On Jan. 26, the Port of Seattle Commission voted to
establish its Energy and Sustainability Policy Committee, a group that would
develop and propose new environmental initiatives across the organization.
The motion was based on the recent Conference of Parties
(COP21) in Paris, where 195 countries reached a landmark climate accord that
will commit nearly every country to lower planet-warming greenhouse gas
emissions.
“By creating this committee, we are able to concentrate
efforts more strategically to promote green energy uses and reduce greenhouse
gasses across all our lines of business,” Commission President John Creighton
said.
The Port of Seattle, which also manages the Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport, has already taken many actions to reduce GHG, including
adoption of the Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy, which has a goal to reduce
GHG emissions by 20 percent per ton of cargo moved through the Seaport by 2020.
“Having championed this initiative, I look forward to
working with our regional stakeholders to promote environmentally responsible
growth at the airport and seaport,” port Commissioner Fred Felleman said in a
statement.
