A new front in the fight against climate change dominated the environmental wins this year

After passing the Climate Commitment Act in 2021 that capped carbon emissions from large source generators, the Legislature shifted focus to another key source of greenhouse gas—methane. Methane is 25 times more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, but has a shorter “lifespan.” In particular, the Legislature’s target was the methane generated by the decomposition of organic materials in landfills.

The Legislature chose to address this concern from two directions—prevention and capture. On the prevention side, HB 1799 requires a separate organics collection service to be provided to residents and certain businesses in cities with 25,000 or more in population. To address the methane emitting from the organics already landfilled, HB 1663 requires methane capture equipment be installed in certain landfills.

One major environmental proposal didn’t get off the launch pad. HB 1838 would have created new riparian buffer standards based on a measure called “site potential tree height.” The proposed standard would have required buffers to be potentially as large as the distance for a native tree to reach full height and then fall into the stream to provide woody debris. The implications of this were far reaching, especially for cities, counties, and agricultural landowners. Unfortunately, the bill draft was developed without input or engagement beyond the Governor’s Office and tribal nations. As the reaction unfolded, legislators quickly realized that more work is needed on the proposal, and the bill was set down in favor of budget provisos to lay more research groundwork.

In addition to the above, the Legislature passed several smaller environmental policy bills, adjusting the permit fees cities pay to Ecology to develop and manage water quality permits, fixing an inadvertent impediment to the use of toxic cleanup grants, and incentivizing the use of biochar by municipalities. We will send an AWC logo prize to the first member who writes in explaining:

1. What biochar is;
2. Why cities should use it; and
3. How that requirement coexists with the requirement to use compost (see HB 1799).

And no cheating by reading the bill reports!