King County Climate Change Conference: Sims outlines efforts to reduce emissions, prepare for global warming

Oct. 26, 2005

King County Climate Change Conference: Sims outlines efforts to reduce emissions, prepare for global warming

Loss of snowpack is one of global warming's most ominous side effect for the Puget Sound region, largely because the area depends so much on snowmelt for water supply and to keep water flowing in its streams for people and fish.

With the sold out 2005 King County Climate Change Conference set for Thursday at the Qwest Field Event Center, King County Executive Ron Sims today outlined how King County is combating global warming and responding to predictions for tighter water supplies as a result of climate change.

"If what scientists are predicting holds true and we lose more than 50 percent of our snowpack, all possible water supply sources must be examined," Sims said. "We need to address the growing water needs of the additional hundreds of thousands of people who are moving here, and to ensure that our salmon populations have enough cool water in their streams to thrive."

Sims said regional water supply planning must be at the forefront of local government preparedness. King County and the Cascade Water Alliance have initiated a process to develop a regional water supply plan for King County that will address these needs through a comprehensive strategy, including measures to address climate change. A Memorandum of Understanding that King County and Cascade signed in February of this year jump started development of a water supply plan to be completed by the end of 2007. A significant component of the plan will be developing reclaimed water as a supply source.

Sims today made the case that a drought-proof supply of reclaimed water can help keep water flowing in King County streams, and he is proposing $26 million in his 2006 budget to make it happen.

The county's conference on global warming is designed to ensure local and state government agencies are preparing for changes to the world's climate and the potential impacts of more-destructive storms and water shortages on local government services. Sims and Christine Todd Whitman, former Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, headline the prestigious list of speakers at the day-long event.

The conference sold out two weeks ago, drawing more than 600 participants. Representatives from a broad cross-section of local governments and state agencies, education, business, the tribes, agriculture, nonprofit organizations and communities are participating. They will learn about and discuss climate change impacts and potential adaptations of services to expected conditions.

"Interest in the conference is high because it's among the first of its kind, focusing on what local governments should be and are doing to prepare. We still have jurisdictions clamoring to get in," Sims said. "This issue is becoming more topical because local governments are realizing that, despite what the scientific community is saying, the federal government is mildly engaged at best, and it's up to them to plan for what climate change will bring."

Sims said King County is taking a two-pronged approach to combating global warming. It has changed the way it does business to reduce its emissions that contribute to climate change, and is preparing for potential impacts such as water shortages and the increased severity of flooding.

Transportation emissions are the largest contributor and King County is reducing these emissions in two ways: using vehicles cars that have reduced greenhouse emissions, and encouraging fewer cars on the roads. King County is working to help take cars off the road and cleaning up tailpipe emissions by:

Purchasing a fleet of 235 hybrid buses and 140 cars – more than any other government of its size;
By incorporating biodiesel into our Metro bus and Solid Waste fleets;
By working for tough tailpipe standards in Olympia;
Operating the largest bus system in the Pacific Northwest;
Leading on growth management; and
Buying development rights to preserve forests and open space.

King County avoided sprawl and preserved the existing forest practices when it purchased the development rights to 90,000 acres of the Snoqualmie Tree Farm in 2004. Preventing this sprawl is estimated to have avoided as many as 44,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions per year over 50 years – the equivalent of taking 11,000 cars off the road each year.

King County has also been at the forefront of pushing for cleaner, more efficient and alternative sources of energy. Some of the county's work on energy includes:

The largest landfill gas-to-energy project in the region;
The largest fuel-cell projects of its kind in the world;
Upgrades to its wastewater treatment systems to capture more energy and use it on-site;
Reuse of biosolids in a manner which replaces the need for ammonia-based commercial fertilizer;
Establishing Green Building standard for county buildings; and
Implementing efficiency upgrades for county facilities.

Sims said King County has and will continue to be a leader in preparing for the impacts of climate change. "Many of the actions King County has pioneered are the same actions that can buy us insurance against potentially dangerous climate change impacts," he said.

In addition to the reclaimed wastewater initiative, examples of King County's pioneering work include:

Flood plain management that helps protect us against more-intense storms caused by global warming and was recognized as the best in the nation;
Extensive salmon recovery efforts that help buy insurance against reductions in stream flows and warmer water temperatures during critical spawning times;
Long-standing support for growth management and preserving open spaces that provides natural environments that encourage habitat and help retain the ever-decreasing water supplies; and
Acquisition of major parcels of forestland to protect the tree canopies that protect the ecosystem and recycle carbon dioxide.

The King County 2005 Climate Change Conference is scheduled from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday, October 27. In addition to Whitman's keynote address, conference highlights include:

Dr. Stephen Schneider, a world-renowned climate expert and lead author for international consensus documents on climate science;
Discussion and book signing with John Cox, author of Climate Crash: Abrupt Climate Change and What it Means for Our Future ; and
Breakout sessions led by local experts on the potential impact of climate change on natural and water resources, agriculture, coastal areas, fishing, forestry, hydropower, water supply (municipal and industrial) and flooding/stormwater.

For more information about the King County 2005 Climate Change Conference, visit the conference Web site or contact Deborah Brockway, at 206-296-1927.