San Diego County Supervisors Approve Climate Action Plan

SAN DIEGO, CA — The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 Wednesday in favor of a Climate Action Plan that offers building developers a simplified process to measure greenhouse gasses and focuses on fire safety.

According to a statement from board Chairwoman Nora Vargas' office, the "groundbreaking" plan also concentrates on reducing the number vehicle miles traveled, and will be part of future smart growth planning efforts.

Vargas, Vice Chair Terra Lawson-Remer and their colleague Monica Montgomery Steppe voted in favor of the plan, while Supervisors Joel Anderson and Jim Desmond were opposed.

The plan, which affects projects in the county's unincorporated areas, provides developers "with a clearer, more efficient pathway to compliance with the states' environmental laws," according to Vargas' office.

Vargas' office said the plan contains nine strategies, 21 measures and 70 actions aimed at reducing emissions in the county, "without using any offsets outside the region."

"The CAP is the first time the county is providing a measurable commitment to mitigate and reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions with a firm policy that aligns the county with California's statewide goals of carbon neutrality by 2045," Vargas said.

"The adoption of this Climate Action Plan prioritizes equity for frontline communities that have long suffered from environmental racism and unjust policies. By focusing on the health and safety of our most impacted residents, we have a unique opportunity to address historic disparities, improve air quality, and create a more sustainable future for everyone."

The plan was 15 years in the making, Lawson-Remer said during Wednesday's meeting.

Before the board voted, Anderson said instead of building homes in village areas closer to workplaces, the county is pursuing a plan that "literally shuts down all housing in East County."
The county "worked so hard to get to this point," only to give it all away because "some people from the coast" who aren't paying attention to any actual transportation patterns showed up to the meeting, Anderson said.

Desmond said he started the meeting prepared to support the plan, but the smart-growth alternative and vehicle miles traveled efficiency plan translate into "no growth."

Desmond said there are very few vehicle miles traveled-efficient locations in the unincorporated areas and added he would rather see sustainable land use "percolate on its own," instead of it being imposed.

In September 2020, supervisors voted to rescind the original Climate Action Plan, adopted in February 2018, and create a replacement after a Superior Court judge ruled the original plan didn't comply with county or state goals for reduced emissions.

According to Vargas, the new plan was created with "extensive" public engagement and technical analysis.

— City News Service