Get your city to support the Safe Climate Act

Everyone has a role to play in solving global warming, and our cities can be leaders in the fight by supporting local solutions and advocating for broader action at the state and federal level.

Environment California is working with Rep. Henry Waxman (Los Angeles) to support the Safe Climate Act, a science-based approach to prevent the worst impacts of global warming.  The Safe Climate Act requires the U.S. to reduce global warming pollution by 15% by 2020 and by 80% by 2050.

Your city can help by passing a resolution urging Congress to pass the Safe Climate Act.

What to do:

1. Find friends and organizations in your community who want to help.
2. Educate members of your City Council about global warming and the Safe Climate Act.
3. Get the issue on the agenda at a City Council meeting.

Materials:

• Sample resolution for your city (see below)
  

• Fact sheet – “Safe Climate Act: The U.S. Solution to Global Warming”
  

Whereas, the United States is a party to the 1992 United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, which has the objective of stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent ‘‘dangerous anthropogenic interference’’ with the climate system; and

Whereas, to achieve this objective, the increase in global mean surface temperature should not exceed 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial temperature; and

Whereas, the risks associated with a temperature increase above 2°C (3.6°F) are grave, including a 70 percent loss in Sierra snowpack, 75 percent increase in days conducive to smog pollution in California, and the disintegration of the Greenland ice sheet, which, if it were to melt completely, would raise global average sea level by approximately 23 feet, devastating many of the world’s coastal areas and population centers; and

Whereas, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projects that temperatures will rise between 1.4°C to 5.8°C (2.5°F to 10.4°F) by the end of the century, under a range of expected emissions trends; and

Whereas, serious global warming impacts have already been observed in the United States and worldwide, including increases in heat waves and other extreme weather events, rise in sea level, retreat of glaciers and polar ice, decline in mountain snowpack, increased drought and wildfires, stronger hurricanes, ocean acidification, extensive coral bleaching, migrations and shifts in the yearly cycles of plants and animals, and the spread of infectious diseases; and

Whereas, decisive action is needed to minimize the many dangers posed by global warming, and the timing of such action is critical, given that greenhouse gases can persist in the atmosphere for more than a century; and

Whereas, reductions in emissions from today’s levels must begin within a decade to preserve the ability to stabilize atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations at levels likely to protect against a temperature rise above 2°C (3.6°F); and

Whereas, with only 5 percent of the world population, the United States emits approximately 20 percent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions and must be a leader in addressing global warming; and

Whereas, existing energy efficiency and clean, renewable energy technologies can reduce global warming pollution, while saving consumers money, reducing our dependence on oil, enhancing national security, cleaning the air, and protecting pristine places from drilling and mining; and

Whereas, the state of California has already established targets for reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, and 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050;

Now, therefore, be it resolved, that the city of _______ supports the establishment of mandatory limits to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, and 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050, as proposed in the Safe Climate Act.