In May of 2006, the Whatcom County Council resolved to become a member of ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability.  This membership granted them access to an ICLEI Program Assistant for three months, with funding from the Northwest Clean Air Agency, to perform an inventory of government and community emissions and to devise a draft Action Plan for reducing those emissions.

The government inventory revealed an essential finding for the Whatcom County Administration: many of the initiatives that could be taken to reduce greenhouse gas emissions would also save money over the long term.  Energy efficiency improvements, increased fleet-vehicle mileage, and a reduction in fleet miles traveled were examples of some of these recommendations. 

Executive Pete Kremen saw this as an opportunity to accelerate County climate protection efforts in a way that was fiscally responsible.  He therefore began exploring the potential of funding a new position within the County, devoted to finding these dual-benefit situations.  When research revealed that Puget Sound Energy and Northwest Clean Air Agency could help support the position for the first year, the decision was made to fund a Conservation Resource Analyst.

At about the same time, County Council began exploring other options for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.  In September of 2006, Council resolved to purchase 100% green power for all County operations.  Funding for this measure was secured through the approximate $90,000 in energy savings that had been achieved through upgrades and conservation over the previous five years.  This purchase, at an initial cost of approximately $60,000 per year, reduced the County government’s greenhouse gas emissions by 1/3 in one single action.  Since then, the price of green power has come down significantly, and green power now costs about $37,000 per year.

Since that time, the following projects have either been implemented or are in the planning stages:

If you have any questions or would like more information about Whatcom County’s climate protection program, please contact Christina Reeves at (360)676-6700 extension 50121 or at conservation@co.whatcom.wa.us.