Clark County advisory group advances consolidated climate policy list, sets survey and consensus process

The Clark County Climate Change Planning Community Advisory Group on Jan. 22 reviewed a consolidated draft of the county's climate policies and adopted a process to finalize its recommendations to the Planning Commission and County Council.

The group, convened to implement state directive House Bill 1181, is now working from a single list that combines earlier separate greenhouse-gas reduction and resilience policy lists. Staff described the current draft as 33 goals and 124 policies organized into seven categories: health and well-being; green jobs; ecological stewardship; transportation and land use; buildings and energy; waste management; and county governance.

The advisory group’s work matters because the committee’s recommendation will be packaged for the Planning Commission and County Council as part of the county’s new climate chapter. Sylvia Chiborowski, facilitator, said the group’s purpose is “to implement House Bill 1181 to create a climate chapter support Clark County meeting its greenhouse gas emission reduction, vehicle mile traveled reduction, resilience, and environmental justice goals.” That state mandate frames the group’s work and the timeline staff outlined: members will use a structured survey to flag items they can “live with” and items that require discussion, then meet in February and March to try to reach consensus on final recommendations.

Jenna (project staff) told members the primary decision tool will be a survey that will be sent after the meeting. Respondents will rate each goal and its policies on a four‑point scale (1 = support; 2 = minor concerns but can live with it; 3 = concerns and want group discussion; 4 = major problem and must discuss). Staff said the survey will exclude building-and-energy policies until the county receives guidance from the Washington State Department of Commerce on how to reconcile those policies with Initiative 2066 (the November 2024 ballot measure that restricts local limitations on gas use). Jenna said staff plans to send the survey soon and to set a deadline of Feb. 12 for members to submit their ratings and suggested edits.

To focus limited meeting time, staff will use survey results to identify which items already have broad agreement (mostly 1s and 2s) and which items need detailed negotiation (3s and 4s). Sylvia Chiborowski told the group consensus means getting “as close to unanimous agreement as possible” where members can live with the outcome even if it is not their first choice. For items where the advisory group cannot reach consensus, staff will document the differing positions and forward them to decision makers for consideration.

Members raised word‑choice concerns repeatedly at the meeting, emphasizing that words such as “support,” “encourage” or “facilitate” can be difficult to hold decision makers accountable for. Don Stankey told the group, “I would like something stronger than facilitate,” arguing for more actionable verbs in some policies. Staff responded that where possible they had already tightened language and added clarifying text, and that CAG members should propose specific wording changes in the survey for items they rate 3 or 4.

Staff also confirmed other process details: printed and electronic background materials are available to members; technical analyses prepared by consultant teams are in the project packet; and members may request staff help completing the survey. The group scheduled further work in February and March, and staff said it will present to the Planning Commission and County Council after the advisory group completes its recommendations. The county is funding the project with money from Washington’s Climate Commitment Act, staff said.

Ending: The advisory group will use the Feb. 12 survey results to triage its remaining meetings: largely consensual items will be advanced quickly, and items with documented concerns will be placed on the February–March agenda for substantive negotiation and rewriting as needed.