Recently, there has been an increased interest in the Rockford area for researching and adopting the means to address global warming and climate change. This is evident in several ways by the growth of local environmental organizations as well as Mayor Tom McNamara’s decision to join over 400 cities becoming a member of the Mayors National Climate Action Agenda. Known as the “Climate Mayors” group, member cities are engaging in various activities, some examples include: 1) Developing a community Greenhouse Gas inventory, 2) Setting near and long-term targets to reduce emissions, and 3) Developing a Climate Action Plan aligned with the city’s targets.

Some groups are willing to partner with the city of Rockford to advance these and other goals. Local area groups include The Rockford Coalition for a Sustainable Future, The Northern Illinois Chapter of the Climate Reality Project, Sustain Rockford, and Illinois Climate Activists. Members of these groups have already met with Wester Wuori, the mayor’s chief of staff, to begin exploring how we can best partner with, and assist, the city.

We are currently conducting research to find examples of successful municipalities and states that have been engaged in addressing climate change issues to find models that will work here. (For online sources, enter the documents name and search.) One such area is Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin. In 2004, Mayor Dave Clieslewicz formed the Mayor’s Energy Task Force for Madison (see Building a Green Capital City) to examine resources and establish a blueprint for a sustainable design and energy future.

Since then several programs have emerged in the city and county. In 2016, REPOWER Madison produced an Energy Report Card, for Madison Gas and Electric (About Us News Issues & Actions MGE Energy Report Card). The county has established the Dane County Office of Energy and Climate Change in the office of the County Executive.

In 2017 they reported that Dane County has tripled the production of solar power. And a new Council on Climate Change is coordinating work to adapt to the impact of the changing climate, reduce carbon emissions, and accelerate conversion of county vehicles to run on compressed natural gas. Also, there is MadiSUN, the city of Madison’s initiative to expand solar energy for homes and businesses.

There are other communities and states that are working to address climate change. For example, the state of Missouri has developed Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) (MCED’s website). This allows local governments to raise money through issuing bonds or other sources of capital to help property owners convert to clean energy solutions. These include, solar thermal systems and wind systems.

Other examples can be found across the country. Through the Union of Concerned Scientists, Vermont is working to expand clean energy financing in the state, including PACE, as mentioned above (Financing Clean Energy in Vermont). This could save home and business owners in Vermont a total of $14.6 million per year on their annual electric bills.

Thurston Climate Adaptation Plan has developed climate resilience actions for Thurston County, Washington, and Olympia and the South Puget Sound area. The City of Boulder Colorado has produced a new Climate Action Plan (Boulder’s Climate Action Plan).

The Rocky Mountain Institute has produced the 70-page Carbon-Free City Handbook. This addresses ways for action at the local level, including retrofitting buildings, making transportation and mobility more efficient, producing electricity with renewable systems, assisting industry to consume less energy and reduce emissions, and biological resources including organic waste diversion and urban forestry.

Finally, the federal government has produced two guides. The U.S. Department of Energy offers the document, Federal Financing Programs for Clean Energy, which offers information on the ten federal agencies that offer federal financing programs. And the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has released, Clean Energy Financing Programs: A Decision Guide for States and Communities. Many of these resources may be of interest locally.

Raymond Empereur, MPA, is a member of the Northern Illinois Chapter of the Climate Reality Project.