Snapshot: Lloyd Brewer, City of Spokane

Growing up in Helena, Mont., in a large Catholic Family, Lloyd Brewer was raised with an awareness of the need to always be resourceful. Although this mindset came from necessity, it instilled values that helped shape his future views on living day to day while being mindful of the environment. When Brewer arrived at Washington State University in the 1970s, the environmental movement was just starting to shake things up. Brewer signed up for WSU’s first environmental science class, and remembers being struck by the idea that contraception and birth control were considered part of the equation. “My philosophies coming from a big Catholic family were definitely different from those being taught in my class,” said Brewer, who today is the City of Spokane’s environmental program manager. “However, as I got out into the world a bit more, I eventually came to understand how over-population can occur with devastating consequences. On the other hand living here in the Western United States, it’s also clear there are untapped land resources. The challenge we have is to find the right balance between the number of people and all other living things such that we can best meet the challenge of persevering well into the future.” With a teaching degree in biology under his belt, Brewer soon realized that teaching wasn’t the career he was meant for. So he enlisted in the Air Force and worked as a medic for four years, before returning to Spokane in 1982 to work for the City of Spokane as a lab tech and eventually chemist at the city’s wastewater plant. In 2000, Brewer moved to the City’s environmental programs department. Today, Brewer and his crew are busy working to implement the new Sustainability Action Plan, officially launched last summer. The plan outlines how the City will reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 30 percent below the 2005 emission rate by 2030 and increase the amount of renewable energy acquired each year, aiming for 100 percent by 2030. Additionally, the department is working on updating the City’s Greenhouse Gas Inventory (an accounting of GHGs emitted to or removed from the atmosphere over a period of time) for 2010. When finished, the inventory will be compared to the inventory of 2005 and can document the progress of implementing the Sustainability Action Plan. It will also be the City’s first well-documented inventory in a census year so the energy use can be more accurately identified with numbers of people served. Benefits include: identifying the greatest sources of GHG emissions in the city, helping officials understand emission trends, quantifying the benefits of activities that reduce emissions, and tracking progress in reducing emissions. Q: What eco-friendly Christmas gift would you like to see beneath your tree this year? A: I love my sister’s jams and jellies made from locally grown fruit (hint hint Sis). Q:What are some of your favorite sustainable local products/businesses? A: There are many local producers who are working to market their products in our community and I think we owe it to ourselves and them to give their products top consideration. Buying local products can significantly cut energy waste and makes our community more resilient at the same time. Also the opportunities for government and/or utility assistance with home improvements can make individual homeowners more resilient by helping curb home utility costs through conservation and improved efficiency. Q: What are some ways you conserve energy during the winter months? A: We have baseboard electric heat and have it off in more than half the rooms most of the winter. I use a programmable thermostat to adjust the heat down at night in the living room. I have also switched to LED Christmas lights. Q: What is your next goal in living sustainably? A:I need to find ways to further reduce the waste we produce. I also need to make improvements in my sprinkler system before next spring. Q:What would you like to see happen in Spokane with regards to sustainability in the next five years? 10 years? A: I do hope we see a significant move toward electric vehicles for commuting to work over the next five to 10 years. Our greatest use of fossil fuels currently is in the transportation sector. It would be good if in the next five years bio-fuel produced in Washington State was available in sufficient quantity to help reduce our reliance on diesel fuel for large vehicles. Over this same period it is important that individuals and businesses make energy saving changes to their buildings to help further keep in check the demand for more energy. It is thought this will be easier to do earlier than later as the costs for improvements is likely to increase with increasing energy costs.