Harris County Climate Action Plan (Houston, Dallas: home, purchase, property tax)

[ninbud]

Harris County Climate Action Plan will reduce emissions from county operations by 40% by 2030.

We’re won't stop there. Climate change is one of the greatest challenges we face as a people and a planet.

Get ready for your roads to be turned into bike lanes.

All your emergency vehicles will be required to be electric, not sure how they will handle these floods Texas get.

More public transportation I.E light rails, bus lanes, etc will be formed.

Your taxes will be raised.

Reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 50% from county buildings and facilities without the use of offsets by 2030.

•Reducing electricity usage by at least 5% per year.
•Structuring a long-term 50-100 megawatt power purchase agreement


Shifting 10% of commuter trips from single-occupancy vehicles.
•Increasing the proportion of spending on green procurement.
•Reducing 50% of landfilled waste from county operations

Harris County plans on using American Rescue Plan Act funds to kickstart this program.

Once the ARPA funds dry up, taxpayers will be stuck with keeping the program going.

There is no budget set for climate action plan, meaning it will most likely be $$$

Harris has partnered with CEER to implement this program. CEER pushes *equity* and is funded by the Kreshe Foundation

https://ceerhouston.org/


Also being done in Austin and Dallas

[WRM20]

A lot of the plan is just plain common sense. Improving building efficiency, replacing outdated systems with more modern systems, using electric vehicles where it makes sense, especially for county employees that are driving around the County for their job.

Taxes can't be raised wily nilly, since the Legislature passed a bill requiring tax revenue increases of more than 3.5% be endorsed in an election.

[Dopo]

Climate change is just another political BS to scare people and spend tax dollars on stupid crap

The $29 billion plan to save Texas' coast from rising tides: Massive flood gates and miles of sand dunes

That crazy idea may soon stand guard at Galveston Bay, home to the nation's largest export harbor and the biggest petrochemical complex in the Western Hemisphere. It is part of the Army Corps of Engineers' $29 billion plan to defend a large part of the Texas Gulf Coast. It calls for massive gates designed to fend off 22 feet of storm surge and 43 miles of sand dunes to protect against hurricanes.

Kelly Burks-Copes, who works for the Army Corps, said the plan would be the largest infrastructure project in the nation and take up to 20 years to design and build.

"If we want to live here on the coast then we have to provide a level of defense," Burks-Copes told CBS News. "The intent here is to keep the surge that comes with hurricanes out in the gulf and not let it into the bay."

If Congress funds the project, the federal government will pick up 65% of the cost, and Texas would pay the rest.

State Sen. Larry Taylor said there's no time to waste with climate change making storms more intense.

[kreeyax]

Is there really a demand for more public transportation? Is it smart to turn car lanes into bike lanes? Seems like that will just make traffic worse. Trying to reduce emissions with electric vehicles is fine, but it seems like this whole "green" push is going to be painful and expensive for citizens of the county. I also don't see how the county expects to reduce electricity usage by 5% per year if they are replacing gas vehicles with electric ones.

[ninbud]

Taxpayers will foot the bill when govt funds run out.

Things will be done that political people and donors want, not avg. citizens.

[gwarnecke]

Originally Posted by kreeyax

I also don't see how the county expects to reduce electricity usage by 5% per year if they are replacing gas vehicles with electric ones.

I agree, this is a striking remark...most "green" initiatives in other cities/states speak of using more electricity overall, not less, as transportation, cooking, heating, etc activities are electrified. Makes me wonder if the brains at Harris County mis-spoke or simply didn't put much critical thought into their plan.

I'm all for sensible efforts to reduce energy usage (phasing out the gas-guzzling SUVs used by City of Houston and Harris County law enforcement agencies would be a good start). But these initiatives need to be realistic and considerate of the reality that the vast majority of commuters select the fastest means of transport to their destination regardless of its cost/environmental impact, and this fastest means will very rarely be public transport.

I'm reading that public transportation use in most large cities in the US is still way down from pre-pandemic levels and may never return to these, as more workers are partly remote. Consequently, transit agencies are bleeding money now that COVID relief funds are drying up. Maybe Houston was wise to stick with its mostly bus-based mass transit system that can be scaled down or reconfigured easily and cheaply compared with a train/light rail system.

[Dopo]

Originally Posted by kreeyax

Is there really a demand for more public transportation?.

Is there traffic in Houston?
Can Houston benefit from having less cars on the road?

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by kreeyax

Is there really a demand for more public transportation? Is it smart to turn car lanes into bike lanes? Seems like that will just make traffic worse. Trying to reduce emissions with electric vehicles is fine, but it seems like this whole "green" push is going to be painful and expensive for citizens of the county. I also don't see how the county expects to reduce electricity usage by 5% per year if they are replacing gas vehicles with electric ones.

The reduction in electricity usage is for buildings and facilities.

There are advantages to using EVs where possible, besides the potential climate and air quality benefits. EVs do not require that the County store large quantities of gasoline and diesel in underground takes that have a high leak potential, and the risks associated with gasoline and diesel fueling activities are reduced. Far fewer fuel spills to deal with, reduced risk of diesel turning to jelly from bacteria, no delivery trucks, etc. EV's don't require oil changes and don't require brakes to be replaced nearly as often since regenerative braking almost eliminates brake rotor and pad wear.

The switch to EVs doesn't have to be painful, and don't forget that there's a Legislature imposed 3.5% cap on increases in property tax revenue without an election to approve the higher rate.

[Houston Area Man]

This will reduce the heat.

[usc619]

My current numbers stand at 704 between Fort Bend and Harris, I’m still waiting on the other counties, but I doubt we’ll hit a 1,ooo at this point.