Kara Odegard, Sustainability Research Analyst, 509.625.6702
Thursday, March 5, 2020 at 2:57 p.m.
Many Spokane residents remember winters that started in November and continued well into March with extended periods of snow cover. A trend of warming and a change in Spokane winter precipitation patterns is bringing more rain and less snow. Members of the Sustainability Action Subcommittee, or SAS are noting a winter sports season that has shortened, impacts to agriculture, more intense wildfires, and changing water flows in the Spokane River. Rising temperatures and smoke have already affected cherished community events like Bloomsday, Spokefest, and Hoopfest.
SAS is studying local impacts of climate change on the City of Spokane, and they want to hear from you. Spokane City Council created the SAS in 2019 and tasked the group to draft a Climate Action Plan. The goal of the plan is to help the City, businesses, organizations and residents respond effectively to the growing impacts of climate change.
As a first step to engage wider participation, The City Council is inviting everyone to take a brief, anonymous survey. City Council President, Breean Beggs says, “The City of Spokane wants to hear from all community members to learn how they think we should respond to current climate challenges. We can only move forward if we listen to everybody."
Responses to the survey will be used to build content for further interactive community involvement and for developing Spokane’s Climate Action Plan.
Several working groups make up the SAS and are looking at climate change impacts in a variety of sectors including; transportation, the built environment, health and equity, energy, natural resources, land use and planning, as well as waste and recycling.
The Spokane Climate Action Survey is available online and in paper form at City Hall and City libraries, it takes about five minutes to complete. If you would like your voice heard on the topic of climate change please take the survey, responses are due by Friday, March 20.
