Climate Action: Opportunities to Tune In!

Join Climate Staff at "Down with Carbon Emissions - Up with Community Equity!" 

Feb. 3, 7:00pm Pacific | Register here

King County Green Jobs Program Manager Michael Carter and Climate Equity & Community Partnerships Program Manager Victoria Raya will speak at the League of Women Voters February Forum. Panelists will discuss key questions around the climate crisis, community resilience, and equity for all: 

What is climate justice and how can we implement it in our engagement with cities?

What does a fair and transparent process for evidence-based results for all look like?

How to uplift climate actions that promote equity, eliminate barriers, reduce harm?

How to interact with local agencies and programs to support pro-equity actions?

What actions can we take to support climate equity and build community resilience?

Clean Buildings King County Video Series Debuts this Week

Help spread the word about how commercial buildings can reduce their climate footprint, with new affordable investment tools!  

Video 1: What's Up with Clean Buildings in Washington? Featuring Washington Representative Joe Fitzgibbon 

Video 2: How Can We Make Buildings Greener? Featuring Unico Properties

Video 3: How Can C-PACER Loans Make Upgrades More Affordable? Featuring Kent Councilmember Kaur

Video 4: What's the State Clean Buildings Performance Standard? Featuring Washington State Department of Commerce

Video 5: Make C-PACER and the State Incentive Work Together for You! Featuring King County 

Video 6: Want to Get Involved with Clean Buildings in King County? Featuring King County Councilmember Zahilay

King Tides and Planning for Sea Level Rise

On Friday, January 7, the Puget Sound region saw some of the highest tides on record when a low pressure weather system coincided with our annual King Tides. Low-lying areas across the region experienced significant coastal flooding, including SW Quartermaster Drive on Vashon Island (photo). 

January’s extreme tides offer a glimpse of the near-term future as warming oceans and sea level rise lead to more frequent coastal flooding in the Puget Sound region. King County is actively working in a variety of ways to prepare for and reduce the risks of sea level rise. This work includes: 

• Pursuing federal funding to assess how climate-related hazards such as sea level rise may affect King County Roads infrastructure,
• Accounting for sea level rise when planning park facility and habitat restoration improvements at Saltwater State Park,
• Evaluating the impacts of sea level rise and saltwater intrusion on wastewater infrastructure, and
• Extending coastal floodplain protection standards via a new Sea Level Rise Risk Area for Vashon and Maury Island.

For more information on how King County is preparing for sea level rise, contact Lara Whitely Binder (lwbinder@kingcounty.gov).