Thanks for sharing your priorities and solutions to address climate change 

It was great to see so many community members excited to talk about climate change, sustainability, and continued protection of natural landscapes in Sonoma County. This spring, the Climate Action and Resiliency Division attended 12 local events to hear community members describe their top priorities for climate action. These conversations helped inform our efforts to draft a Climate Resilience Comprehensive Action Plan. More than 700 people engaged with CARD staff during these events. They encouraged us to focus on key topics in the Comprehensive Action Plan – including water, energy, buildings, natural and working lands, transportation, waste, and wildfires – as we work to prepare Sonoma County for climate-related disruptions and recover from their impacts.

During the community engagement events, CARD presented two interactive activities. The first asked participants to prioritize their concerns. Community members grabbed three gems and dropped them into different jars labeled with climate topics like water, waste, wildfire, etc., to answer the following question: “What three themes should be prioritized in the Comprehensive Action Plan?” The results of this exercise, with close to 400 participants, indicated the top priority was water, followed by natural and working lands and wildfire. While this activity did not include every climate topic, it was helpful to gauge interest in a variety of issues and identified priority areas for becoming more climate resilient by 2030.

The second activity asked participants to offer solutions. Community members wrote out ideas to address different climate topics by answering the question: “How can we support communities to become climate resilient?” From this exercise, with more than 200 participants, the category of waste received the most comments, followed by natural and working lands and transportation. Work continues on the County’s Climate Action Plan. Look for announcements in August. 

Sonoma County Energy Independence Program

The Sonoma County Energy Independence Program is proudly celebrating 15 years of providing financing to property owners.

SCEIP financing can be used for more than 130 eligible improvements such as energy efficiency, water conservation, renewable power, wildfire safety and seismic strengthening. Examples include new solar energy systems, roofs, windows, doors, toilets, insulation, landscape irrigation systems and electric vehicle chargers. A growing number of borrowers are using SCEIP financing to protect their properties from wildfires by installing fire-resistant roofs, siding, windows, decks, hardscaping, and venting systems that prevent embers from infiltrating a building.

On June 4, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors received an annual report on the program and raised interest rates for SCEIP financing to 7.99%, up from 7.49%, to keep them competitive with similar options. The groundbreaking program is the first countywide municipal program of its kind to provide Property Assessed Clean Energy financing for homes and businesses.

“These interest rates are still very competitive with other types of financing, such as home equity loans and personal loans,” said Supervisor David Rabbitt, chair of the Board of Supervisors. “PACE financing has unique advantages that are worth exploring if you are looking for a way to pay for improvements that will make a home, apartment building, condominium or business safer and more efficient.”

The Energy Independence Program allows property owners to finance improvements with no up-front costs and repay the amount, with interest, through property tax assessments over a term of 10 or 20 years. Financing is available from a minimum of $2,500 up to a maximum amount that equals 10 percent of a property’s market value. Interest rates remain fixed, and the assessment is attached to the property, not the owner.

Since its inception in 2009, the county’s Energy Independence Program has disbursed more than $107 million to over 3,200 property owners in Sonoma County. Ninety percent of the improvements were completed by local contractors. SCEIP has created or retained more than 2,067 jobs within the construction trades while eliminating more than 150,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions.

We recently invited contractors to enjoy some great pizza and talk about how SCEIP financing can help them build their businesses and better serve the community. We will continue to offer free educational events for contractors and members of the community in the future.

Successful pilot project cuts carbon emissions by promoting composting

Whether in a backyard garden or on acres of rangeland, composting can minimize the impacts of climate change while providing many other benefits to our communities and natural resources. The Sonoma County Compost Application Pilot Project is a collaborative initiative aimed at increasing compost application across natural and working lands throughout Sonoma County. Funded by County of Sonoma’s Climate Resiliency Fund, this initiative increased carbon sequestration (the process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide) by applying compost in both rural working lands and urban farms and gardens.

Composting is a natural process where your kitchen scraps, yard trimmings and other biodegradable materials transform into a nutrient-rich soil booster called compost. During this process, some of the carbon from these materials gets trapped in the compost instead of being released into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. When mixed into soil, compost improves the soil’s ability to hold water, increases nutrients, and introduces and sustains beneficial microorganisms living in the soil. Not only does composting reduce waste sent to landfills, it also creates a soil that helps plants grow stronger, healthier, and more resilient to pests and diseases.

The project, launched in 2023, created a compost rebate program that incentivizes local agricultural producers to apply compost at their sites. Additionally, compost was spread at community locations, accompanied by educational workshops focusing on compost, food waste reduction, and soil health. Partners included the Sonoma County Regional Climate Protection Authority, Sonoma County Ag + Open Space, Zero Waste Sonoma, Gold Ridge and Sonoma Resource Conservation Districts, Daily Acts, and Carbon Cycle Institute.

The project surpassed its targets, treating more than 422 acres while sequestering the equivalent of 6,198 metric tons of CO2. Participating agricultural producers provided matching funds, enabling application of compost on more acreage.



Community sites across all five supervisorial districts participated in compost spreading activities. Educational events organized by Daily Acts highlighted the importance of composting, with workshops attracting hundreds of attendees. Notable community sites included Sonoma Garden Park, Petaluma Bounty, Bayer Farm, City of Cloverdale, and Ceres Project Sebastopol Garden. 

The project highlighted several key lessons. First, compost proved to be a popular resource, indicating a need for increased production and infrastructure support. Second, the project underscored the value of technical assistance for agricultural producers, emphasizing the importance of sustained funding for resource conservation districts. Lastly, the pilot project showcased a new model for delivering services, paving the way for future initiatives. Building on the success of the pilot project, stakeholders recommend the development of a county-wide program to support compost application across agricultural and urban sites. This program would offer ongoing support for compost application, coupled with comprehensive education and outreach campaigns. The Carbon Sequestration through Compost Application Pilot Project exemplifies the potential for collaborative efforts to address climate change at the local level.

To learn more visit these resources:

• Online StoryMap with project background and details on agricultural sites
• Carbon and Compost Resource website

Changing rules while projects and studies continue

Paulin Creek – Near Administrative Drive, Santa Rosa.

In late March, the Regional Water Quality Control Board announced that it will change its proposed action plan for reducing wastewater pollution in the Russian River. The changes are expected to impact the Regional Water Board’s treatment of septic systems, which will continue to be regulated by state and local rules such as the County’s Onsite Wastewater Treatment Systems Manual. The Regional Water Board’s revised proposal is expected later this year.

Permit Sonoma is in the final stages of revising rules for septic systems in the unincorporated area of Sonoma County. Proposed revisions to its manual are available for public review, and are scheduled be presented to the Board of Supervisors on July 16. The draft includes many revisions that will apply to septic systems across Sonoma County, as well as provisions applicable to septic systems affected by the state’s action plans to reduce pathogen and bacteria levels in the Russian River, Petaluma River, and Sonoma Creek.

The Climate Action & Resiliency Division, as well as Sonoma Water, continues to develop projects and studies to address wastewater needs of residents. In 2023 the County hired a consultant to analyze local septic systems and create an interactive, web-based map. This project will help provide insight into septic system and wastewater related challenges and opportunities and provide foundational data for subsequent projects. Both the map and the study are nearly complete and are scheduled for presentation to the Board of Supervisors on Aug. 13.

With the help of a $250,000 grant from the State Water Resources Control Board, the County will conduct the Russian River Pathogen Reduction Planning Project. This project will evaluate contributions from, and solutions for, four sources of pathogen pollution in the Russian River: septic systems, grazing animals, recreation, and homeless encampments. The County is seeking to hire professional consultants to support this project; interested consultants are encouraged to apply through the County’s Supplier Portal.

Last March, the Board of Directors for Sonoma Water approved an agreement to move forward with a study that will investigate the feasibility of creating regional wastewater treatment systems and water recycling systems in west Sonoma County. This study will evaluate potential projects that could improve water quality, water supply reliability, recycled water supply availability, climate change resiliency and options for unsewered communities that will need to comply with the anticipated state rules on pathogen levels in the Russian River and related septic system regulations.

The Monte Rio/Villa Grande Wastewater Solutions Pilot Project is a more localized effort to develop feasible wastewater solutions in the Monte Rio/Villa Grande area, and to help inform other communities facing similar challenges. The next meeting about the project’s ongoing efforts, including an alternatives analysis, and a related regulatory update, will take place from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, June 29, at the Monte Rio Community Center. For additional support, community members can meet with the Clean Water Ombudsman to ask questions, present concerns, and learn more about the pilot project and related septic system regulations. Ombudsman office hours take place at the Monte Rio Community Center from 2 to 6 p.m. on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month through October.

Energizing County staff on Bike-to-Work Day with pancakes and eggs! 

The entirety of the month of May was “Bay Area Bike to Wherever Days,” crowned by Bike-to-Work Day on May 16. That morning, the County of Sonoma hosted an energizer station at its main campus in Santa Rosa at Administration Drive and Ventura Avenue. The County had paused its Bike-to-Work Day energizer station for several years during the pandemic, but now we are back in action! The event is designed to celebrate the fun, health-conscious, environmentally friendly and community-oriented nature of using alternative modes of transportation, whether we are going to a grocery store, restaurant, or commuting to work.

The County of Sonoma has supported this event in the past and was excited to host an energizer station this year once again. Led by staff with the Climate Action and Resiliency Division, hosts cooked up a full breakfast for riders and commuters consisting of pancakes and eggs made to order. The energizer station built off the momentum of the County’s Clean Commute program, which provides incentives to County employees who choose sustainable forms of commuting that are fun, healthy, economical and less harmful to our environment.

Several local businesses donated products to make this a great station. Breakfast was made possible through generous donations from Petaluma Egg Company, Community Market and Oliver’s Market. Sponsorship from Zero Waste Sonoma in Partnership with Hydrologic and Sparkl Reusables allowed the energizer station to be zero-waste (and made clean-up easier). In previous years, we served more than 150 cyclists who visited our station and are working our way back up to those numbers.  We raffled off bike accessories and events and gave out lots of helpful swag thanks to donations from Bike Czar, TrailHouse, NorCal BikeSports and Trek.

As directed by the Strategic Plan, the county has been investing in its Clean Commute Program to promote our employees’ use of alternate modes of transportation, including bike and carpool incentives, and last-mile solutions connecting bus and train stations to county worksites. This quarter, county staff saved 111 metric tons of CO2 from being emitted into the atmosphere by clean commuting. Check out the impact of the Clean Commute Program below.

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The Climate Action and Resiliency Division (CARD), within the County Administrator’s Office,

is dedicated to helping the County and the community address the climate crisis

and achieve its climate-related goals and objectives.