Takoma Park not following the carbon diet set in 2000

by Lauren Williams

As New Year’s Day nears, citizens of Montgomery County are evaluating their 2007 resolutions. The “healthy diet” resolution, the “I-promise-to-workout-more” resolution.

Just like its citizens, the Takoma Park government is revisiting a resolution from a New Year’s past.

Instead of evaluating a year of dodging the gym, Mayor Bruce Williams is reviewing Takoma’s lower greenhouse emissions resolution of 2000, a 10-year commitment to lowering greenhouse gas emissions.

The Takoma Park Committee on the Environment, appointed by City Council, initiated the “Local Action Plan for Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions.”
The Committee, headed by Catherine Tunis, has the mission of advising the City Council on environmental issues.

While protecting the environment is a global responsibility, Takoma has its own burden. In March 2000, the City Council passed a 10-year resolution to reduce carbon dioxide emissions in Takoma to 80-percent of the emissions in 1990.

The council was galvanized by the statistics. In 2000, every resident contributed, on average, 15 tons of carbon dioxide as a result of energy consumption, according to the emissions inventory report prepared by the environment committee.

Electricity use was the greatest source and comprised over half of all emissions.
Gasoline and natural gas usage ranked second and third in contribution, respectively.

The biggest culprits of the high carbon dioxide emissions were commercial use from city and apartment buildings and transportation.

With only two years left for the city to reach its goal, Williams and the new members of City Council and the environment committee are responsible for making sure Takoma keeps its resolution.

Tunis said that, “it is time to revisit the plan, get the new Council-members engaged and see what the City has accomplished.”
Although the Committee has not addressed the Council, there are several issues left in the balance.

“We need to refocus existing strategies and possibly develop new ones,” Tunis said.

The 2000 resolution called for a community energy conservation effort through using alternative transportation, recycling, protecting parks and tree planting.

The resolution also highlighted resident awareness and education.

“It seems that the resolution has faded from attention,” said Barbara Beelar, former Committee member and local eco-activist.

Beelar was right. According to local officials, Takoma has lost its position as a “green” front-runner to Gaithersburg.

“Takoma Park residents want their local government to be in the forefront of important progressive issues,” Beelar said.

The Council tried to implement a municipal electric utility, but was unsuccessful.

Another attempt was made to make municipal buildings more efficient through energy service performance contracting and group purchases.

However, the construction of a new, larger municipal building may have increased emissions.

There are no known “green” apartment building projects.

The Takoma City Council has a challenging two years ahead of them.
Their primary objective will be to ascertain Takoma’s progress, if any, in carbon dioxide emissions since 2000 and to develop new strategies for decreasing greenhouse emissions.

Unlike cheating on a diet or skipping yoga, if Council reneges on this resolution, all of Takoma Park will be left with tons of pollution rather than a few unwanted pounds.