Bend Council: Electrify Bend with a Just Transition
We the undersigned ask:
Dear Mayor Kebler and Bend City Council members,
Our community is already experiencing the devastating impacts of the climate crisis. From prolonged drought to extreme heat, wildfire and hazardous air quality, all Bend residents are feeling first hand the effects of a warming world.
Many young people today will still be alive at the end of this century. The steps we take today and in the next decade will have a huge impact on how much the planet warms, how much sea level rises, and whether the planet is hospitable to human life or any other life in 2050 and beyond. The global scientific community is raising the alarm bell and urging us to do more immediately to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and give us all a chance at a livable future.
We need to take faster action in our local community. The stakes are too high to miss any opportunities for bold decisive action to transition away from polluting fossil fuels.
In light of this, the undersigned organizations are writing to urge the City of Bend to take rapid steps to reduce the usage of polluting fossil fuels and promote electrification and the transition to clean energy in order to reach the City’s Community Climate Action Plan goals, and the goals of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 recommended by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Specifically, we are asking the City to take initial action within the next 60 days on these items:
- Commit to electrify all city-owned buildings in Bend by 2030 and begin this work immediately
- Set a goal for 50% of all homes and buildings in Bend to be electrified by 2030, and create policies and programs to achieve this outcome
- Create policies to require all newly constructed homes and buildings in Bend to be all-electric to the full extent allowable under the law, starting no later than 2025
- Strengthen the City’s existing right of way law to increase revenue and create a climate justice fund to support inclusive, community-wide electrification
All-electric buildings provide robust benefits for communities and the climate
Homes and buildings are the single largest source of climate pollution in the city, and passing policies to electrify the city’s building stock is essential to Bend reaching its climate commitments to reduce fossil fuel use by 40% by 2030. When newly-constructed buildings are dependent on inefficient and polluting fossil fuels, the amount of air pollution and greenhouse gasses released over the building’s lifespan is staggering. Thankfully, with new cash rebates and tax credits for high efficiency heat pumps and other electric appliances coming online as part of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and with the passage of the Resilient Buildings Policy package at the state legislature, it is more cost effective than ever to build smart from the start. And, because of the passage of HB 2021 which requires electric utilities to provide 100% renewable energy by 2040, going all electric will mean that Bend’s buildings are ready to take full advantage of the renewable energy transition.
Transitioning existing buildings to be highly-efficient and all-electric can also help Bend residents reduce their energy bills and burdens. As governments around the world transition off of fossil fuels, the cost of methane gas is increasing rapidly, and ratepayers are suffering the consequences. Long-term planning for electrification can provide a pathway for Bend to support this transition while ensuring access to healthy and affordable homes and buildings. The City can start this transition by planning for electrification retrofits for City-owned and -funded buildings in order to provide a model to the rest of the City, and to ensure that public buildings are healthy and comfortable places on the community’s best days, and resilient and safe refuges on the community’s toughest days.
Methane gas in buildings harms public health and the climate
The use of methane gas in homes and buildings is one of the top growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the state, and the single largest source of emissions in the City of Bend. Gas use is also putting residents at increased risk to their health and safety due to the high levels of air pollution that it generates.
Transitioning our buildings to highly-efficient electric appliances comes with many co-benefits. One of the most significant of these is the dramatic reduction in air pollution generated by gas appliances. A recent study found that children that grow up in homes with gas stoves are 42% more likely to develop asthma symptoms due to associated indoor air pollution. Beyond the direct health benefits of electrification, high efficiency electric heat pumps provide lifesaving cooling as our City increasingly experiences deadly climate-driven heatwaves.
Bend can lead the way – with widespread support from other cities and communities statewide
Bend has the opportunity to join with over one hundred cities across the country that have begun the process to transition from gas to a more renewable and equitable future, and to help lead our state toward a necessary clean energy transition. Here in Oregon, the Cities of Eugene, Milwaukie, and Ashland and Multnomah County are in various stages of the process to develop and pass policy to tackle the climate crisis and electrify homes and buildings.
We urge Bend City Council to join the growing list of local governments taking concrete climate action and advance policy solutions that support the electrification in homes and buildings in the City as quickly and as equitably as possible such as creating an emissions standard for new homes and buildings (see the policy being explored by the City of Ashland) and blocking new gas pipelines in City right of ways. Additionally, with the City’s current franchise agreement with Cascade Natural Gas expiring next year, the Council must take advantage of the opportunity to allow the contract to lapse, and strengthen the City’s existing right of way policy to include a 10% fee on revenue generated by the utility in Bend, with the additional revenue being used to create a climate justice fund to support electrification.
In line with the urgency of the climate crisis, we request that the Council take action to move these recommendations forward within 60 days of the receipt of this letter. Let’s ensure that the buildings in the community reflect our collective dedication to climate action and desire to invest in our clean energy future. Thank you for your leadership and your consideration.
Sign the Petition to Electrify Bend
Business Petition to Electrify Bend
Bend Council: Electrify Buildings and Foster a Just Transition
September 15, 2023
Dear Mayor Kebler and Bend City Council members,
Our community is already experiencing the devastating impacts of the climate crisis. From prolonged drought to extreme heat, wildfire and hazardous air quality, all Bend residents are feeling first hand the effects of a warming world.
Many young people today will still be alive at the end of this century. The steps we take today and in the next decade will have a huge impact on how much the planet warms, how much sea level rises, and whether the planet is hospitable to human life or any other life in 2050 and beyond. The global scientific community is raising the alarm bell and urging us to do more immediately to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and give us all a chance at a livable future.
We need to take faster action in our local community. The stakes are too high to miss any opportunities for bold decisive action to transition away from polluting fossil fuels.
In light of this, the undersigned organizations are writing to urge the City of Bend to take rapid steps to reduce the usage of polluting fossil fuels and promote electrification and the transition to clean energy in order to reach the City’s Community Climate Action Plan goals, and the goals of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 and a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 recommended by the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Specifically, we are asking the City to take initial action within the next 60 days on these items:
- Commit to electrify all city-owned buildings in Bend by 2030 and begin this work immediately
- Set a goal for 50% of all homes and buildings in Bend to be electrified by 2030, and create policies and programs to achieve this outcome
- Create policies to require all newly constructed homes and buildings in Bend to be all-electric to the full extent allowable under the law, starting no later than 2025
- Strengthen the City’s existing right of way law to increase revenue and create a climate justice fund to support inclusive, community-wide electrification
All-electric buildings provide robust benefits for communities and the climate
Homes and buildings are the single largest source of climate pollution in the city, and passing policies to electrify the city’s building stock is essential to Bend reaching its climate commitments to reduce fossil fuel use by 40% by 2030. When newly-constructed buildings are dependent on inefficient and polluting fossil fuels, the amount of air pollution and greenhouse gasses released over the building’s lifespan is staggering. Thankfully, with new cash rebates and tax credits for high efficiency heat pumps and other electric appliances coming online as part of the federal Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and with the passage of the Resilient Buildings Policy package at the state legislature, it is more cost effective than ever to build smart from the start. And, because of the passage of HB 2021 which requires electric utilities to provide 100% renewable energy by 2040, going all electric will mean that Bend’s buildings are ready to take full advantage of the renewable energy transition.
Transitioning existing buildings to be highly-efficient and all-electric can also help Bend residents reduce their energy bills and burdens. As governments around the world transition off of fossil fuels, the cost of methane gas is increasing rapidly, and ratepayers are suffering the consequences. Long-term planning for electrification can provide a pathway for Bend to support this transition while ensuring access to healthy and affordable homes and buildings. The City can start this transition by planning for electrification retrofits for City-owned and -funded buildings in order to provide a model to the rest of the City, and to ensure that public buildings are healthy and comfortable places on the community’s best days, and resilient and safe refuges on the community’s toughest days.
Methane Fossil gas in buildings harms public health and the climate
The use of methane gas in homes and buildings is one of the top growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions in the state, and the single largest source of emissions in the City of Bend. Gas use is also putting residents at increased risk to their health and safety due to the high levels of air pollution that it generates.
Transitioning our buildings to highly-efficient electric appliances comes with many co-benefits. One of the most significant of these is the dramatic reduction in air pollution generated by gas appliances. A recent study found that children that grow up in homes with gas stoves are 42% more likely to develop asthma symptoms due to associated indoor air pollution. Beyond the direct health benefits of electrification, high efficiency electric heat pumps provide lifesaving cooling as our City increasingly experiences deadly climate-driven heatwaves.
Bend can lead the way – with widespread support from other cities and communities statewide
Bend has the opportunity to join with over one hundred cities across the country that have begun the process to transition from gas to a more renewable and equitable future, and to help lead our state toward a necessary clean energy transition. Here in Oregon, the Cities of Eugene, Milwaukie, and Ashland and Multnomah County are in various stages of the process to develop and pass policy to tackle the climate crisis and electrify homes and buildings.
We urge Bend City Council to join the growing list of local governments taking concrete climate action and advance policy solutions that support the electrification in homes and buildings in the City as quickly and as equitably as possible such as creating an emissions standard for new homes and buildings (see the policy being explored by the City of Ashland) and blocking new gas pipelines in City right of ways. Additionally, with the City’s current franchise agreement with Cascade Natural Gas expiring next year, the Council must take advantage of the opportunity to allow the contract to lapse, and strengthen the City’s existing right of way policy to include a 10% fee on revenue generated by the utility in Bend, with the additional revenue being used to create a climate justice fund to support electrification.
In line with the urgency of the climate crisis, we request that the Council take action to move these recommendations forward within 60 days of the receipt of this letter. Let’s ensure that the buildings in the community reflect our collective dedication to climate action and desire to invest in our clean energy future. Thank you for your leadership and your consideration.
