The Madison School Board is bumping back its timeline to reach the sustainability goals it promised five years ago, according to the Wisconsin State Journal. The district says the necessary changes were too difficult to implement in the given time, so it is now committed to producing zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 (rather than using 100% renewable energy by 2040).
A nonbinding resolution was unanimously approved by the board on Monday night. It calls for a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2035, 70% by 2040, and 100% by 2045. This will be accomplished through electrifying schools’ heating systems and increasing use of energy sources like geothermal, solar, and wind.
The new resolution also requires fewer school closures at one time than the previous plan, as well as smaller initial taxpayer investments. Two or three schools will close temporarily each year, and the new plan will still cost hundreds of millions of dollars — most of which will be generated through regular referendums starting as soon as November 2024 and running through 2044. Federal grants and fundraising would supply the remainder.
