2021/03/09 City Council Resolution 2021-026 RESOLUTION NO. 2021-026
RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF ROHNERT PARK ENDORSING THE
DECLARATION OF A CLIMATE EMERGENCY AND IMMEDIATE EMERGENCY
MOBILIZATION TO RESTORE A SAFE CLIMATE
WHEREAS, human activities have warmed the Earth to a point that threatens climate
stability, and climate change has already set in motion catastrophic changes to the Earth's systems,
including fresh water scarcity and droughts, floods, extreme weather events, increased heat,
wildfires, accelerating ice mass loss that will result in sea-level rise, and species extinction; and
WHEREAS,the current pace and scale of national climate action is not sufficient to
avert substantial damage to the economy, environment, and human health over the coming
decades; and
WHEREAS,the October 8, 2018 special report of the United Nations Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)projected that curtailing warming to 1.5°C to reduce the risks
to health, livelihoods, food security, water supply, human security, economic growth and plant
and animal life this century, will require an unprecedented transformation of every sector of the
global economy over the subsequent 12 years; and
WHEREAS, on November 23, 2018 the Federal Government issued the Fourth National
Climate Assessment' detailing the massive threat that climate change poses to the American
economy and underscoring the need for immediate climate emergency action at all levels of
government; and
WHEREAS,critical tipping points must be avoided, as they will have cascading feedback
effects that are predicted to cause an increasingly uncontrollable climate emergency that includes
a devastating burden to the global economy, and with current greenhouse gas (GHG) emission
levels these tipping points could be passed as soon as 2050; and
WHEREAS,restoring a safe and stable climate requires an emergency mobilization to
reach zero greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors, to rapidly and safely draw down or
remove all the excess carbon from the atmosphere, and to implement measures to protect all
people and species; and
WHEREAS, a just transition away from fossil fuels requires the development of a
framework for a fair shift to an economy that is ecologically sustainable, equitable, and just for
all its members; and
WHEREAS,marginalized communities worldwide—including people of color,
immigrants, indigenous communities, low-income people, those with disabilities, and the
unhoused—are already disproportionately affected by climate change and must benefit from a
just transitiori to a sustainable and equitable economy; and
WHEREAS, on September 10, 2018, the State of California's Governor Brown issued an
executive order establishing a 2045 statewide target to achieve carbon neutrality, and on the
same day, Senate Bill 100 was passed, which sets a 100% clean electricity goal for the State by
2045; and
1 https://nca2018.globalchange.gov/
WHEREAS, California's Fourth Climate Change Assessment'warned that extreme
weather and climate-related events in the United States are worsening, predicting increased
drought cycles and heat waves in the western U.S. with a resulting three-fold increase in
intensity and magnitude of wildfires, declined water supply and snow pack, increased flooding,
impacted agriculture, as well as substantial damages to the U.S. economy and human health,
unless GHG emissions are curbed; and
WHEREAS, the California Legislature has set clear climate objectives for the next
decade, including a 40% reduction in 1990 level GHG emissions by 2030; 50% renewable
energy; 50%reduction in petroleum use in vehicles and a doubling of energy efficiency savings
in existing buildings3; and
WHEREAS, Sonoma County has already begun to experience extreme climate-related
events, including six years of drought, the October 2017 Northern California wildfires, which
caused more than $9.4 billion in damage and killed forty-four people, and the February 2019
Winter Storms and Flooding that caused over$150 million in damage and resulted in the
declaration of a local health emergency due to the scale of household hazardous waste scattered
along waterways, roadsides and on public and private properties after flooding; the October 2019
Kincade Fire, which burned 77,758 acres; and the August 2020 LNU Lightning Complex fires,
which burned 192,000 acres;
WHEREAS, Sonoma County public agencies have taken a number of important actions
to reduce GHG emissions and enhance quality of life in our community, including long-term
commitments to preserving over 100,000 acres of both agricultural and open space lands; setting
and meeting a goal to deliver carbon free water; offering cost effective programs to reduce
energy use and conserve water; and establishing Sonoma Clean Power, a regional community
choice energy provider offering EverGreen,the first 100% local renewable power option in
California; and
WHEREAS,the current scale and rate of expansion of local government action has not
resulted in the necessary reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions to enable us to limit
global temperature increase to well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels and no more than
1.5°C as outlined in the 2015 Paris Climate Accord and recommended by the United Nations
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); and
WHEREAS, in January 2021, the Council added addressing Climate Change as a new
strategic priority for 2021-2022;
WHEREAS, many of the major climate change drivers—energy generation, fuel
standards, consumption patterns, product design and specification, and large scale infrastructure
investments—are dispersed across both the private and public sector and are controlled at scales
larger than local and regional governments; and
WHEREAS, in order to avoid irreversible, catastrophic climate change impacts, we
cannot only focus on reducing emissions but must also dramatically increase and enable
meaningful carbon sequestration while also preparing communities now for significant climate
impacts;
Z http://www.climateassessment.ca.gov/
s https://ww3.arb.ca.gdv/cc/pillars/pillars.htm
Resolution 2021-026
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NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED,the City of Rohnert Park declares that a
climate emergency threatens humanity and the natural and built environments; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the City of Rohnert Park joins a worldwide call
for a just transition away from fossil fuels and an urgent collaborative climate mobilization effort
focused on enacting policies that dramatically reduce heat-trapping emissions, and rapidly
catalyzing a mobilization at all levels of government to restore a safe climate; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that an urgent global climate mobilization effort to
reverse global warming is needed to achieve zero net emissions as quickly as possible and that
full community participation, inclusion and support is integral to our efforts to safely draw down
carbon from the atmosphere and accelerate adaptation and resilience strategies in preparation for
intensifying climate impacts; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the City of Rohnert Park acknowledges that successful
climate action and a just transition at scale requires that we work both within and outside of our
regional boundaries and across sectors to accelerate the necessary systems change required to
address the climate emergency; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the City of Rohnert Park, commits to contributing to
the development of a countywide Sonoma Climate Mobilization Strategy that focuses on
identifying key local actions—including a ten-year Emergency Policy Package prioritizing a
short list of the most impactful local policies that will drive systems change and identify the key
areas for state level advocacy; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED,the City of Rohnert Park re-commits to ensuring that
our actions remain in alignment with the most current scientific findings regarding climate
change; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the City of Rohnert Park commits to identifying a
Climate Emergency Mobilization Liaison to drive this effort in our jurisdiction and to provide
financial resources to support the participation of this city staff member or a designated RCPA
staff member in the RCPA coalition of local governments mobilizing regional climate action;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, the Council of City of Rohnert Park establishes the
climate emergency and development of the Sonoma Climate Mobilization Strategy as a top
Council priority, and directs staff to work with the RCPA and coalition members to integrate
climate change considerations into new policies; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED,the City of Rohnert Park commits to educating its
employees and residents about the climate crisis and the work needed to catalyze an equitable
emergency climate mobilization effort at the local, regional, state, national and global levels.
Resolution 2021-026
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DULY AND REGULARLY ADOPTED this 91h day of March, 2021.
CIT ;iudioce,
HNERT PARK
Mayor
ATTEST:
Sylvia Lopez Cuevas, City Clerk
ADAMS: LINARES: STAFFORD: ELWARD: "J--GIUDICE:
AYES: ( � S: ( j) ABSENT: ( 96 ) ABSTAIN: ( 4f)
Resolution 2021-026
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