I normally try to stay up-beat on this blog.  However, Halloween seems like an appropriate time to focus on what may be the single most frightening aspect of the challenge we face, when confronting global warming: that the US national government is NOT going to get us where we need to be single-handedly.  Don't get me wrong; I'm not saying you should stop calling and writing to your members of Congress - it's extremely important to keep that up, because that's the only way we will get anything at all out of the national government.  In fact, the Senate and House of Representatives are poised to vote very soon on this year's Energy Bill, and this is a great time to contact the officials who are supposed to be representing you - you can get more information on that from the Sierra Club.  The problem is, though, that even if the best-case-scenario bill is passed, the provisions it contains will not even come close to doing what really needs to be done to stop climate change.  For instance, the best-case-scenario bill would raise fuel economy standards for vehicles to 35 mpg; that would be the first raise in fuel-efficiency to take place in years, and I sincerely hope it happens - however, the truth is that we need so much more.  If the federal government began an aggressive campaign to raise average fuel economy for vehicles to, say, 100 mpg (a standard that is not impossible to reach, by the way), then they would be beginning to take global warming seriously.  But 35 mpg?  It's a step, but a very, very, small step.

It is highly unlikely that the national government will get us out of this mess.  The problem is that Congress moves at a glacial pace when it comes to environmental issues (though they somehow manage to launch new wars quite quickly), and we simply don't have that much time.  Big things need to happen in the next ten years, or sooner, if catastrophic climate change is to be avoided.

What this is leading to, of course, is the importance of action at lower levels of government.  States like California (and to a slightly lesser degree, Oregon), are already miles ahead of the national government on global warming.  And of course, cities and counties are moving forward too - we need to keep pushing for more change, and holding mayors, city councilors, and county commissioners accountable to the promises they make.  There is even a role for the national government in a future where states and local governments turn out to be the real leaders on climate change.  Not all 50 states are as on-top of things as California, and what Congress may be able to do is keep more backward places, like Texas, from getting too much worse.  Even if Congress isn't going to cut back on emissions very drastically, it's not unrealistic to think they might put a ban on new coal plants.  This would make it harder for governments like Texas to wipe away progress made in other areas.  With the national government at least limiting damage done by the likes of Texas, the majority of our states taking real strides toward cutting emissions, and local governments complementing the work done by states, we could make real progress.  It would still be a major challenge, but not an insurmountable one.  So be scared, this Halloween - but don't give up hope.

 November 3rd, 2007 will be the second national Step It Up 2007 event in the US, designed to bring climate change to the attention of our elected officials.  Step It Up 1, which was held last spring, marked the most successful day of anti-global warming action this country has seen so far; Step It Up 2 should be just as much of a hit, with actions being organized all across the United States.  And for the November Step It Up, the Cool Washington County campaign will be holding an event outside the Washington County Administrative Building, asking the Board of Commissioners to pass the Cool Counties Declaration.  Stop by on November 3rd, and add your voice to the movement!

Also, if you haven't already, please SIGN THE PETITION TO THE BOARD, asking them to pass the Cool Counties Declaration!

This may well be the first anti-global warming demonstration ever to hit the streets of Downtown Hillsboro.  I myself, and other student activists at Pacific University, Forest Grove, are organizing the event, and will be outside the County Administrative Building from 11:00am to 2:00pm on November, with home-made signs and a banner or two asking for 80% reductions in greenhouse emissions by the year 2050.  The event will be peaceful, and absolutely legal.  It will be a Saturday, so the commissioners will not actually be in their offices, but they will be invited to stop by and talk to us about how they plan to move forward on a comprehensive emissions-reduction plan.  And whether or not any of the commissioners show up, there should be plenty of WA County citizens on Main Street, Hillsboro, early on a Saturday afternoon.  Our message will be heard, regardless of whether anyone from the Board of Commissioners chooses to attend.

If you want to be part of this event, please RSVP by leaving a response on this blog, or by clicking on the "contact me" link to the right.  I need to know how many people are coming, so that I can let the City of Hillsboro know; remember, we're doing everything legally, here.

Note: the picture used on this post comes from the Step It Up website, at http://stepitup2007.org/

-Nick

 Today the Washington County Board of Commissioners received at least ten emails from students and faculty at Pacific University, urging them to pass the US Cool Counties Climate Stabilization Declaration.  This event came on the tail of a message I received from Chairman Tom Brian of the Board of Commissioners, about a week ago.  The gist of Chairman Brian's email was that I should shut up about the Cool Counties Declaration, and be satisfied with the fact that the county has built a LEED certified building or two, and supports public transportation.  I was very grateful for his message, actually; I took Chairman Brian's arguments, turned them around, and used them as ammunition against the county's a-little-is-enough policy when laying out talking points for today's email-senders at Pacific University. 

If you haven't already, please SIGN THE PETITION TO THE BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, asking them to pass the Cool Counties Declaration!

What the Board of Commissioners needs to realize is that "small steps" to reduce global warming pollutants must be accompanied by a comprehensive plan that will bring emissions down from the community as a whole.  Isolated projects will do us little good if the total volume of pollutants continues to go up.  Today's email-sending event was just the beginning of a full-scale campaign directed at the Board of Commissioners, in response to their refusal to take the Cool Counties Declaration seriously.  The county must pass the Declaration, and bring total emissions down!

-Nick

Two days ago, I sent a final email to the Washington County Board of Commissioners, warning that the lack of response from any member of the Board except Dick Schouten was going to necessitate a ramping-up in the Cool Washington County campaign, which would include some public actions that might not put the current county government in a very good light.  The next day, surprisingly, I actually received two emails in response to my message.  One was from County Administrator Robert Davis, offering to talk about the Cool Counties Declaration and its implications for Washington County.  I hope this conversation actually happens; I am currently for a phone call from Mr. Davis.

PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION TO THE BOARD, ASKING THEM TO PASS THE COOL COUNTIES DECLARATION

Meanwhile, I received another email, last night, from Chairman Tom Brian.  Chairman Brian's message was not very...er...encouraging.  The chair of the Washington County Board doesn't understand the Cool Counties Declaration, or what it is really about.  And instead of responding to my messages over a month ago with his concerns, he chose to wait until now, when the campaign has gathered enough momentum to seem, I think, somewhat threatening to someone who doesn't really get it.  He sent me a long list of worries about money, staff time, and the like; believe it or not, Chairman Brian, I saw all that coming, and am well aware of the challenges the county will face in becoming a true Cool County.  That does not detract from the environmental imperative to set tangible goals for reducing greenhouse emissions.

If Chairman Brian thought he would discourage the Cool Washington County campaign by bringing up a few problems that I anticipated long ago, he was sorely mistaken.  This Monday, at a Pacific University event, Pacific students who attend will be sending emails to the entire Board of Commissioners, about Cool Counties.  I have finally received some kind of response from the Board, and this campaign is just beginning in earnest.

-Nick

 The "Cool Washington County" petition continues to be available on-line, and signatures are slowly building up.  If you haven't signed it yet, then PLEASE DO SO HERE!  It is especially important right now to keep the signatures coming, because most members of the Board of Commissioners have been declining to respond to my emails.  With the notable exception of our supporter Commissioner Dick Schouten, it seems that members of the Board are not taking the Cool Counties Declaration very seriously. 

That said, every campaign has setbacks, and I am confident that this one will recover.  Someday in the not-too-distant future, the Cool Counties Declaration will have it's day in Washington County.  And meanwhile, other counties across the country are jumping on-board the movement - 21 governments have now passed the Declaration, and become official Cool Counties.  The states of Washington and California now each have multiple Cool Counties; so far, Washington County still has a chance to become the first in Oregon, but that opportunity isn't likely to last long.  Meanwhile, as Cool Counties takes off, the total number of Cool Cities in the US is fast-approaching 700.  Our federal government may be stalling attempts to seriously address global warming, but not so our local governments.  Cities and Counties are truly in the thick of the environmental movement. 

Again, PLEASE SIGN THE PETITION to the WA County Board of Commissioners!

-Nick

Those of us in Oregon are lucky to live in the same state as one of the most spectacular (and successful) environmental experiments in this country: the City of Portland.  Portland is famous in ecological circles for its efforts to blend sustainability with economic growth, and for being one of the first large cities in the US to bring total greenhouse emissions below 1990 levels.  While the rest of the country has grown dirtier, more polluting, and more environmentally destructive, Portland has shown that it is possible to have a vibrant economy and be environmentally conscious at the same time.  

Portland's reductions in greenhouse emissions are impressive in themselves.  Perhaps the single most important thing about the city's efforts, though, is that it represents an example that other communities can follow.  Along with a few other major US cities, such as Seattle and San Francisco, Portland has been testing out strategies for shifting energy consumption away from fossil fuels, dramatically cutting waste, and even maintaining a healthy "urban forest" that absorbs some of the carbon emitted by the city.  Portland's efforts are not just to be admired; they should be duplicated by local governments all across the country, and especially right here in Oregon.  The Portland Area's many suburbs are in an especially good position to start building on Portland's success; they are close enough to observe what happens in Portland directly, and possibly even work with the very people who made Portland the environmentally friendly place it is.  Why not take a major urban area, like Washington County, and start transforming it into the next Portland, environmentally speaking? 

It would be a major undertaking, to achieve what Portland has in terms of sustainability and reducing greenhouse emissions.  However, we have lots of resources to draw from.  Not only is WA County right next door to Portland itself, but organizations like ICLEI Local Governments for Sustainability have the tools to help cities, and the county government itself, asses exactly what needs to be done to bring global warming pollutants down.  The US Cool Counties Initiative provides county governments with a checklist to go through as they begin looking at all the opportunities for reducing emissions.  Becoming the next Portland would be a challenge - there's no doubt about that.  But with the county government, the area's major cities, and various environmental organizations all working together, it is something we could really do.

Indeed, in the next few years local governments all over the country must begin to really follow Portland's example.  I'm not talking about slightly expanding recycling options, or even about just replacing traffic signal lights with efficient LED bulbs.  No, more drastic measures are needed if we are going to stave off global warming.  Overall emissions from entire communities must be brought down, as Portland has brought them down.  There is no question about this; what is open to question is which local governments will be the first to take Portland's example seriously, and bring emissions down significantly.  WA County and the cities within it are in a prime position to become environmental leaders.  It's up to us to make sure they take advantage.

If you haven't already, please SIGN THE PETITION TO THE WASHINGTON COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS, asking them to pass the Cool Counties Declaration!

And I encourage you to check out the Cool Counties webpage - some new counties have recently been added, although still none from Oregon.