CITY of ALBUQUERQUE
TWENTY THIRD COUNCIL
COUNCIL BILL NO. R-19-187 ENACTMENT NO. ________________________
SPONSORED BY: Isaac Benton, Pat Davis, Diane Gibson
RESOLUTION
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Endorsing The Declaration Of A Climate Emergency, Creating A Climate Action Plan For The City Of Albuquerque, And Requesting Regional Collaboration On A Just Transition And Emergency Mobilization Effort To Restore A Safe Climate (Benton, Davis, Gibson)
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ENDORSING THE DECLARATION OF A CLIMATE EMERGENCY, CREATING A CLIMATE ACTION PLAN FOR THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE, AND REQUESTING REGIONAL COLLABORATION ON A JUST TRANSITION AND EMERGENCY MOBILIZATION EFFORT TO RESTORE A SAFE CLIMATE.
WHEREAS, in 2016, world leaders from 175 countries responded to the threat of climate change and the urgent need to combat it by signing the Paris Agreement, agreeing to keep warming “well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” and to “pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C:” and in recognition of the dangers posed by climate change, Albuquerque has committed to meeting the Paris Agreement goals; and
WHEREAS, New Mexico is blessed with a unique culture and history, and our sovereign Tribes, Pueblos, and Hispanic land-grant communities have valuable and relevant traditions of stewarding the land; and
WHEREAS, New Mexico, being primarily an arid desert climate, is very dependent on water from snowmelt that is threatened by drought, wildfires, and other extreme weather events, and the City of Albuquerque is committed to taking all necessary steps to slow and ultimately halt the consequences of fossil fuel extraction and consumption; and
WHEREAS, global warming of approximately 1°C is already having a devastating effect on the Earth as attested by increased and intensifying wildfires, floods, rising seas, diseases, droughts, extreme weather, and mass migration of displaced persons; and
WHEREAS, climate change and the global overshoot of ecological limits are driving a mass extinction of species, which could devastate much of life on Earth for millions of years; and
WHEREAS, the United States of America has disproportionately contributed to the climate and ecological crises and has obstructed global efforts to transition toward a sustainable economy, and thus bears an extraordinary responsibility to rapidly solve these crises; and
WHEREAS, restoring a stable climate requires an emergency mobilization on a scale not seen since World War II to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions across all sectors at emergency speed, to rapidly and safely drawdown or remove all the excess carbon from the atmosphere, and to implement measures to protect all people and species from the consequences of abrupt climate change; and
WHEREAS, the term “Just Transition” is a framework for a fair shift to an economy that is ecologically sustainable, equitable and just for all its members; and
WHEREAS, just transition strategies were first forged by an alliance of labor unions and environmental justice groups who saw the need to phase out industries that were harming workers, community health, and the planet, while providing just pathways for workers to earn a living wage in new livelihoods; and
WHEREAS, just transition initiatives shift the economy from dirty energy to sustainable systems of energy production, conservation and transportation, from landfills to zero waste, from industrial food systems to food sovereignty, from car-dependent sprawl and unbridled growth to smart urban development without displacement, and from destructive over-development to habitat and ecosystem restoration; and
WHEREAS, the City of Albuquerque recognizes that addressing climate change is a matter of social and economic justice, requiring that frontline communities that have historically borne the brunt of the extractive fossil-fuel economy participate actively in the mobilization effort and that they benefit from the transition to a renewable energy economy; and
WHEREAS, the City of Albuquerque can act as a global leader by both converting to an ecologically, socially and economically regenerative economy at emergency speed; and
WHEREAS, in August 2009 the City produced a Climate Action Plan (CAP) that included input from citizens of the community and addressed carbon offset strategies, carbon neutral buildings, livable neighborhoods, renewable energy, local agriculture, zero waste, and transportation; and
WHEREAS, with a change of Administration and Council, that plan was not adopted or implemented.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL, THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE CITY OF ALBUQUERQUE:
Section 1. The City declares that a climate emergency threatens our city, region, state, nation, civilization, humanity and the natural world, and recognizes the need for an exponential increase in its ambition to combat climate change, so that it meets or exceeds the current recommendations of the foremost climate scientists working around the world.
Section 2. The City commits to its own city-wide just transition and climate emergency mobilization effort and climate justice, utilizing the 2009 CAP as the basis and framework of its ongoing and future climate change goals, projects and programs.
Section 3. The City commits to educating our residents and especially our students about the current climate emergency.
Section 4. The City underscores the need for full community participation, and recognizes that the residents of Albuquerque, and community organizations and other such allies who will be integral to and in the leadership of the mobilization effort.
Section 5. The City commits to keeping the concerns of vulnerable communities central to all just transition and climate emergency mobilization efforts and to facilitate the active participation of such communities.
Section 6. The City joins a national wide-call for a regional just transition and climate emergency mobilization collaborative effort, in full partnership with surrounding Tribal nations and traditional agricultural communities, focused on transforming our region and rapidly catalyzing a mobilization at all levels of government to restore a safe climate; promising its citizens to consider climate change in all government decisions.
Section 7. The City calls on the State of New Mexico, the United States of America, and all governments and peoples worldwide to initiate a just transition and climate emergency mobilization effort to reverse global warming and creates high-quality, good-paying jobs with comprehensive benefits for those who will be impacted by this transition.
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