Liberty Lake planning commission approves greenhouse gas goals, sends draft to City Council and state Commerce

The Liberty Lake Planning Commission on June 25 voted to recommend that City Council approve draft goals and policies for the city's greenhouse gas subelement and forward the package to the Washington State Department of Commerce for review.

Consultants from Parametrix presented the draft and advised commissioners the subelement was built from the city's emissions inventory, state policy effects and a menu of measures published by the Department of Commerce. "The greenhouse gas inventory identified buildings, transportation, and waste as the largest sources of emissions in Liberty Lake," consultant Maddie Cheek said during the presentation.

The subelement emphasizes reducing emissions from buildings, transportation and waste and lowering per-capita vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Proposed local actions discussed at length included incentivizing efficiency upgrades (for example, permit-fee reductions), encouraging local solar and small-scale battery storage, expanding active-transportation and transit connections, and exploring lower-carbon diesel alternatives for heavy equipment.

Commissioners pressed staff and consultants on implementation detail. Commissioners asked…