Community Climate Actions

Below is a sample of actions that have a direct impact on reaching the Climate Recovery Ordinance goals.

Moving Ahead

The City of Eugene and Lane Transit District (LTD) are working with regional partners and the community to add new features to some of our most important streets. This project is focused on better connecting people to jobs, schools, shopping, recreation, and other activities by considering a range of transportation investments along key corridors to improve safety and livability for everyone.

Love Food Not Waste

A commercial food waste collection program that began in 2011. To date the program has diverted 9,200 tons of food waste that would have been sent to the land fill. Look for a roll out of home food waste services in 2019.

PeaceHealth Rides

This bike share program allows people to sign up to use bicycles for short rides in the City core. Use of this program reduces greenhouse gas emissions (ghgs) and has the co-benefit of providing exercise for the users. PeaceHealth Rides launched in spring 2018.

Fix It Fairs

To help consumers avoid purchasing more goods, the City sponsors a series of Fix-It Fairs. Volunteers and professionals provide free repairs and are available to coach attendees interested in learning how to make their own repairs. Repair services are available for a variety of products, including small appliances (like lamps and toasters), tools, clothing and textiles, small electronics, home and garden tools, furniture, and toys. Funded in part from a grant from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Fix It Fairs started in 2017.

Advanced Metering (EWEB)

Advanced metering allows users to monitor and control their energy usage and control costs. Data gathered from advanced meters will be key components to EWEB’s two strategic priorities, Emergency Preparedness and Disaster Recovery by improving outage response and Electric Supply Resources by providing accurate load data to EWEB and customers. Both priorities help the City reach its CRO goals.

Updated TSP

Eugene's 2035 Transportation System Plan (TSP) establishes a system of transportation facilities and services that will serve the needs of Eugene residents, businesses, and visitors over the next 20 years. The TSP looks at electrification of transportation, increasing active transit, and incorporating a more robust mass-transit system.

LTD Electrification of bus system

LTD has started to integrate fully electric buses into their fleet and hopes to deploy several in the coming years. As more of the fleet needs to be retired, more electrical buses will come online.

SCORE 

The City of Eugene has provided financial support to the University of Oregon’s (UO) Student and Community Outreach for Renter Efficiency (SCORE) program from 2012-2019. This funding pays up to 12 UO students to receive training, schedule house visits, conduct household energy audits using the US Department of Energy (USDOE) Home Energy Scoring Tool.  Students complete associated reporting and complete up to 240 energy audits on low income rental properties that meet the USDOE Home Energy Scoring Tool property requirements annually.

rEV-Up

The City of Eugene teamed up with UO and EWEB to help bring the benefits of cleaner, cheaper transportation through incentives to purchase or lease electric vehicles. Those who attend a free workshop receive exclusive discounts on electric vehicles from EWEB and local auto dealers.

Green Infrastructure - Parks and Open Space

The City’s Green Infrastructure team brings together the park services that clean water, beautify streets, keep air clean and neighborhoods cool, and safe. Together they work to: Maintain and manage public and private vegetated stormwater treatment facilities, care for more than 100,000 street trees, educate and enforce overgrown vegetation rules on private and public property, and keep landscapes along streets and medians green.

Safe Routes to School

Eugene-Springfield Safe Routes to School is a community approach to encourage and enable more people to walk and bike to school safely. These actions reduce ghgs and have the co-benefit of encouraging youth to be active.

School Garden Project

This City supported program helps Eugene schools develop onsite vegetable gardens where they teach children standards-based science and the basics of growing food, using the garden as an outdoor laboratory. They also provide material and curriculum resources; professional development for educators; volunteer recruiting and training; and maintenance support to sustain and expand educational gardens throughout the region and beyond.

Integrate CRO + CIP

City staff developed a methodology to assess Capital Improvement Projects through a triple-bottom line lens, including measuring the ghg impact of projects. Read more about how this process was developed from City Engineer Matt Rodrigues in this American Public Works Association Reporter (APWA) magazine article. 

EWEB-load growth by conservation

EWEB has a policy target of meeting all load growth with conservation.  Per the adopted Integrated Electricity Resource Plan (IERP), EWEB budgets $4M annually for energy efficiency programs and acquires between 1.4 and 1.6 MW conservation. Progress towards meeting IERP goals is reviewed annually.

Governor Brown Executive Order 20-04

Oregon Governor Brown signed Executive Order 20-04 in early 2020 which directs multiple state agencies and commissions to adopt greenhouse gas emission reduction goals in alignment with ORS 468A.205(1)(c) and establishes science-based GHG emissions reductions at least 45% below 1990 emissions levels by 2035, and at least 80% below 1990 emissions levels by 2050. The order outlines reduction strategies like enhancing the Oregon Clean Fuels Standards, updates to the building codes, reduction of food waste and landfill methane regulations, zero-emission vehicle standards, etc. These provisions provide local governments models for program adaptations as municipalities seek to reduce GHG emissions internally and within their communities.

Governor Brown Executive Order 17-20

Oregon Governor Brown signed Executive Order 17-20 which directs the Building Codes Division (BCD) to conduct code amendment of the state building code to require newly constructed residential buildings to achieve at least equivalent performance levels with the 2017 US Department of Energy Zero Energy Ready Standard by October 1, 2023. Additionally, EO 17-20 states the all newly constructed commercial buildings will exceed International Energy Conservation Code and ASHRAE 90.1 by October 1, 2022. The EO also includes direction on Solar Ready and Electric Vehicle Ready Building Construction.

Governor Brown Executive Order 17-21

Governor Brown also signed an order to establish a goal of 50,000 or more registered and operating electric vehicles by 2020 through a series of actions including “leading by example”—which has state agencies investing in EVs, making EVs more cost competitive, and ensuring sufficient EV infrastructure.