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Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategies for Local Governments

This page provides resources and examples to assist local governments in Washington State in their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in areas such as municipal operations, procurement, telework, electric vehicles, land use, and waste reduction.

It is part of MRSC's series on Climate Change.

Overview

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) trap heat in the earth’s atmosphere and are a primary contributor to a changing climate. GHGs include carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and chlorofluorocarbons, among other gases. A significant human source of GHG emissions is from the burning of fossil fuels for transportation, energy use, and industrial processes. GHG emissions also occur because of deforestation and agricultural production.

Local governments can limit GHG emissions and mitigate climate impacts using a range of actions and strategies across sectors. In evaluating what actions to take, a local government should consider such factors as the resources required to implement the action, the emissions reduction potential of the action, community context, actions and plans already being implemented, and the co-benefits of the action. Co-benefits can include cost savings, public health, improved mobility, climate justice, environmental health, and others. Reducing GHG emissions is considered a climate mitigation measure.

Climate action plans (CAPs) typically list emissions reduction strategies by sector (such as buildings, transportation, land use, etc.), and there are many options for reducing emissions within each sector. The Washington State Department of Commerce’s (Commerce), along with the state’s department of ecology, is leading the Washington Climate Partnership, a statewide effort to plan near- and long-term strategies to meet state and federal climate and energy mandates through the development of emissions reductions programs and actions. Local governments are encouraged to participate in the planning effort to develop a comprehensive climate action plan for the state.

New in 2023, local governments planning under the Growth Management Act must include a climate change and resiliency element within their comprehensive plans. Some local governments must also include a greenhouse gas emissions mitigation sub-element — see RCW 36.70A.070(9). The climate change and resiliency element must be incorporated into comprehensive plans by the timelines set forth at RCW 36.70A.070(9) — see 1.3 Who Must Create a Climate Element from Commerce’s Intermediate Planning Guidance.

Commerce’s Climate Planning webpage covers this topic in detail and includes guidance documents and a link to the Climate Policy Explorer, which allows users to search and filter climate resilience and mitigation measures adopted across the state and more than 100 resources using multiple criteria. See also the Climate Change and Resiliency Element section of our Comprehensive Planning page.

Below are several strategies for local governments to employ to reduce GHG emissions, along with associated examples and resources. 

Municipal Operations

Local governments can mitigate emissions from their own operations in conjunction with reducing community emissions. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Efficiency in Local Government Operations (2011) describes approaches for planning and designing projects and programs to improve energy efficiency in local government facilities and operations. GHG reduction strategies for municipal operations can also include managing fleets to reduce vehicle miles traveled (VMT), installing renewable energy sources in capital facilities, encouraging telework and car sharing, providing employee bus passes, and adopting green purchasing policies. 

Below are a few examples of local plans targeting general municipal operations.

  • Lake Stevens Climate Sustainability Plan (2023) — Includes policies directed at building performance standards, improved transportation modalities, water conservation measures, reduction in waste consumption, and building resilient communities.
  • Redmond 2020 Sustainability Plan — Includes policies to increase water conservation, reduce waste generation, divest from fossil fuel in the city investment portfolio, adopt a building energy performance standard, and more.
  • Snohomish County Sustainable Operations (2021) — The county adopted a five-year Sustainable Operations Action Plan (SOAP) in 2013 and began the process to update it in February 2021. The SOAP includes policies to promote green public buildings, green fleets, GHG tracking, resource conservation, waste reduction, and green purchasing.
  • Tacoma Sustainability-Related Policies — Includes resolutions, proclamations, and ordinances, including those related to green public facilities, waste diversion, and sustainable purchasing.

Transportation and Land Use

According to the Washington State Department of Ecology's (Ecology) inventory of GHG emissions statewide, transportation remains the largest contributor in the state. Local governments can support emissions reductions from the transportation sector through VMT reduction strategies (see the Washington State Department of Transportation: VMT Targets — Final Report from 2023 for recommendations), vehicles, and lower-carbon fuels. Transportation options like walking, biking, and transit not only produce fewer GHG emissions, but also improve air quality and public health. Better coordination of land use and transportation planning results in compact, mixed-use communities that foster walking, biking, and transit. Specific land use strategies that achieve these goals include urban villages or centers, downtowns, and transit-oriented development (TOD).

In addition to adding a 14th planning goal related to climate change and resiliency, HB 1181 (2023) adds a new climate change element with greenhouse gas emissions reduction and resiliency sub-elements and makes changes to certain mandatory elements, including the land use and transportation elements. For example, the land use element is required to include urban planning approaches that reduce VMT without increasing GHG emissions elsewhere in the state, and the transportation element must incorporate multimodal level of service into land use assumptions used in estimating travel.

Recommended Resources

Transportation Options — Policy Examples 

Linking Land Use and Transportation Planning — Plan and Policy Examples

  • Bellingham Urban Villages — Six urban villages support the creation of vibrant mixed residential and commercial neighborhoods, boost economic development, and encourage a safe and attractive pedestrian environment.
  • Issaquah Land Use Code Sec. 18.400.030 — Zones – Establishment of zones. Outlines seven urban villages zones in order to encourage innovative uses, sites, and comprehensive planning of large areas.
  • Kent Comprehensive Plan, Transportation Element (2020) — Prioritizes neighborhoods that are walkable or can be easily accessed using public or alternative transportation (see Focus Area 2).
  • Puget Sound Regional Council: Regional Growth Centers — Identifies regional growth centers as central places with a mix of uses/activities connected by efficient transportation: Centers are a hallmark of Vision 2050 and the Regional Growth Strategy.
  • Redmond Centers and Corridors — Describes how the city is reevaluating its centers for growth capacity, character, and transitioning to pedestrian-oriented urban forms as part of a comprehensive planning effort; explores the potential for growth and development along major corridors.
  • Tacoma Mixed-Use Centers — Focuses new growth in centers to helps achieve the city’s goals of complete neighborhoods with public transit and active transportation.

Here are related MRSC webpages:

Buildings

Ecology's inventory of GHG emissions statewide shows buildings as the second largest contributor of GHG emissions in the state. Accordingly, the state legislature passed the Clean Buildings Act in 2019, introducing the Clean Buildings Performance Standard and requiring Commerce to set energy performance standards for commercial buildings larger than 50,000 SF, known as tier 1 buildings (see Chapter 194-50 WAC). In 2021, the law evolved to include tier 2 buildings, or smaller commercial buildings (20,001–50,000 SF) and multi-family buildings greater than 20,000 SF. Phased compliance deadlines begin June 1, 2026.

The Clean Buildings Act also included incentives and requirements to encourage energy efficiency in new and existing buildings (e.g., energy efficiency standards, retrofit incentives, utility programs, building codes) and reporting requirements to benchmark and calculate building energy use intensity (EUI). These benchmarks are as follows:

  • Buildings larger than 50,000 SF (tier 1 buildings) can either meet an energy use intensity target (EUIt) based on the site-based EUI average using benchmarking tools like ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager or the “investment criteria” pathway, which includes performing and energy audit and implementing energy efficiency measures.
  • Buildings categorized as tier 2 buildings  must submit benchmarking, energy management, and operations and maintenance planning documentation by July 1, 2027 (RCW 19.27A.250). Performance standards for tier 2 buildings will be adopted by December 31, 2030.
  • Reducing GHG emissions from buildings can be addressed through several approaches, including electrification, green building incentives, energy performance standards, renewable energy, and C-PACER financing of efficiency upgrades. Cities and counties can use Shift Zero’s Zero Carbon Buildings Policy Toolkit (2020) and the Policy Design Tool (2020) to assist in developing comprehensive local strategies. 

All buildings are also required to develop an energy management plan and implement and operation and maintenance (O&M) program. From 2021–2026, Commerce administrated the voluntary efficiency incentive program and, starting in 2026, the standard will be implemented as a mandatory requirement.

Reducing GHG emissions from buildings can be addressed through several approaches, including electrification, green building incentives, energy performance standards, renewable energy, and C-PACER financing of efficiency upgrades. Cities and counties can use Shift Zero’s Zero Carbon Buildings Policy Toolkit (2020) and the Policy Design Tool (2020) to assist in developing comprehensive local strategies. 

Here are two examples of CAPs with comprehensive building GHG reduction strategies:

Building Electrification

Washington’s 2021 State Energy Strategy found that electrifying (or eliminating the use of natural gas in) all of our buildings would be the most cost-effective way to meet statewide climate goals of achieving 95% reduction in greenhouse gases (compared to a 2005 baseline) by 2050. Some local governments in Washington have adopted ordinances requiring building electrification in certain building types, while others are considering similar or more ambitious policies. 

Here are some examples of policies and provisions from local governments:

Here are a few recommended resources for building decarbonization/electrification:

MRSC Insight offers blogs on energy resources and conservation, which address building decarbonization, electric vehicles, and other strategies for reducing GHG emissions.

Green Building Incentives Offered by Local Governments

Improving building efficiency and sustainable design cuts long-term operating/maintenance costs for both private and public facilities, and significantly reduces energy consumption and GHG emissions. Local governments can encourage the construction of buildings meeting LEED certification, ENERGY STAR, and other energy efficiency standards and certification programs by incorporating incentives into development codes, promoting pilot or demonstration projects, and adopting performance standards for new buildings. 

Here are some examples of local incentive programs, performance standards, and projects:

Renewable Energy Strategies

The Clean Energy Transformation Act commits Washington to reaching 100% renewable energy by 2045. Local governments can help reach this goal and their own climate action objectives by promoting and incentivizing the use of renewable energy resources in homes, commercial buildings, and public facilities. The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (UTC) provides several sample renewable energy incentive programs for residential and commercial solar installation. 

These samples demonstrate how renewable energy policies can be incorporated into CAPs:

Here are recommended resources on renewable energy adoption for local governments:

  • EPA
    • Local Climate and Energy Program — Offers cost-effective energy strategies to help reduce local GHG emissions.
    • On-Site Renewable Energy Generation — Discusses how local governments can plan and implement on-site renewable energy generation projects at thier facilities by reviewing different types of technologies, strategies for designing successful installations, and associated financial considerations. 
  • Northwest Clean Energy Atlas — Explores the region's energy data use and provides detailed, up-to-date, and transparent system data to users.

Solar Panels 

Below are examples of how local governments can incentivize the use of rooftop solar panels in residential and industrial settings through outreach and education, relaxing (or eliminating) permitting requirements, and streamlining processes.

C-PACER (Energy Efficiency Financing)

Counties can help facilitate financing of energy efficiency upgrades by participating in the Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy and Resilience (C-PACER) program (Chapter 36.165 RCW), which was passed by the legislature in 2020 and amended in 2022.

C-PACER is designed to allow commercial property owners access to private financing for qualifying energy efficiency, renewable energy, water conservation, and resiliency improvements for their buildings. It requires adoption of an implementing ordinance by counties in order for commercial property owners to access the financing. Below are codes, ordinances, resolutions, and webpages related to a few C-PACER programs in the state:

Waste Reduction

Reducing waste, recycling, and composting are effective ways to reduce GHG emissions, both by reducing the energy used in the production of materials and by reducing the flow of materials to the landfill where anaerobic decomposition produces methane — a potent GHG. Many Washington local governments have adopted ambitious waste reduction policies and some are working toward the goal of zero waste.

New in 2024, HB 2301 establishes grant programs related to food waste reduction and organic material management policy implementation. The new law also amends organic material collection service requirements for local governments, residents, and businesses; labeling requirements related to the degradability of plastic or non-plastic products; and compost procurement programs and requirements.

MRSC’s Solid Waste Collection, Recycling, and Disposal webpage provides examples of solid waste and demolition waste programs, including legal and rate-setting policies.

Examples of Policies and Plans

Sustainable Purchasing

According to the National Association of State Procurement Officials, sustainable purchasing refers to:

purchasing a product that has a lesser or reduced negative effect or increased positive effect on human health and the ecological environment, when compared with competing products that serve the same purpose.

Ecology's buying green – sustainable purchasing webpage includes resources on cooperative green purchasing and several local examples of green purchasing programs. The EPA’s Energy Efficient Product Procurement (2011) provides green product procurement measures, policy mechanisms, and implementation strategies. 

State agencies are directed to increase environmental purchasing by both executive order and legislation. While there is no directly comparable mandate for local governments, HB 1799 requires certain municipalities to adopt compost procurement ordinances to increase the market for compost products made with organic materials that could otherwise end up in landfills. Additionally, several municipalities have implemented programs related to green or sustainable purchasing practices.

Examples of Policies

Additional policy examples across the state can be found on Ecology's buying green – sustainable purchasing webpage.

Urban Forest/Tree Canopy

Integrating trees and green space into urban areas mitigates GHG emissions and reduces exposure to harmful effects of climate change, such as heat. These adaptations are important for building climate resiliency in vulnerable areas. Local governments can integrate policies on urban forestry into their CAPs and comprehensive plans. MRSC’s Urban Forestry topic page includes information on establishing urban forests, street trees, tree preservation ordinances, forest or tree stewardship plans, and relevant examples and statutes for local governments.

Telework/Remote Work

Telecommuting, teleworking, and remote work programs allow employees to work from home (or at a neighborhood telework office) rather than commuting daily to a more distant work site. Encouraging telework can reduce a municipality’s GHG emissions by reducing employees’ VMT and decreasing the physical space required for operations. For more information and policy examples, see our page on Telecommuting and Remote Work.

Electric Vehicles

The State Energy Strategy (2021) estimates that one million internal combustion engine vehicles need to be replaced with zero-emission (i.e., electric) vehicles (EV) by 2030 to meet the state’s GHG reduction target. By 2035, all new car sales will need to be EVs. Local governments can help speed up adoption by encouraging the installation of public EV charging infrastructure throughout their communities. This may require updates to transportation infrastructure strategies and changes to any relevant electrical codes.

Since vehicle fleets make up a significant share of emissions from local government operations, agencies can also purchase electric and low emissions vehicles for municipal operations (i.e., green fleet) and invest in EV infrastructure. Local programs can prioritize a transition to clean vehicles, reduce VMT through logistical trip management, and encourage driving patterns and practices that minimize emissions. For more information, see our Electric Vehicles webpage.

Examples

Recommended Resources


Last Modified: January 02, 2026