and trees across Jefferson
County; and
WHEREAS, based on the forest inventory, the CAC adopted a motion at its December 12, 2023
meeting recommending that the City Council and BoCC set two new targets for increasing carbon
sequestration in the county:
By 2030: Increase carbon sequestration in Jefferson County (excluding the Olympic
National Park and Wilderness areas [ONPW]) to 2.0 Million Metric Tons of CO2
(MMTCO2)/year, a 20% increase above the 2011-2016 baseline of 1.6 MMTCO2/year.
2. By 2050: Increase carbon sequestration in Jefferson County (excluding ONPW) to 2.3
MMTCO2e/year, a 40% increase above the 2011-2016 baseline of 1.6 MMTCO2/year; and
WHEREAS, increasing carbon sequestration reduces overall net GHG emissions and is critical to
tackling climate change; and
WHEREAS, actions taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and increase sequestration
provide multiple local benefits by decreasing air pollution, creating jobs, reducing energy
expenditures, saving money, and reducing tax burdens for governments, businesses and citizens;
and
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Port Townsend City Council and the Board of
County Commissioners of Jefferson County, State of Washington, commit to collaborate on the
following joint goals:
Reduce Community -wide greenhouse gas emissions to
0 58.7% below 2018 levels by 2030 (absolute)
« 95% below 2018 levels by 2050 (absolute)
Increase Sequestration of greenhouse gas emissions to:
• 20% increase above the 2011-2016 baseline of 1.64 Million Metric Tons of CO2
(MMTCO2)/year, up to 2.0 MMTCO2 by 2030
0 And by an additional 20% increase to 2.3 MMTCO2/year, for a total of 40% increase
above 2011-2016 baseline by 2050
The provisions of this Joint Resolution supersede the community -wide greenhouse gas emissions
reduction goal set forth in the 2007 Joint Resolution (County 44-07, City 07-022).
This Joint Resolution shall become effective upon adoption by the Board of County Commissioners
and the City of Port Townsend.
Severability. If any one or more section, subsections, or sentences of this Resolution are held to be
unconstitutional or invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion of
this Resolution and the same shall remain in full force and effect.
APPROVED AND SIGNED THIS
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Attest:
Carolyn Gallaway, Clerk of the Board
day 2024
BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
Kate Dean, Chair
Greg Brotherton, Member
Heidi Eisenhour, Member
Approved as to form:
Philip C. Hunsucker
Chief Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney
APPROVED AND SIGNED THIS
Attest:
Alys'a i( '40-s'city Clerk
day of 2024
David Faber, Mayor
City of Port Townsend
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