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Exploring how the way we live influences climate change and its impact across the Carolinas. You also can read additional national and international climate news.

City Considers Goal Of Eliminating Carbon Emissions By 2030

Electric utility vehicles
David Boraks
/
WFAE
The city already uses some electric utility vehicles. The goal under consideration would eventually eliminate fossil fuels for charging and other municipal uses.

A proposal working its way through the Charlotte City Council takes aim at climate change, by setting a goal of converting city buildings and vehicles to clean energy within 12 years. The city also wants to encourage residents and businesses to adopt more environmentally friendly practices.

The council's environment committee adopted a resolution June 4titled “Sustainable and Resilient Charlotte by 2050.”

Dimple Ajmera
Charlotte city council member Dimple Ajmera

“Our goal is to be 100 percent carbon-free by 2030. That's our city operational goal,” said at-large council member Dimple Ajmera, who chairs the environment committee.  “So that includes all high fleet vehicles, transportation, our city buildings."

“But then we also have a larger community goal, and that is calling for the city to be sustainable and resilient by 2050,” she added.

That broader goal calls on citizens and businesses individually to voluntarily recycle more, conserve water and adopt other tactics to help reduce citywide greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming.  

The proposed council resolution calls on the city to switch entirely to solar and other renewable energy sources, as well as nuclear power by 2030. Nuclear is included, Ajmera said, because the city’s main energy supplier Duke Energy relies heavily on nuclear as part of its energy mix.

The new resolution endorsed by the environment committee comes after months of discussions to rework an earlier proposal that was tabled last fall.

Among other things, Ajmera said, city officials now are talking with other stakeholders including Duke Energy, as they craft a new strategic energy plan, Ajmera said.

That plan would spell out details of how the city would reach the goals.  

The council is expected to vote on the resolution June 25th. Ajmera expects the council to consider the new energy plan this fall.

RELATED LINKS

Read the "Sustainable and Resilient Charlotte by 2050" resolution recommended by the city council environment committee. 

See related documents and presentations on the environment committee website.

David Boraks previously covered climate change and the environment for WFAE. See more at www.wfae.org/climate-news. He also has covered housing and homelessness, energy and the environment, transportation and business.