The city of Fayetteville yesterday became the fifty-fourth city in the nation — and the first in Arkansas — to commit to 100 percent clean and renewable energy. The City Council voted to adopt the city’s Energy Action Plan, which aims to move all government operations to clean energy by 2030 and achieve 100 percent community-wide clean energy by 2050.

In a press release, Glen Hooks, Director of the Arkansas Sierra Club, applauded the measure, calling it a “tremendous step forward”:

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Mayor Lioneld Jordan, the City Council, and the superb public servants in the city’s Sustainability Department are to be commended for their vision and commitment to improving the quality of life for Fayetteville residents. We are proud to recognize Fayetteville as the first Arkansas city to commit to a 100% renewable energy future—the first of what we believe will be many.”

From the same press release, here’s Mayor Lioneld Jordan‘s take:


Fayetteville has shown leadership in climate change adaptation and mitigation in a variety of ways. We’ve installed electric vehicle charging stations around the City, signed onto the Sierra Club’s ‘Mayors for 100% Clean Energy’ pledge, promoted energy efficiency programs for homes and businesses, and much more. The Energy Action Plan is another bold step in our efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve the quality of life for all Fayetteville citizens, present and future.

The presentation of the Energy Action Plan to the City Council can be viewed here. The full draft plan for the city can be read here. Here’s the overview:

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The Energy Action Plan is structured around one overarching goal: reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHG) for activities occurring in Fayetteville. While GHG reduction is the guiding goal, a host of co-benefits accompany ghg-reducing actions. This plan outlines ways that the City can increase energy efficiency, transition to cleaner fuel sources, improve public health outcomes, build more resilient local businesses, and more.

The plan outlines strategies, goals, and actions in transportation, energy supply, buildings, waste, and cross-sector activities. The draft plan includes the following goals:

CROSS-SECTOR:
* Reduce total housing and transportation costs to 45% of area median income
* Develop and expand Fayetteville’s reputation as a hub for socially and economically
responsible business development, entrepreneurship, and green jobs
* Build local support for national carbon emission reduction and carbon capture strategies

BUILDINGS:
* Complete periodic feasibility analyses of building energy code updates
* Achieve 3% annual reduction in overall energy usage by total building stock
* Achieve 40% tree canopy coverage by 2030

ENERGY SUPPLY:
* Achieve 100% local government clean energy by 2030
* Achieve 50% community-wide clean energy by 2030
* Achieve 100% community-wide clean energy by 2050

TRANSPORTATION:
* Reduce per capita vehicle miles traveled to 2010 levels by 2030
* Achieve 25% bike/walk/transit mode share by 2030

WASTE:
* Achieve 40% total waste diversion from the landfill by 2027