The Vermont Climate Action Council has been holding a series of public meetings to receive input on potential revisions to the state’s Climate Action Plan. The sessions were held thematically looking at sectors that are most challenged by climate change.
The Vermont Global Warming Solutions Act, passed in 2020, required that a Climate Action Plan outline ways the state can reduce pollution and prepare for the impacts of climate change. The plan must be updated every four years and a revision is due by July 1, 2025.
The Climate Action Council’s subcommittees’ input sessions gathered feedback on what is working, what needs to be changed and what needs to be added to the plan.
Rural Resilience and Adaptation Subcommittee member Marian Wolz outlined the council’s six primary goals to build resilience and adapt to climate change.
“Those goals, these pathways, are really focused and related to building resilience to climate change impacts for our communities and the built environment. The first five are those that were developed during the drafting of the 2021 Climate Action Plan. These serve as the starting point for the revisions,” explained Wolz. “Early on in the revision process the committee noted that during the drafting of the last Climate Action Plan there was really a gap as it related to public health and so we’ve already noted sort of a need and added a sixth pathway focused on public health.”
During the meeting focused on agriculture, Middlebury College Professor of Food Studies Molly Anderson was curious why the subcommittee has not explored some agricultural trends.
“Why aren’t you taking about agroecology in climate resilient land use practices in particular that’s already braiding together this traditional western science with traditional and indigenous knowledge?” Anderson asked. “I really think you need to include support for agroecology. A second question. If you are supporting the workforce in Vermont, what are your plans for the workers on dairy farms, especially given President-elect Trump’s plan to deport undocumented workers?”
Agriculture and Ecosystem subcommittee cochair Jaiel Pulskamp said they have not yet discussed agroecology.
“Though we haven’t specifically used the word agroecology I think a lot of what we are looking at in terms of resilient agriculture just by nature is going to have to basically mimic those agroecology practices to create that resiliency,” replied Pulskamp. “And then, it’s not only our dairy farmers. It’s our big vegetable farmers that are using immigrant labor and how are we going to support that workforce and protect that workforce from deportation? I mean, we are looking at addressing equality issues, so that definitely fits into that discussion.”
During the session on rural resilience and adaptation, Vermont Foodbank CEO John Sayles asked the council to make sure food security becomes part of climate resiliency planning.
“It really is about statewide funding and statewide planning and making sure that food security and food resiliency is part of that plan. And also this really is a public health impact. Because making sure that people, whether it’s in a disaster or just going forward with our climate changing, that people have access to the nourishing foods that they need,” Sayles said. “There is a food security roadmap. There are a lot of parallels with things that are happening in this climate action work and I’d love to see those connections being made to make sure that we are supporting and multiplying each other’s impact.”
The Vermont Global Warming Solutions Act requires the state cut pollutants contributing to global climate warming, such as carbon and methane, by 50 percent by 2030.
