(Karsten Würth / Unsplash)
Chicago officials are in the midst of updating the city’s climate action plan, including carbon emission reduction targets and renewable energy goals.
The question is how to reach those objectives, in terms of which strategies to pursue and prioritize. Chicagoans can help shape the city’s decisions by weighing in on the plan while it’s still in development.
Registration is open for a pair of upcoming virtual town halls, where officials will lead a conversation about the action plan. The sessions are scheduled for Jan. 19 at 6 p.m. and Jan. 22 at 10 a.m.
People can also fill out an online survey about climate action, available in several languages. The survey explores different approaches the city could take to achieve 100% renewable energy, for example, and asks people to rank them by importance.
Chicago developed its first climate action plan in 2008, establishing at the time a goal of an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from 1990 levels by 2050. In 2017, Chicago committed to the Paris Climate Agreement and in 2019 agreed to transition to 100% renewable energy in all buildings.
According to the city’s most recently available greenhouse gas inventory report, delivered in 2017, Chicago’s community emissions — from buildings, transportation and waste — have decreased by 15.4% since 2005, from 36.7 million tons of carbon to 31 million tons in 2017. The target under the Paris Climate Agreement is to reach 26.9 million tons by 2025.
Contact Patty Wetli: @pattywetli | (773) 509-5623 | [email protected]
