City staff tell committee Portland’s emissions down since 1990 but current trajectory won’t meet 2030 goal without major changes

City sustainability and transportation staff told the Climate Resilience and Land Use Committee Thursday that Portland and Multnomah County have reduced greenhouse gas emissions since 1990, but current trends and dependencies on the electric grid mean the city is not on track to meet its 2030 benchmark without significant broader action.

“Top line, we’ve accomplished much already,” said Vivian Satterfield, the city’s chief sustainability officer. “But we are not on track to meet our current climate goals.” Satterfield and climate staff presented the city’s most recent sector‑based inventory (the city uses Multnomah County as the inventory boundary) and explained the major sources and policy levers the council can use.

City staff said the 2022 inventory — the most recent year available because inventories run two years behind — shows emissions are 21% below the 1990 baseline, but that 2022 represented a 2% increase over 2021. The inventory attributes emissions by sector: transportation (41%), buildings (residential and commercial combined, 39%), industry (13%) and landfill waste (2%). Electricity, gasoline, natural gas and diesel are the largest source categories.

Andrea Jacob, manager…