Town Of Arlington: Select Board Endorses Net Zero Action Plan

Press release from Town of Arlington:

08/16/2021

The Town of Arlington’s Select Board voted unanimously Monday, August 9, 2021 to endorse Arlington’s Net Zero Action Plan, a guide to reaching net zero greenhouse gas pollution by 2050. The Plan includes strategies in three categories: Net Zero Buildings, Zero Emissions Mobility, and Clean Energy Supply. The Plan outlines efforts to reduce greenhouse gas pollution and ensures that the benefits of these measures are shared equally by everyone, while any costs do not further burden those least able to afford them.

The plan builds on nearly 20 years of progress on emissions reductions and serves as an organizing framework on Arlington’s path to net zero. Reaching “net zero” indicates a drastic reduction in greenhouse gas pollution community-wide and the removal or offset of any remaining pollution. This will require a shift in choices for home utilities, transportation, and energy sources. It also presents an opportunity for Arlington to support cleaner air, healthier buildings, and improved transportation options. The standard of net zero is supported by reports from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which states that in order to limit global warming worldwide we will need to reduce greenhouse gas pollution 45% by 2030 and to net zero by 2050. Arlington’s plan includes a greenhouse gas inventory which sets clear metrics and benchmarks to achieve net zero goals.

The Town of Arlington Clean Energy Future Committee and Department of Planning and Community Development partnered with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to develop the Net Zero Action Plan. The plan includes input from numerous community groups and individuals, including Town departments, boards, and committees as well as local business, civic, and faith groups, the results of a community survey, and feedback from an Open House which elicited input from over 1,000 residents about what to include in the plan.

This project was supported by a Planning Assistance Grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. The Net Zero Action Plan is available at arlingtonma.gov.

For more information about Arlington’s Net Zero Action Plan, please contact Ken Pruitt, Energy and Project Manager, at 781-316-3428 or at kpruitt@town.arlington.ma.us.

This press release was produced by Town of Arlington. The views expressed here are the author’s own.