Drafter
Clerk 09/19/2023
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AN ORDINANCE related to the establishment and administration of the forest carbon program; amending Ordinance 17022, Section 2, and K.C.C. 4.56.250 and Ordinance 17527 Section 150, as amended, and K.C.C. 4A.200.155 and adding a new chapter to K.C.C. Title 18.
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STATEMENT OF FACTS:
1. For decades, King County has demonstrated leadership in protecting open space. The long legacy of open space conservation has made King County one of the most livable areas in the country and a sought-after place to live, work and do business.
2. An advisory group of regional leaders helped shape the Land Conservation Initiative, providing a final report in December 2017. The report notes that, "Open spaces, such as those being protected by this Initiative, provide a wide range of ecosystem services to our communities and economy, ranging from purifying our water, to sequestering carbon, to mitigating floods, and many more." It also recommends, "[p]roceeding with a sense of urgency, as development pressures continue to grow."
3. The advisory group recommended the county, "should allocate the necessary resources as quickly as possible to complete assessments of viability for private funding streams based on carbon credits (both rural and urban)" and "[p]resuming no adverse findings in the completion of these assessments, the County should move forward with urgency in creating the necessary policies and programs."
4. In May 2019, the executive launched a pilot forest carbon program. As part of that program, the department of natural resources and parks developed and has been refining a carbon credit program, which involves voluntary payments to King County for carbon credits generated by preserving forests so they can continue to store carbon.
5. King County has long been a leader in climate action. The county, as the steward of the thousands of acres of open space in King County, holds itself to a high standard of protecting the natural e...
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