From:            sarah shifley
To:                Commission-Public-Records
Subject:           [EXTERNAL] Comment for 1/12/21 Meeting
Date:              Monday, January 11, 2021 4:53:12 AM

WARNING: External email. Links or attachments may be unsafe.
Dear Port Commission Staff,
Below is a written comment for the Port Commissioners' regular meeting on Tuesday, January
12, 2021. The comment addresses agenda item 11b. Could you please confirm receipt of this
comment, and that the comment will be circulated to, and read by, all Port Commissioners
prior to discussion of agenda item 11b? 
Also, when summarizing this comment during the meeting, please do so as follows:
"Commenting on agenda item 11b, Ms. Shifley reminds you that almost all emissions from
Sea-Tac are caused by fuel burned by airplanes, not facilities operations. Therefore, from a
climate perspective, efforts to reduce emissions from facilities operations are close to
meaningless unless the Port also takes steps to stop or reverse growth at Sea-Tac."
Thanks!
Sarah
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Dear Port of Seattle Commissioners --
I am writing to comment on agenda item 11b, "2020 Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy and
Port of Seattle's Climate and Air Action Plan."
While I support your vision of eliminating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050, this
vision must encompass more than just emissions generated by Port facilities themselves to
have any meaningful impact. As you are well aware, almost all of the GHG emissions from
Sea-Tac come not from facilities, but from fuel burned by planes traveling in and out of the
airport. If you continue with plans to enable a tripling of Sea-Tac traffic in that same time
period, any reductions achieved in facilities operations will be outweighed many times over by
the GHG emissions and non-CO2 warming effects caused by the planes themselves.
Unless you start working toward degrowth in aviation traffic, you are causing vastly more
harm than any good that may come from lower-emission airport operations. We need you to
take strong actions to dramatically reduce aviation activity and emissions consistent with
regional climate goals -- the climate cannot wait.
Sincerely,
Sarah Shifley