History of the Collaborative.
Routt County, the City of Steamboat Springs and the Towns of Hayden, Oak Creek and Yampa recognize the only way to address climate action is to work together proactively on tangible, greenhouse emission reduction solutions.
Building from Routt County’s past efforts, the community agreed to implement an actionable, emissions reduction plan targeted in the areas of Economy, Energy, Land Use, Transportation and Waste. The timeline below highlights the steps taken to get us to the Climate Action Plan we have today and the Collaborative team pushing this important work forward.
To quantify greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions within Routt County and the City of Steamboat Springs, Lotus Engineering and Sustainability, LLC was contracted to create a 2005 and 2018 GHG inventory. The purpose of these GHG emissions inventories was to create a clear picture of past and current GHG emission sources, understand trends, and establish a baseline for future emissions inventories that will guide climate action planning.
2021
Routt County Climate Action Plan (CAP) Completed
GHG emissions data was used to inform what menu of actions Routt County can take to reduce emissions across Economy, Energy, Land Use, Transportation and Waste Sectors. If all of the 22 strategies and associated actions are implemented successfully, Routt County is anticipated to reduce community wide GHG emissions by 35% by 2030 and 74% by 2050, as compared to the 2018 emissions baseline.
2021
Routt County Climate Action Plan Collaborative Created
Routt County, the City of Steamboat Springs and the towns of Hayden, Oak Creek and Yampa agreed to work together to reduce GHG emissions through the implementation of CAP, and to track execution of plan and GHG reduction.
2021
Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) Signed
IGA signed by Collaborative partners to create an organizational structure to facilitate regional decision-making and alignment of climate action work.
The Board currently consists of 9 members, including 4 community members and a representative from each of the local government partners. Through regular monthly meetings, the Board offers substantive expertise and critical stakeholder perspectives to its oversight role, representing the entire geographic scope of the project area to assure consistency, coordination and integration across the County.
2022
YVSC Selected as PME
Yampa Valley Sustainability Council (YVSC) selected as the Program Management Entity (PME) for the Collaborative Board and Working Groups. YVSC provides administrative and programmatic support, and carries out communication activities for the Collaborative Board.
Each Working Sector Group includes 10-15 Board-approved members composed of CAP Collaborative Board applicants and members, CAP Technical Committee Members and additional sector expertise relating to CAP Strategies. Groups are inventorying current efforts and identifying gaps and priority projects and recommendations that reduce GHG emissions as they relate to the Economy, Energy, Land Use, Transportation and Waste. Working Groups will report back to the Board with actionable, high impact recommendations.
