Are you interested in helping the city and community reduce greenhouse gas emissions?

Tacoma City Council seeks a new member for the Sustainable Tacoma Commission, which is charged with overseeing the implementation of Tacoma’s Climate Action Plan. Commission members provide a balanced representation of various stakeholders, including the environmental community, small business, labor, housing, industry and port, transportation, education, the building industry and residents.

The Council needs to fill a vacated position. The current term expires on April 2012, but commissioners are eligible to re-apply for an additional three-year term.

The commission brings citizen accountability, transparency and vigilance to the long-term implementation of Tacoma’s Climate Action Plan, as developed by the Green Ribbon Climate Action Task Force. The 25-member task force was appointed by the city council to develop recommendations for actions the city and community should take to reduce greenhouse gases and help curb global warming.

The Commission works with the city’s Office of Sustainability, which is responsible for implementing the strategies in the Climate Action Plan and measuring the city’s progress as it reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Both the Office and the Commission were created by a City Council resolution in October 2008.

Duties of the Sustainable Tacoma Commission include:

— Oversee implementation of climate action plan strategies.

— Coordinate with the Office of Sustainability to obtain greenhouse gas emissions reduction reports.

— Obtain updates from the Office of Sustainability on climate action plan strategy implementation efforts and periodic result reports.

— Provide annual progress reports to the public.

— Communicate barriers to and incentives for implementation to the City Council.

— Create a forum for regular public comment and community involvement.

Applications must be submitted to the Mayor’s Office by Dec. 17, 2010. To apply, visit http://www.cityoftacoma.org/sustainabletacoma or contact Cindy DeGrosse (253) 594-7848, Mayor’s Office, Room 1200, Municipal Building, 747 Market St., Tacoma, WA 98402.