Fairfax County Sets Goal Of Being Carbon Neutral By 2040

FAIRFAX COUNTY, VA — The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to adopt an updated energy strategy that commits the county to becoming carbon neutral by 2040 in its energy use in government buildings and transportation.

The county board also issued a formal declaration, called “Carbon Neutral Counties,” that encourages other local county governments to take action to halt climate change.

Fairfax County’s carbon-neutral goal means the county will attempt to remove as much carbon dioxide as well as methane and nitrous oxide from the atmosphere as it emits from its operations.

Carbon dioxide accounts for about 80 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions while methane and nitrous oxide collectively make up another 17 percent, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

“As we confront this existential challenge, we all must act with a true sense of urgency, and this is just one of the steps that the county is taking to meet this global crisis head on,” Fairfax County Board Chairman Jeff McKay said in a statement Tuesday.

To meet its carbon-neutral goal, Fairfax County's updated Operational Energy Strategy aims to decrease total energy use from all existing county facilities by 25 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040 compared to the county government’s fiscal year 2018 energy usage.

The county also plans to shift Fairfax Connector’s diesel buses, along with other county vehicles, to electric or other non-carbon-emitting alternatives by 2035. By 2035, 99 percent of Fairfax Connector bus fleet miles traveled will be made with non-carbon-emitting vehicles, according to the strategy.

Fairfax County also hopes to end the purchase of diesel Fairfax Connector buses after fiscal year 2024 unless such purchases are approved by the Board of Supervisors.

The county plans to produce 25 percent of electricity it consumes from renewable energy sources by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040, using fiscal year 2018 as the baseline.

Fairfax County will aim to deploy renewable energy generation at county buildings and facilities — mostly likely solar power — and purchase renewable energy to offset energy use where on-site renewable energy generation is not feasible or affordable, the county said.

The “Carbon Neutral Counties” declaration commits signatories to being energy carbon neutral by 2040 while significantly reducing operational greenhouse gas emissions in the building and energy, transportation and solid waste sectors.

Counties that sign the declaration also would pledge to urge federal and state lawmakers to provide incentives, requirements or other such measures to meet the carbon-neutral goal. They also would pledge to ensure equitable implementation of the goal so that no communities are disproportionately impacted by the transition to a carbon-neutral economy.

The declaration was jointly introduced at Tuesday’s Fairfax County board meeting by McKay, Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck and Mason District Supervisor Penny Gross.

“The Carbon Neutral Counties declaration formalizes our commitment to responsible, sustainable county operations, and encourages other counties to do the same. The power of this declaration lies in its potential to serve as a roadmap for others, to create real forward momentum,” Storck said in a statement.

Currently, there is no organized alliance for U.S. counties dedicated to carbon neutrality, although some have independently made their own public pledges. The new declaration creates an opportunity for counties to formally join together in this goal.

Most major U.S. cities that have agreed to cut greenhouse gas emissions in recent years are failing to meet their goals or have not started to track local progress, according to a recent report by the Brookings Institution. The report, "Pledges and Progress," looked for climate policy and actions in the nation's 100 most populous cities, finding that two-thirds have made commitments to address citywide emissions.

But the Brookings analysis found that actions taken by cities are not matching their pledges to address climate change.

Fairfax County’s adoption of the carbon-neutral goal grew out of the work of the county’s Joint Environmental Task Force, which was created by the Board of Supervisors and School Board.

The task force’s final report laid out the goals to becoming carbon neutral by 2040, along with supporting recommendations on energy, transportation, waste management and recycling and workforce development.

The task force included two representatives from the Board of Supervisors and School Board as well as county residents.

The Fairfax County School Board is expected to consider the carbon-neutral goals at its meeting on Thursday.

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