Pitkin County releases 2023 Comprehensive Greenhouse Gas emissions report with key findings

The Pitkin County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) convened on March 4, 2025, for a work session focused on the 2023 Regional Comprehensive Greenhouse Gas (GHG) report. The session featured Michael Port, the Climate Action Analyst from the Resiliency Department, who presented the findings of the report, which aims to assess community-wide emissions and track progress towards the county's greenhouse gas reduction goals.

Port began by explaining the purpose of the GHG report, which serves as a comprehensive inventory of emissions from various sectors, including buildings, transportation, and waste. The report is crucial for measuring progress towards the county's ambitious goal of reducing emissions by 90% from 2019 levels by 2050. The analysis included data from all municipalities within the Pitkin County region, as well as parts of Basalt in Eagle County.

Key findings from the report indicated a 22% increase in total emissions from 2019 to 2023. This rise was attributed to new data sources and increased building energy consumption. However, a positive note was that cleaner electricity contributed to a 2% decrease in building emissions, thanks to the efforts of local utilities like Holy Cross and Aspen Electric, which are moving towards fully renewable energy sources.

The report highlighted that while building emissions are expected to decline further as cleaner energy sources are adopted, transportation and waste emissions are projected to become more significant contributors to the overall emissions profile. Transportation emissions saw a 6% increase, while waste emissions rose by 14%, reflecting the growing amounts of landfill and composted waste.

A notable addition to this year's report was the inclusion of emissions from the Coal Basin mine, which accounted for approximately 9% of total regional emissions due to methane leaks. This new data source underscores the importance of addressing methane emissions, which are significantly more potent than carbon dioxide.

The session concluded with a discussion on the implications of these findings for future climate action initiatives in Pitkin County. Port emphasized the need for continued monitoring and collaboration with municipalities to effectively address the complex dynamics of emissions sources.

Overall, the meeting underscored Pitkin County's commitment to understanding and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions, setting the stage for further discussions on climate action strategies in the coming weeks.