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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCAC Minutes_Final 101122 Jefferson County/City of Port Townsend Climate Action Committee Meeting Minutes Tuesday, October 11, 2022, 3:00 - 5:00 PM ONLINE due to COVID Hosted by Jefferson County Public Health Members Present: Cindy Jayne, Cara Loriz, Kate Dean (BoCC); Dave Wilkinson, Jeff Randall (PUD No. 1), Micheal Clea (PTPC), Owen Rowe (City Council), Nicole Gauthier (Jefferson Transit), Kees Kolff (JHC), Absent: Carol Hasse (Port of PT), Miranda Nash (Jefferson Transit), Kate Chadwick, Laura Tucker (Jefferson County Public Health), Arlene Alen (Chamber of Commerce); Diane McDade. Staff: Commissioner Kate Dean served as staff. Guests: Miranda Nash, Lara Gaasland, Brent Butler, Josh Peters, member of the public Scribe: Kate Dean Topic Recommendation/Action Follow Up Items Call to order Introductions Cindy Jayne called the meeting to order at 3:05 Participants introduced themselves, including new member Michael Clea, environmental manager, Port Townsend Paper Company. Approval of Agenda & Minutes Approval of Agenda and 6/14/22 and 8/9/22 Minutes: It was noted that the 8/9/22 minutes had a comment embedded that was no longer relevant and should be deleted. Motion to approve both sets of minutes with that change made, by Owen Rowe, 2nd by Kate Dean, motion passed. Laura to post on County Website Public Comment None. EV Working Group Cindy announced that the EV workgroup was successful in partnering with a number of organizations to secure a grant for EV fast chargers at the Port Townsend Visitors Center. A separate grant that includes the creation of a low income EV car share program was also successful. The group also participated in the first EV Expo that the Chamber organized, at the Chamber/ Visitors Center on October 8th, with 400 people coming to look at and discuss a wide range of cars, bikes and other electric vehicles, and attend panel discussions. Vanpool/ Rideshare Discussion – Miranda Nash, Jefferson Transit Miranda presented the myriad benefits of rideshare provided by Jefferson Transit, including the rideshareonline.com tool, which allows people to arrange rideshares for going anywhere, anytime and is NOT tied to vocational or commuters. Nobody is currently using the vanpool program since Covid discouraged sharing of vehicles and the prevalence of telecommuting, but Jefferson Transit will be looking for ways to promote it again, particularly with large employers who have commuters. She also noted that vanpools just needed to start or end in Jefferson County, but could go outside of county. NODC Climate Action Toolkit Cindy, a member of the planning committee for the grant which funded this project, presented the draft toolkit created by NODC to help local governments and tribes implement climate change strategies. NODC is making final changes to the draft and the group suggested a few edits for consideration. NODC Workshop Updates In collaboration with the Pacific Northwest National Lab, NODC will be hosting an Energy Futures conference November 2-4 in Blyn. The conference will focus on Grid Resilience, GHG Reduction and Renewable Energy, including industrial energy (district heating, for example). Climate and Environmental Justice Follow up and Next Steps As a follow-up to August’s presentation by Elise Rasmussen (DOH), it was proposed that at the December CAC meeting, where an update on Jefferson County Community Development’s current work on flooding and SLR is planned, that Elise join and use that example as an opportunity to discuss as a group how environmental justice aspects could be included. There was agreement on doing so. Upcoming Organizational Plans and Documents for Climate Review? • Kees Kolff announced that Jefferson Healthcare’s new project scope to replace and expand a hospital building will be less ambitious in its sustainability goals due to cost. • Jefferson Transit will be starting its Climate Action Plan in early 2023 and will seek input. • Kate Dean asked that legislative updates be put on the agenda for the next few CAC meetings to keep each other up-to-date on bills pertaining to climate. • Owen Rowe discussed the opportunities for climate change planning in upcoming Comprehensive Plan updates. The group discussed the possibility that there is a bill that will require a Climate Element in Comprehensive Plans. • Kees suggested inviting someone from the Environmental Priorities Coalition to present at an upcoming meeting to discuss legislative priorities pertaining to climate. It was agreed, and Kees will follow up. Kees to follow up. Public Comment A member of the public commented that the building code should include the addition of an electric car charger in new construction and should be lobbied for. He also supports the federal government regulating how much private commercial companies charge for EV charging, which varies greatly. Other Updates Forest and Tree Report will be presented to the public via zoom on Oct 25 at 7pm. Kate, Cindy and Cara will be involved with this. New Solid Waste Facility Task Force has been formed to look at the future of the transfer station. CAC was asked participate on the task force and Cindy is serving in that role. She will ask the Solid Waste Director if he is willing to speak to the CAC. Next Steps and Agenda Planning Next Meeting December 13, 2022, 3-5 PM. Upcoming CAC Meetings and possible agenda items: • County sea level rise planning • Legislative updates • Solid waste/ recycling update • Environmental Priorities Coalition • Septage Adjourn The meeting was adjourned at 4:56 p.m.