Bellingham’s mayor proposes these climate measures, including $5 million investment
Two proposed investments by Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood would tackle climate change from both sides of the problem.
One proposal would reduce the community’s greenhouse gas emissions by requiring all new housing projects using federal pandemic relief funds to be fully electric and not rely on natural gas, a fossil fuel.
This proposal is an example of climate change mitigation, which are actions taken to reduce emissions and avoid further warming of the atmosphere.
Electrification is viewed by many climate and energy experts as a crucial step in preventing further climate change, since electricity can be generated with clean sources such as wind, solar and hydropower.
The mayor’s second proposal would invest $5 million in electric cooling and ventilation systems in municipal buildings, which could then serve as locations where community members can escape wildfire smoke and high temperatures.
The region has firsthand experience with both of these health threats in recent months, with a record-breaking heat wave in June followed by a smoky August.
City staff are still evaluating which buildings would be best-suited to become respite facilities, but Bellingham Public Library is being considered in early discussions, said city Communications Director Janice Keller in an email to The Bellingham Herald.
As opposed to mitigation, this second proposal is a climate change adaptation measure, which is taken to adjust to the consequences of a warming planet. It is intended to “protect our most vulnerable community members,” according to the City of Bellingham.
The proposed investments will primarily rely on funding from the American Rescue Plan, Keller said. This federal act allocates billions of dollars to local governments to manage and recover from the pandemic.
The proposals will be discussed by City Council in the coming months, during the 2022 biennial budget adjustment process and in discussions about individual projects being considered for American Rescue Plan funding, Keller said.
Some local housing and environmental advocates welcomed the proposals.
“It’s a step in the right direction,” said Simon Vickery, climate and energy policy manager at RE Sources. “I’m pleased the City is moving forward with some of its climate action plan goals relatively quickly.”
The city created a Climate Protection Action Plan in 2007 and updated it in 2018.
Vickery commended the proposal for all-electric cooling centers in municipal buildings, saying it wisely integrates climate action into necessary public safety measures.
“That’s a great way of thinking about climate and local government. They aren’t separate,” Vickery said. “Climate can be part of everything local government does. We just need to acknowledge and plan for it.”
The mayor’s proposal to require some new housing to be all-electric is in line with the work already being done by the Opportunity Council, a local nonprofit that develops affordable housing, said the organization’s Executive Director Greg Winter.
Two of the Opportunity Council’s newest projects — affordable housing for seniors and a residential addiction recovery program — do not use fossil fuels for space and water heating.
There are currently 140 nonprofit-developed housing units in the design phase in Bellingham and Whatcom County, city Communications Director Keller said. These projects get funding through a variety of sources, including American Rescue Plan dollars.
“Those housing partners have been notified that our expectation is that those housing units are fully electric,” Keller told The Herald.
“At the City of Bellingham, we are all in on climate action to help slow climate change that is damaging our health and environment,” said Mayor Fleetwood in a YouTube video posted by the city in September as part of this year’s ALL IN for Climate Action week.
“Our committed goal in Bellingham is to become a fully carbon-free city,” Fleetwood said. “Toward this end, we believe it’s imperative to take continuous action.”
This story was originally published October 19, 2021 at 5:00 AM.
