Climate Protection

About this measure: The King County Climate Plan is the initial response to the Executive Orders on Global Warming Preparedness and King County Council Ordinance 12362. This plan provides an overview of how King County seeks to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and work to anticipate and adapt to climate change impacts.

This performance measure addresses the degree that King County achieves its GHG emissions reduction targets and the degree that progress is being made in the related areas of climate-friendly transportation, clean fuels, clean energy, energy efficiency, land use, building design and infrastructure.

The King County Climate Plan addresses Greenhouse Gas (GHG) reduction targets both for King County government operations and for the community — all of the households and businesses in geographic King County.

This plan also includes strategies for adapting to the impacts of climate change. Adaptation steps account for and respond to the increase in temperature, droughts, floods and loss of snow pack and will be integrated into capital project designs and included in facility and program operations.

2006 results: As this plan is in the process of being adopted, it is too early to report on progress.
2006 target: None

Influencing factors

County operations: Factors that will affect the rate at which King County's gov't GHG emissions drop include:

• incorporation of technologies for reducing vehicle emissions, landfill emissions and building-related emissions
• readiness to adopt emission-reducing technologies (e.g: use of renewable energy)
• speed at which energy efficiency and non-fossil technologies can be integrated into county operations

Community-wide emissions: Factors that will affect the rate at which community emissions (those of households and businesses will decline include:

• availability and adoption rates of energy efficiency and renewable energy technologies
• adjustments in market signals (incentives and penalties) which drive consumer behaviors

Strategy going forward: Progress on this plan will require significant both cross-departmental and cross-sector collaboration.

County operations: For King County government operations, the primary GHG reductions are identified in the global warming Executive Orders and the King County Energy Plan. These primary goals are a 50 percent incorporation of energy efficiency and renewable for all stationary energy sources (mostly electricity and natural gas heating) by 2012, and a 50 percent incorporation of energy efficiency and renewable fuels for all mobile sources. In addition to these energy goals, the other major source of GHG emission reductions is uncaptured methane from the Cedar Hills landfills and the other historic landfills. No additional action is needed for these sources because their methane production rate will significantly reduce over time. Between the energy goals and the reduction of landfill emissions, King County should be able to cut its government operations emissions by 30 to 50 percent by 2020.

Community-wide emissions: For King County geographic emissions, the primary source of GHG emissions is from transportation. King County cannot achieve regional reductions on its own so it is closely collaborating with its cities, the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, the Puget Sound Regional Council, and other public as well as private partners. The reductions in transportation emissions will come from massive improvements in vehicles efficiencies, incorporation of renewable fuels, and major mode shift is travel behavior and continued emphasis on smart growth and denser development.

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