||| CLIMATE EYES by STEVE BERNHEIM |||
The County’s “vision” statement officially proclaims “we use renewable energy, materials, and natural resources on a sustainable basis” and “our community sets an example with its response to climate change.”
This is the County’s proposed aims and goals for Propane in the draft comprehensive plan through 2036, the end of the planning period:
There are no natural gas lines in San Juan County. The population relies heavily on propane. Propane tanks are not allowed on Washington State Ferries. Propane utility providers barge propane from the mainland to their distribution centers on San Juan, Orcas, and Lopez islands.
The two propane providers in San Juan County are Inter-Island Propane and San Juan Propane. Inter-Island Propane recently established a facility on Orcas Island, which is subject to County inspection prior to starting operations. The demand for propane will likely increase as the County’s population increases. However, alternative renewable energy sources, such as home solar energy installations, and changes in State building code and greenhouse gas emission reduction requirements to meet WA State Greenhouse Gas targets for energy efficiency may reduce the per capita demand for propane in the future.
PROPANE
Goal 9: Recognize propane as a heating source used in the County.
Policies
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- Identify appropriate land use designations for the siting of bulk fuel storage.
- Support the use of historic barge landings that have served as landing sites for transporting bulk fuels.
- Work with the Ports, the Town of Friday Harbor, WSDOT and propane distributors to develop safe transportation and circulation routes for the transport of propane.
According to planning staff, this section is new and was added July 1, 2022 and has never been included in any past discussion of future of utilities planning. Here is the planning commission’s complete discussion on July 1 addressing this proposed growth in propane use:
[Planning Staff]: The utilities element sets the goals and policies about the provision of electricity, telecommunication and propane in the county. We have a new goal and policies about minimizing the environmental impacts of electricity and promoting energy independence from the mainland. There’s also a new goal and policies about propane. The GMA requires that we address natural gas for the county, address electricity, telecommunications and natural gas. The county doesn’t have natural gas. So we’ve added this new goal and policies about propane because it’s a significant source of fuel for a lot of people in the islands. Any questions or comments about the Utilities element?”
Accept increased demand? Site new storage tanks? Continue propane deliveries through 2036? … And no questions or comments?
Meanwhile, the county’s climate advisory committee has been mulling proposals to reduce local greenhouse gas emissions, including whether to require net zero/all-electric energy use in future construction and to establish local taxes to help finance conversions away from propane. The Climate and Sustainability Advisory Committee was established by the San Juan County Council to ensure coordination and communication of actions across departments and to feed into existing County advisory committees and commissions.
Plan for incentives away from propane and adopt appliance restrictions or endure increased emissions from propane, even in new construction, until 2036? Want to suggest something beyond business as usual ? The last chance to comment to the planning commission will be at their next meeting this coming Friday, August 5 at 8:30 a.m. You can send written
expressions of concern to compplancomments@sanjuanco.com.
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This is very confusing. Neither solution alone is the solution. Living in an all-electric apartment has many drawbacks, including cost and the fact that we can’t really afford to use hot water or heat in winter, and outages leave us all in a very vulnerable position – especially those of us who have pets who we will not leave or take to a shelter. That puts us at risk of freezing to death in a bad winter.
I’m not sure more propane is the answer, either. Natural gas involves fracking – god forbid we ever get that here or build underwater pipelines to get it here!
This needs far more thought and creativity than what we’ve given it – and then there is the Snake River Dams and salmon recovery issue if we don’t want our SRKW population to go extinct. It should be more than just about “us” and our comforts and consumption.
There is no simple fix, short of a change in consciousness about how we live and use energy and wean ourselves off of plastic in all its forms. A return to using natural fiber (such as wool) for our clothing and bedding, and doing all we can to insulate our homes, “old school style” – use only one or two rooms, IE, put blankets over the windows, ETC – are a few solutions that are cleaner and kinder.. Also, the use and waste of water in this county is appalling. We act as though it is an infinite resource on finite islands with finite water supply. Lawns, if not banned, should be limited in size to a very small area. We can use far less water to bathe and clean our dishes and homes. We have a long way to go if we are going to steward the earth that gives us so much, yet we give back so little. ‘
Clean’ energy is a myth we like to perpetuate without backing up our collective actions in using LESS energy. How can we hope for a sustainable future when our attitudes continue to be that of mass and unlimited consumption? I ask myself these questions and hope others are asking too, as there are no easy or simplistic answers, but a combination of people working together and putting our creative minds together for win-win solutions.
I was not able to contact the county at compplancomments@sanjuanco.com
We built a house too far from Electric to provide primary power. Therefore we opted to use Propane for heating, hot water, and stove.
We also have a propane generator for when the power goes out, we still have well water.
We are getting old, and were getting tired of the firewood (cutting and smoke) and decided that propane was a solution.
Propane is a product of making gasoline. As long as they make gas, we will have propane.
If at an old age we are forced to quit propane for environmental reasons, we will somehow have to go back to burning wood.
I am sure wood is more polluting than propane.
Aside from that, has anyone considered that SJC is the only county in the state that does not have vehicle emissions testing?
That is because we do not have a state highway.
Same for heating our house.
Want wood smoke instead?
Thanks a lot John, now we will be having smog checks and wood burning will be banned. This San Juan County propane reduction plan won’t make a bit of difference to climate change and is “virtue signaling” at it’s finest paid for by the citizens. We also depend on propane for cooking and back-up heat and tried to respond to the same link and it didn’t work……is this by plan?
By the way Europe now considers natural gas (propane) and nuclear power as clean energy.