Lake County hears draft climate action plan; consultants cite broad public support, outline next steps

At a morning work session the Lake County Board of County Commissioners received an update from consultants on a draft climate action plan that draws on a 199‑response community survey and greenhouse‑gas forecasting to 2050.

Jillian Goulet, senior sustainability analyst with Brendel Group, said the outreach included a survey (199 responses) and two in‑person events and that analysis of the county’s 2023 emissions baseline informed proposed strategies. “We had a community survey … had just out of 200 responses,” Goulet said, noting the responses skewed toward long‑term, full‑time residents.

The plan’s draft strategies center on five focus areas: transportation, buildings and energy, food and waste, natural environment and recreation, and administration (county operations and education). Goulet told the board the greenhouse‑gas forecast used population and economic projections from DOLA and illustrated how grid decarbonization, vehicle electrification and building efficiency…