The past four weeks have been very eventful for the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP). Following the CECAP Task Force meeting on July 29, county staff and ICF prepared for the first round of formal public…

More than 95 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in Fairfax County comefrom cars and trucks on our roads, energy use in our homes and businesses, waste management processes, and other community sources. Controlling our greenhouse gas emissions is not only good for the environment around us, it’s also important for our health and our economic well-being.

In July, as summer reached its peak, development of the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) accelerated considerably. In the latter half of the month, the nine district-level Focus Groups and the Task Force met to discuss materials that county staff and…

In late August and early September, Fairfax County residents, workers, and other stakeholders will have the opportunity to participate in a series of three virtual public meetings, to provide input on the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) currently in development.

These three meetings will be facilitated conversations about the direction the county is heading in…

In Fairfax County, transportation is one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions, producing 5.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2018 alone. From cars and trucks traveling along our roads, to rail transportation like Metro and the VRE, to off-road vehicles like construction equipment, our carbon footprint from transportation is considerable. In this article, we’ll…

Fairfax County’s climate mitigation planning process is moving along at a steady clip. In June and early July, staff supporting the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) focused heavily on scheduling and logistics for upcoming meetings of both the Focus Groups and the Task Force. Each of the nine district-level Focus Groups will meet virtually in the coming weeks to discuss the…

The Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) development process continues with electronic meetings in the works for both the Task Force and the nine district-level Focus Groups.

The next Task Force meeting is scheduled for July 29, 2020 from 6:00-9:00 PM. It will be held electronically (audio/video) unless there are significant changes to the COVID-19-related closures of…

In Fairfax County, buildings are the largest contributor to climate change next to transportation. The way we design, build, use and dismantle our buildings matters a great deal, both in the residential and the commercial sector. In this article, we’ll look at five ways buildings contribute to climate change and what can be done to mitigate a building’s carbon…

Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, development of the Community-wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) continues to move forward. We cannot afford to lose time in the effort to address climate change, even as we confront this extraordinary public health crisis. During the month of May, staff from the Office of Environmental and Energy Coordination have been working to find a…

Two degrees. It sounds minimal, no matter the context. But scientists, the media, politicians, and academics all talk about this figure with a sense of anxiety, at least when it comes to climate change. It is entirely reasonable to wonder, what’s the big deal?

Back in 2015, world leaders gathered in Paris for the 23rd Conference of the Parties and hammered out a landmark agreement to…