YRG Sierra Club and HR3C sponsor Climate Forum
On Wednesday, May 19th, the York River Group chapter of the Sierra Club and the HR3C hosted a Climate Forum at Sandy Bottom Nature Park in Hampton. The event started at 7 p.m. and lasted approximately 90 minutes.
The forum was designed to provide an opportunity for local governments - primarily from the Peninsula - to share with each other and local residents the steps they are taking to mitigate the effects of climate change by becoming more energy efficient, reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and adapting to the effects of a warming planet, particularly in regard to sea level rise.
Participants included environmental staff from the cities of Hampton, Newport News, Norfolk, Poquoson, and the counties of Gloucester, James City, New Kent and York. City staff from Williamsburg were scheduled to participate but were unable to attend and sent a written report of their environmental accomplishments.
Representatives from the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC) also participated, providing a regional perspective on climate change and the steps they are pursuing to prepare Hampton Roads for dealing with climate-related events.
A number of elected officials attended (and one partcipated):- Angela Leary - Hampton City Council
- Madeline McMillan - Newport News City Council
- John McGlennon - James City County Board of Supervisors (Forum Participant)
- Will Moffett - Hampton City Council Elect
- Chris Stewart - Hampton City Council Elect
- Donny Tuck - Hampton City Council Elect
- James City County has completed a GHG baseline inventory, facilitating the measurement of the county’s overall emissions as the county works toward reducing its GHG output. The county has also been selected as one of 25 Climate Showcase Communities by the EPA and has been awarded a grant to advance GHG reductions through affordable housing.
- Poquoson has recently updated its Hazard Mitigation Plan, with great focus applied to sea-level rise related events including more frequent flooding and stronger storms. FEMA has recognized Poquoson’s plan as a “best practice and case study”.
- Newport News has utilized grant monies awarded through the DOE’s Energy Efficiently and Conservation Block Grant Program (EECBG) to implement HVAC upgrades to 4 city buildings to reduce heating and cooling expenses, and implemented a lighting efficiency campaign throughout the city. These steps alone reduce the city’s electricity usage by 1.4 kW hours, significantly reducing its carbon footprint.
Next, the Hampton Roads Planning District Commission (HRPDC) participants related the commission’s climate change activities for the region. Currently, the commission has completed the first year of a 3 year climate change study resulting in the publication of Climate Change in Hampton Roads. The report provides an overview of the Climate Change issue, the broad impacts our region should consider, and how best to respond. The second year of the study - now in progress - will asses the impacts and develop policy recommendations through stakeholder involvement. The final year of the study will analyze infrastructure and economic impacts and completion of a regional framework to mitigate and adapt to climate change.
At the conclusion of the forum, many of the participants stayed behind to discuss specific challenges they’ve encountered implementing energy efficiency strategies, the solutions implemented, and the benefits their communities have enjoyed in terms of energy savings and reduced costs.
More than one participant remarked that the forum was a valuable learning experience and would welcome the opportunity to participate in a similar future event.