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A MOTION expressing support for the Re+ Strategic Plan.

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                     WHEREAS, climate change is an urgent challenge with far-reaching current and future impacts to our environment, public health, and economy, and

                     WHEREAS, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration declared that in June 2023 the Earth experienced the hottest June on record, and

                     WHEREAS, climate change and related extreme heat events account for twenty-four percent of all weather-related deaths, and

                     WHEREAS, King County is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reducing the impacts of climate change on our communities, and

                     WHEREAS, King County and King County Cities Climate Collaboration partners are measuring, reporting, and developing new strategies to reduce consumption-related greenhouse gas emissions, and

                     WHEREAS, greenhouse gas emissions generated globally from the production, transport, use, and disposal of goods, foods, and services consumed in King County are a major part of our communities' climate footprint and are more than locally generated greenhouse gas emissions, and

                     WHEREAS, with the enactment of Ordinance 14811 in 2003, the King County council adopted and codified a goal for King County to achieve zero waste of resources by 2030 through cost-effective prevention, reuse, and reduction of solid wastes going into its landfills and other processing facilities, and

                     WHEREAS, "zero waste of resources" is defined in K.C.C. 10.04.020 as "a planning principle and framework designed to eliminate the disposal of materials with economic value through reuse, recycling, or both," and

                     WHEREAS, the 2019 Comprehensive Solid Waste Management Plan ("the 2019 CSWMP") approved by Ordinance 18893 reaffirmed the county's goal to achieve zero waste of resources by 2030, and

                     WHEREAS, the King County 2020 Strategic Climate Action Plan ("the 2020 SCAP") adopted by Motion 15866 included "consumption and materials management" as a focus area and outlined a series of actions and recommendations related to the county's regional solid waste system, and

                     WHEREAS, the 2019 King County Waste Characterization and Customer Survey Report states that up to seventy-two percent of what ends up in the landfill could be composted, reused, or recycled, and

                     WHEREAS, reclaiming these items and repurposing them through composting, reuse, or recycling is a necessary and prudent component to helping King County reach its zero-waste goal, and

                     WHEREAS, King County's Re+ program aims to divert recoverable material from the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill ("landfill"), which should reduce greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to a circular economy, and

                     WHEREAS, the Re+ Strategic Plan was published in November 2022 and a formal public launch occurred in February 2023, and

                     WHEREAS, executive staff provided briefings to the council on the RE+ Strategic Plan this year in the transportation, economy and environment committee on March 21, 2023, and in the regional policy committee on June 14, 2023, and

                     WHEREAS, since July 2022, King County staff have been making presentations to cities on the Re+ program, and

                     WHEREAS, executive staff indicate that the Re+ program is consistent with, consolidates, and accelerates progress towards achieving the approved goals and strategies of the 2020 SCAP, the 2019 CSWMP, and the Joint Climate Action Commitment of the King County Cities Climate Collaborative, and

                     WHEREAS, the Re+ program is providing competitive grants to community based organizations and cities, technical support, and providing model language for countywide program and policy implementation, and

                     WHEREAS, in alignment with Policy ES-3 in the 2019 CSWMP and the Sustainable & Resilient Frontline Communities section of the 2020 SCAP, as well other County plans, efforts to increase recycling, reuse, composting, and diversion from landfill disposal must engage in ways that are fair, equitable, and inclusive towards those who are part of historically under-represented communities, and

                     WHEREAS, the population of unincorporated King County is greater than any one city making King County's leadership essential to the collaboration and implementation of the Re+ Strategic Plan in coordination with the county's city and community partners, and

                      WHEREAS, as of June 2023 sixty-three of King County cities have signed the City Re+ Pledge affirming their shared support for the Re+ program and many cities are actively pursuing approval of the pledge as a first step in showing their shared commitments and mutual goals;

                     NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT MOVED by the Council of King County:

                     That the King County council expresses support for the Re+ Strategic Plan, city and county collaboration efforts related to the RE+ Strategic Plan, and efforts to reach King County's goal of zero waste by 2030.