Climate Action Planning

The latest Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report found that climate change is unequivocally caused by human activities, primarily through greenhouse gas emissions. Climate change threatens human well-being and planetary health and there is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a liveable and sustainable future for all. The Town of Milton is actively working to develop a climate action plan to mitigate the emissions that we produce and strengthen our capacity to adapt to the effects of climate change on our community. In January 2023, the Select Board approved the formation of the Climate Action Planning Committee. The Committee has been charged to review and evaluate Town bylaws, regulations, and policies and recommend strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate climate risks, and expand energy efficiency opportunities for the Town to develop our Climate Action Plan.

The Town is currently working with consultants to prepare a comprehensive Greenhouse Gas Inventory for the Town of Milton, using data from 2022. This inventory will be essential in understanding our baseline emissions and setting achievable targets for reductions. In the Fall of 2022, Town staff used state-provided tools to create a baseline emissions inventory. The ongoing inventory work has more precise data and up-to-date emissions.

The 2017 baseline found that 59.3% of our emissions were from buildings, 39.1% were from vehicles, and 1.6% were from waste. As we receive the results of the ongoing inventory, these numbers will be updated to reflect 2022 data.

2017 GHG Inventory Summary

Our climate action planning work is informed by the Massachusetts Clean Energy & Climate Plan for 2050, which sets state-wide targets for emissions reductions and clean energy adoption. The state measures emissions in million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalents or MMTCO2e. You can track our statewide progress by visiting the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs' Clean Energy and Climate Metrics webpage. Key benchmarks include:

  • Reduce 2050 greenhouse gas emissions by more than 85% relative to the 1990 baseline level
  • Reduce transportation emissions by 86% (4.1 MMTCO2e) and residential heating and cooling emissions by 95% (0.8 MMTCO2e)
  • Utilize carbon sequestration and other methods to absorb and store the remaining emissions to achieve Net Zero in 2050
  • 2.5-fold increase in electric load compared to 2020 with 97% of electricity from clean and renewable sources
  • 40%  of lands and waters in MA permanently conserved and 64,400 acres of new riparian and urban tree cover

Statewide GHG Summary