Strategies will guide continued emissions reduction
The Beacon City Council on Aug. 19 adopted the city’s 2021-2030 Climate Action Plan, a 37-page document filled with strategies for reducing the city government’s 2021 emissions levels by 31 percent before 2030 to stay in line with state goals.
Its plans focus on four areas of operations: buildings, vehicles, solid waste and water and wastewater treatment. Some of the projects are already in motion, such as the launch of a community solar program that provides lower-income residents with up to 20 percent off their electric bills and the construction of the all-electric central fire station.
The plan also calls for installing solar panels on the firehouse roof and on the Highway Department garage and wastewater administrative building. The largest reduction in emissions will come from biofilters to be added by 2029, if federal funding is available, at the former Dennings Point landfill to mitigate the 1,000 metric tons of greenhouse gases it emits annually.
