City Marks Progress on Climate Action Plan

As Earth Day draws closer, the City of Corvallis is reviewing its sustainability accomplishments that align with the newly adopted Corvallis Climate Action Plan (CAP).

The CAP was adopted in December 2016, and the City of Corvallis moved quickly to incorporate the plan’s action items into its existing Sustainability Work Plan.

Among the action items achieved in 2017:

• The City aligned its organizational greenhouse gas emissions targets with those in the CAP. These included emissions from energy (electricity and natural gas) used by the organization, as well as emissions from vehicle fuel.
• The City implemented construction and demolition waste-tracking standards for asphalt and concrete on certain types of municipal projects.
• The City continued to improve efficiency in water use, particularly in high-volume areas such as the flushing stations used for water quality purposes.
• The City explored alternative fuels for back-up generator systems.
• The City implemented reuse practices for any tree that is removed in the public right of way, ensuring that salvageable lumber is reused and the remaining wood is chipped. This program, which is still in its pilot phase, works with a local nonprofit, Logs to Lumber, to provide salvaged wood to local school districts for wood shop programs. Information about the program is included when the tree is designated for removal as part of public outreach. To date, officials estimate that the City has recovered about 7,000 board feet of wood.

In addition, a number of citywide action items for 2018 are well underway, including:

• Increasing purchases of renewable electricity by the City to support streetlight and traffic signal usage.
• Improving energy efficiency at the Wastewater Reclamation Plant through Pacific Power’s Strategic Energy Management program.
• Training for city staff on environmental design of facilities and infrastructure construction to ensure compliance with City’s policy for LEED-Silver standards on new construction.
• Converting all remaining facility lighting to LEDs.
• Promoting employee use of alternate commute modes, including carpooling, transit system, walking and biking.
• Implementing new waste management practices to reduce construction and demolition debris (asphalt and concrete) on capital improvement projects.

For more information on sustainability in Corvallis, go to www.corvallisoregon.gov/sustainability.