The West MI Healthy Climate Plan

GVMC Receives $1 Million from U.S. EPA's Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) Program 

With funding from the Inflation Reduction Act through the US EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG), GVMC and KERAMIDA are developing a comprehensive plan, known as the West Michigan Healthy Climate Plan (WMHCP), to reduce harmful greenhouse gas emissions throughout Ionia, Kent, Montcalm, & Ottawa Counties.​ The goal of the WMHCP is to connect and uplift existing state, regional and local plans for the policies and programs it identifies.

Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP)

The West Michigan Healthy Climate Plan is organized into two phases. The first phase began with the Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP), which included a greenhouse gas inventory and technical working groups (action planning teams) that helped to identify high-priority, implementation-ready measures to reduce the rate of harmful emissions across the four county region. The PCAP was completed in March 2024.

The West Michigan Healthy Climate Plan PCAP can be found here.

Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP)

The second phase, known as the Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP), will focus on quantifying the measures identified in the PCAP to meet our targets. In other words, numbers will be put behind the ideas from the PCAP. Throughout this phase, policies and programs will be refined to illustrate an accurate roadmap to create a sustainable and resilient west Michigan.

Community engagement is one of the center pieces of this phase, facilitated through our Community Ambassador Program. The second opportunity for public comment during this phase will be from September through October 2025. More information coming soon.

The CCAP is currently under development.

Community Ambassador Program & Survey

Local input will be used every step of the way. To ensure broad and inclusive participation, GVMC has launched the Community Ambassador program, where Ambassadors gather input and feedback from their unique communities on the sustainable practices laid out in the WMHCP. Ambassadors are collecting survey responses from residents of Kent, Ottawa, Ionia, and Montcalm counties on programs and practices related to waste, energy, transportation, and agriculture. See the video below to learn more.

 

Watch to learn more about the Community Ambassador Program

 

Your Input Matters: Fill Out the Survey

If you live in Kent, Ottawa, Ionia, or Montcalm County, take just a few minutes to fill out the West Michigan Healthy Climate Plan Survey. This quick and easy survey gives you the chance to share how sustainable practices and programs may benefit or disbenefit your life.

English Survey

Encuesta en Espanol

Your feedback will help the GVMC design the final West MI Healthy Climate Plan based on your feedback. This will help to identify residents’ priorities and challenges. Surveys are open until the end of June 2025.

 

Project Timeline

Check out more details for each one of the listed categories here.

Key Milestones: 

  • July 2023: EPA awarded grant money to GVMC 

  • January 2024: First Public Engagement Meeting 

  • March 1, 2024: Priority Climate Action Plan (PCAP) due to EPA 

  • April 2024: Implementation Grant application due to EPA 

  • August 2024 Working Group Kickoff

  • April 2025 Community Surveys Launch  

  • Fall 2025: Comprehensive Climate Action Plan (CCAP) due to EPA 

  • Summer/Fall 2027: Status Report due to EPA 

Outreach and Engagement 

As GVMC moves forward, it is essential to prioritize low-income and disadvantaged communities, who are often the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. This process will actively involve and empower these communities to help shape the actions and policies that will directly affect them across the four counties.

GVMC is committed to engaging the public through a series of meetings, starting in January 2024 and continuing throughout the planning process. These meetings allow stakeholders to share feedback and help shape our region's plan. Below, you'll find photos, videos from past meetings in Kent, Ottawa, and Ionia Counties, and an update on next steps.

Stay updated on future meeting dates, locations, and more ways to get involved on this page!

 

Jan 2025

Dec 2024: Update with next steps in the planning process.

 

Participants participating in an engagement activity at the Ottawa County engagement session.

Photo from Ottawa County Engagement Session

Photo of all Ottawa County engagement session participants.

GVMC’s Cara Decker leads a discussion at the Kent County engagement session.

 

Highlight video from the three comunity engagment sessions.

 

Photo of all participants at Kent County engagement session

Photo of participants at Kent County engagement session.

Consultant Amber Greaney leads a discussion at Ionia County Engagement session.

Photo of all participants at Ionia County engagement session.

For More Information

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