Earth Equity News

Portland Establishes Climate Action Plan. By Colin Miner, NYTimes, November 2, 2009. "The Portland City Council passed a Climate Action Plan [PDF] last week. The 70-page document establishes 93 action steps, including curbside pickup of compostables and an expansion of the city's streetcar system, that are to be taken to reach emissions-reduction goals... In 1993, Portland became the first city in the country to adopt a carbon emissions reduction plan, and in 2001, along with Multnomah County, the city passed a Local Action Plan on Global Warming... Mayor Sam Adams said that because of earlier sustainability efforts, Portlanders were already driving 20% less than residents of comparably sized cities. The city's bus ridership has doubled, and its recycling rate has tripled. The goals of the new plan include creating neighborhoods where residents can easily walk or bicycle to meet their basic needs and reducing the total energy use of all new buildings 25% by 2010."