King County announces five-year plan for climate action

Summary

Today, King County Executive Shannon Braddock and the Executive Climate Office announced the 2025-2030 Strategic Climate Action Plan, laying out how the county will continue to address the climate crisis over the next five years.

Story

King County Executive Shannon Braddock announced the 2025–2030 Strategic Climate Action Plan today, partnering with the Executive Climate Office to send the proposal to the King County Council for consideration. The plan reinforces King County’s commitment to climate action that delivers measurable results — working across county departments and in collaboration with community partners.

It builds off the significant progress King County has made in several areas and sets a bold course to cut greenhouse gas emissions, support climate-resilient communities, and invest in a sustainable and equitable region.

“King County is staying true to our core values while advancing on bold climate action that puts frontline communities first,” said Executive Braddock. “We are excited to keep working with our partners to turn these ambitious plans into real progress.”

Many people are already feeling the impacts of climate change, and not all communities have the same ability to prepare, adapt, and recover. The 2025 plan addresses the urgent need for continued action and centers frontline communities that are most impacted with actions to achieve nine flagship outcomes:

• Put Communities First: Investing in community leadership, local partnerships, and community preparedness to strengthen frontline community resilience and support community-driven climate action.
• Safe, Healthy, and Climate-Ready Homes and Buildings: Fostering a transition to clean energy, strengthening housing and workplaces to withstand extreme heat, wildfire smoke, and flooding, while ensuring affordability and preventing displacement.
• Connected and Accessible Transportation: Expanding sustainable mobility options like transit, biking, and walking to reduce car dependency while improving access to jobs, schools, and services.
• Economic Mobility and Career-Building Opportunities: Ensuring that the economic opportunities created by the clean energy transition benefit historically excluded workers and local communities.
• Fresh, Local Food for Everyone: Strengthening food security and sustainable agriculture by supporting farmers, reducing food waste, and increasing access to fresh, healthy food.
• Design Out Waste: Redesigning our systems to reduce consumption, prevent waste, and increase the reuse of valuable materials.
• Clean Air, Water, and Healthy Ecosystems: Protecting and restoring forests, waterways, and green spaces to improve climate resilience, public health, and biodiversity.
• Reliable and Future-Ready Infrastructure: Changing how we design, build, and maintain roads, utilities, and public services to withstand climate extremes while ensuring equitable access to essential infrastructure.
• Collaborative and Community-Led Solutions: Centering climate action and equity in climate governance by ensuring frontline communities, tribes, and local organizations shape and lead climate solutions.

The plan builds on King County’s climate work, which has led to a 16% decrease in per-capita greenhouse gas emissions since 2007. Since the 2020 Strategic Climate Action Plan, King County has also:

• Secured more than $200 million in federal and state funding for climate work, including $50 million for building decarbonization and $2 million to improve resilience in the Puget Sound Basin.
• Launched JumpStart, a work-based learning and career placement program for clean energy and skilled trades, with more than 80% of participants successfully graduating.
• Partnered with 11 counties and the Suquamish Tribe to implement the Ready, Set, Go wildfire evacuation program, and distributed over 3,700 box fan filters and 5,000 air purifiers to help protect air quality.
• Funded climate equity projects, including park lighting improvements to ensure safety in underserved green spaces, and awarded more than $330,000 in grants to community organizations leading local climate work.
• Opened a new wet weather treatment station that has already protected the Duwamish River and Puget Sound from an estimated 32 million gallons of polluted stormwater and wastewater in its first full year of operation.
• Expanded Metro RapidRide bus service by launching the G and H lines.

Substantial work remains to further reduce emissions and ensure people and communities are prepared for more climate impacts. The region is already experiencing hotter summers, rising sea levels, and heavier rain due to climate change. By the 2050s, King County is projected to experience three times as many days over 90°F, 10 inches of sea level rise, and a 13% increase in the intensity of heavy rain events.

King County has expanded partnerships to support broader collaboration, including the King County-Cities Climate Collaboration, Puget Sound Climate Preparedness Collaborative, and Coalition for Climate Careers. New state policies and regulations have also paved the way for action.

As part of the 2025 Strategic Climate Action Plan, the county is also advancing its commitment to green jobs through a new Climate and Workforce Strategy.

County councilmembers will now review and consider the plan for approval. To view the full plan and learn more about progress made and proposed actions, visit kingcounty.gov/SCAP.

Quotes

"The Strategic Climate Action Plan provides the framework needed to unify efforts throughout the King County enterprise so we can produce measurable results. We stand ready to build on the momentum we made during the current action plan, promoting a more sustainable, resilient, equitable future for all people who call this special place home."

-John Taylor, King County Department of Natural Resources & Parks Director

"King County Metro plays a key role in meeting the goals of the Strategic Climate Action Plan. Growing our mobility system will mean people won’t need to drive because they will have access to safe, clean and reliable transit. Metro is also committed to building the infrastructure needed to support a zero-emission fleet and a future that will decrease the number of cars on the road, reduce greenhouse gasses and foster a healthy, sustainable community."

-Michelle Allison, King County Metro General Manager

"In 2020, I was fortunate to join the newly established King County Climate Equity Community Task Force. We partnered with the county to write the first Sustainable & Resilient Frontline Communities section of the Strategic Climate Action Plan (SCAP). The priority actions that we started to mitigate climate change and advance climate justice in frontline communities need ongoing attention. The work that we will continue through the updated SCAP is critical to the survival, life expectancy, and positive outcomes that we seek for people who are most impacted by climate change. Attention to frontline communities will uplift all who wish to live in a county where we all can be proud."

-Dinah Wilson, Climate Equity Community Task Force member

“I am honored to have served alongside the dedicated climate champions on K4C for over 7 years. The health, safety and resilience of our region and world depends on proactive, community-centered and urgent climate action—focused on partnerships, engaging community to act and meaningful municipal investments. We are all in this together!”

-WA Rep. Janice Zahn, King County-Cities Climate Collaboration (K4C)

"Local governments play a critical role in creating thriving, healthy, equitable, and resilient places that advance human and environmental well-being. But they cannot do this work alone. King County’s approach to working across communities, governments, and sectors to advance community-driven solutions highlights local government’s commitment to holistic solutions that best serve its residents.

The U.S. Green Building Council applauds King County, Washington, for its bold vision for climate action outlined in the SCAP. The county is well-known for its leadership in strengthening communities, so it comes as no surprise that prioritizing and empowering those most impacted by climate change is at the top of the flagship outcomes. We look forward to supporting King County on its climate and sustainability journey and sharing its experiences with other cities and counties nationwide."

-Hilari Varnadore, Vice President, Sustainable Cities, U.S. Green Building Council

Read more perspectives and find updates on SCAP adoption and implementation at kingcounty.gov/scap