Oregon Environmental Council Inc

THE OREGON ENVIRONMENTAL COUNCIL'S MISSION IS TO ADVANCE INNOVATIVE, COLLABORATIVE AND EQUITABLE SOLUTIONS TO OREGON'S ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES FOR TODAY AND FUTURE GENERATIONS, INCLUDING CLIMATE PROTECTION; CLEAN AND PLENTIFUL WATER; AND TOXIC-FREE ENVIRONMENTS.

CLIMATE PROTECTION:OEC PROMOTES SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE, INCLUDING COMPREHENSIVE CARBON-REDUCTION POLICIES AND CLIMATE-SMART TRANSPORTATION (AS OUTLINED BELOW). IN FY21-22, WE WORKED WITH OUR ALLIES TO ADVOCATE FOR EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF GOVERNOR BROWNS EXECUTIVE ORDER 20-04, OR THE OREGON CLIMATE ACTION PLAN, INCLUDING ENSURING THE CLIMATE PROTECTION PROGRAM PUTS STRONG AND EQUITABLE RULES IN PLACE FOR MAJOR SOURCES OF CLIMATE POLLUTION. IN ADDITION, OEC PARTICIPATED IN A BROAD COALITION, LED BY ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS, TO PASS THE 100% CLEAN ENERGY FOR ALL BILL WHICH WILL TRANSITION OREGON TO A CLEAN ENERGY GRID BY 2040, AMONG THE FASTEST SUCH TRANSITIONS IN THE UNITED STATES. WE ADVOCATED AND WON ADOPTION OF STRONG STANDARDS TO PROTECT WORKERS FROM EXTREME HEAT AND WILDFIRE SMOKE, A $100M CLIMATE BUDGET, AND SUPPORTED EMERGENCY HEAT RELIEF FOR LOW-INCOME INDIVIDUALS.

MULTI-ISSUE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION:OEC UNDERTAKES CROSS-CUTTING, OVERARCHING WORK TO PROTECT OREGONS ENVIRONMENT, SUCH AS CONDUCTING GENERAL ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND OUTREACH; BRIDGING OREGONS URBAN-RURAL DIVIDE BY INCREASING AND DEEPENING OUR ENGAGEMENT WITH RURAL INTERESTS; BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS WITH ALLIED ORGANIZATIONS AND PARTICIPATING IN ENVIRONMENTAL COALITIONS; AND PROMOTING STRATEGIES THAT BROADLY PROTECT THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE HEALTH OF OREGONIANS, SUCH AS SUFFICIENT BUDGETS FOR STATE NATURAL RESOURCE AGENCIES. IN FY21-22, WE HAD HUGE SUCCESSES IN SUPPORTING AGENCY BUDGETS, AND DELIVERING RECORD INVESTMENT IN CLIMATE AND DROUGHT RESILIENCY AND NON-HIGHWAY TRANSPORTATION IMPROVEMENTS.

TRANSPORTATION SOLUTIONS:OEC PROMOTES CLEAN, HEALTHY, SAFE, AND EQUITABLE TRANSPORTATION SOLUTIONS THAT CONNECT PEOPLE TO THE GOODS AND SERVICES THEY NEED TO THRIVE. IN FY21-22, WE CO-LED THE CLEAN AND JUST TRANSPORTATION NETWORK, A STATEWIDE COLLABORATION TO ADVANCE TRANSPORTATION ELECTRIFICATION AND SECURE SUSTAINABLE FUNDING FOR A MORE EQUITABLE TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM. OUR WORK IS HELPING TO SHIFT THE STATEWIDE CONVERSATION ON TRANSPORTATION FROM A MOVE CARS AND TRUCKS EFFICIENTLY NARRATIVE TO A BALANCED APPROACH THAT WILL PROVIDE SAFE, HEALTHY, AND MORE EQUITABLE TRANSPORTATION OPTIONS. WE ALSO SUPPORT TRANSPORTATION ELECTRIFICATION, INCLUDING THROUGH IMPLEMENTATION OF THE OREGON CLEAN FUELS PROGRAM, WHICH HAS PROVIDED GRANTS FOR US TO PARTNER WITH AUTO SHOPS AROUND EV JOB TRAINING, AND WITH RURAL IRRIGATION DISTRICTS AROUND DEPLOYMENT OF ELECTRIC UTILITY VEHICLES. WE ALSO SUCCESSFULLY ADVOCATED FOR ADOPTION OF THE ADVANCED CLEAN TRUCKS RULE TO REDUCE AIR AND CLIMATE POLLUTION FROM MEDIUM- AND HEAVY-DUTY VEHICLES.