Environmental groups decry change in Humboldt County climate action plan - Eureka Times-Standard

Environmental groups decry change in Humboldt County climate action plan - Times-Standard

Environmental advocates say a recently proposed change to Humboldt County’s climate action plan will weaken the document and undermine climate goals.

Efforts to get the climate action plan in place began in 2018, with a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from local sources to mitigate local contribution to climate change.

The concern of the groups involves the plan’s use of point source emissions, like greenhouse gasses that come from smokestacks in factories, which were previously not included in the plan.

“After five years of planning with the other assumption, the county has switched that back and is planning to include those emissions, which actually sort of paints a rosier picture of climate action,” said Matt Simmons, a lawyer for the Arcata-based Environmental Protection Information Center.

Simmons said it’s not within Humboldt County’s jurisdiction to regulate these kinds of emissions, and the purpose of the plan is to make changes locally. He said Humboldt County instead should work on what they can reasonably change — like improving transportation, which makes up around half of the emissions of Humboldt County.

Plus, the joint press release several local environmental advocacy groups sent said that this involves “fuzzy math” where it becomes easier for Humboldt County to meet targets. Point source emissions have historically gone down in Humboldt County as market changes closed mills and other industries. Because climate targets are based off of 1990 emissions estimates, it makes the county’s progress on reducing emissions look quite good, even if no climate action was actually taken, according to the release.

Simmons said the change is apparently the result of consulting, because Humboldt County wants a qualified Climate Action Plan. If the state thinks the CAP is realistic, it will make it easier for the kind of development that the County and environmental groups want by lessening environmental restrictions. Plus, there’s more opportunity for state money.

“Setting a target that is a little bit harder than we can meet is better than setting a target too low and not actually working hard to take action,” said Simmons. He said if the county changed the target to make it easier to meet the goals it misses the point — changing the economy enough to avert climate disaster.

Outside of the point source pollution, Simmons says “We were pretty happy with the draft as it is currently available online.” The release and Simmons also note the importance of getting the draft going — 2030 is the the first target year for emissions reductions, which is looming. The planning department hopes to get the plan in place by April 2024.

Humboldt County Planning and Building Department Director John Ford did not respond to questions about the plan before the Times-Standard print deadline.

Redwood Coalition for Climate and Environmental Responsibility, Coalition for Responsible Transportation Priorities, Environmental Protection Information Center, 350 Humboldt Steering Committee, Northcoast Environmental Center and Humboldt Baykeeper sent the release.

Sage Alexander can be reached at 707-441-0504