The City Council adopted the Climate Sustainability Plan on June 13, 2023 via Resolution 2023-08. Washington State’s Growth Management Act (GMA - Chapter 36.70A RCW) was amended in 2023 under Washington House Bill 1181, requiring cities and counties to integrate climate mitigation and resilience policies into comprehensive plan updates.  The city of Lake Stevens applied for and received a grant from the State Department of Commerce, for preparing a climate mitigation plan for the city to incorporate climate change policies into the city’s comprehensive plan. A consultant team led by Cascadia Consulting Group (CCG) assisted the City of Lake Stevens in this effort.

The city’s Climate Sustainability Plan (CSP) serves as a framework and roadmap to manage current and future carbon emissions and climate change impacts in Lake Stevens. This plan provides strategies to reduce Lake Steven’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and prepare residents for future climate impacts. The plan has been framed around the vision statement and identifies actions the city can take or support through interagency coordination and education. The plan provides a suite of policies to consider for integration into the 2024 Comprehensive Plan update and later updates following Department of Commerce model rules being developed.  The CSP includes a Public Engagement Plan, an Equity Assessment, a Cost-Benefit Assessment (for ten selected actions), Community Engagement Results, support for integration of the actions into the city’s Comprehensive Plan and an Implementation Plan.