Living our values
In 2007, the City of Bellingham wrote the City’s first Climate Action Plan(External link) to begin reducing climate impacts caused by greenhouse gas emissions. Since then, the City, with support from the community, has integrated programs and taken actions to achieve their carbon reduction goals. In 2009, the City outlined the Legacies and Strategic Commitments(External link) to draw specific correlations and ensure accountability. In 2018, the City’s Climate Action Plan(External link) was updated with data collected on emissions from municipal sources to track the City’s progress. From 2000 to 2015, the City exceeded some of the goals set in 2012 and reduced municipal emissions by 68.3%! We are on the right track toward building a greener and more sustainable future, but there is still plenty of work to do and significant investments will be required. The resource recovery solution for wastewater solids will minimize the social impacts of handling biosolids while supporting the core values of Bellingham residents via a “Triple Bottom Line Plus” (which refers to fiscal, environmental, technical, social sustainability) assessment. Below outlines some of the values from the updated 2018 Climate Action Plan outlined in the Post Point Wastewater Treatment Plant Project.