What We Need: Aggressive action to curb greenhouse gas emissions and strengthen climate resilience by implementing the Climate and Energy Action Plan, engaging community partners, developing innovative programs, and promoting a green economy.

Climate change is here and we are seeing the signals in the form of higher temperatures, greater wildfire risk, summer smoke, and rain coming in harder bursts.

Our Climate and Energy Action Plan (CEAP) (https://www.ashland.or.us/Files/Ashland%20Climate%20and%20Energy%20Action%20Plan_pages.pdf) includes some of the strongest, science-based targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the nation. It also includes specific steps to build our resilience against climate change impacts.

By setting this plan in motion, the Ashland community has committed itself to fully meeting the challenge of climate change over time.  

Climate change targets in the plan include:

• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with City, residential, commercial, and industrial activities.

  • For the Ashland community: Reduce overall Ashland community greenhouse gas emissions by 8% on average every year to 2050.

  • For City of Ashland operations: Attain carbon neutrality in City operations by 2030, and reduce fossil fuel consumption by 50% by 2030 and 100% by 2050.

• Prepare the city’s communities, systems, and resources to be more resilient to the impacts of climate change.

Two Commissions share the work of implementing the CEAP: the Conservation and Climate Outreach Commission and the Climate Policy Commission. I serve as Council Liaison to both of these climate commissions.

The Climate Policy Commission was formed in the fall of 2019 and I was appointed as its Chair to help the Commission identify its work and get underway with urgency. My job was to serve as Chair for one year and then hand off those duties to other Commission members before taking my position as Council Liaison to the Commission. This Commission completed a strategic planning process and developed a detailed workplan for the first 12 months. We had several discussions with the Council and had a proposal for a Declaration of Climate Emergency, including a list of actions for the City to take, before Council when COVID-19 hit and commissions could no longer meet. When commissions were able to meet again, the focus had shifted to fuel switching from fossil fuels to electricity and engaging in the master plan processes coming forward at the City for the Electric Utility, Transportation System Plan, and others.

The City has a full-time staff position to help the City and larger community meet the goals in the plan. Unfortunately, that position is vacant at the moment, but I am hopeful that we will soon have the capacity in our Human Relations Department to address that vacancy.

The City of Ashland recently entered into Memorandums of Understanding with Stracker Solar and the Ashland Solar Cooperative to help move solar projects forward. We are currently awaiting a response to a proposal to the State of Oregon for funds to install solar power at our Civic Center on East Main Street, which is the location of our Emergency Operations Center in the event of an emergency.

In my work as a councilor, I bring my professional climate expertise to decisions before the Council to ensure that we are moving forward on our climate goals as we complete necessary infrastructure projects and Master Plan and Comprehensive Plan updates.

A few highlights from the past few years:

The City partnered with Forth Mobility to install ten new electric vehicle (EV) charging stations at the City’s Service Center for its current fleet of electric vehicles as part of the City’s commitment to CEAP goals. We also expanded electric charging downtown.

Council directed staff to move forward with ensuring that our new water treatment plant meets at least Gold Certification in the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure’s Envision Program.