Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Carolyn Bloede, Director, Office of Sustainability
Subject: County of San Mateo 2020 Government Operations Climate Action Plan: Pathway to Carbon Neutrality
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution approving the County of San Mateo 2020 Government Operations Climate Action Plan: Pathway to Carbon Neutrality.
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BACKGROUND:
County staff have prepared an update to the Government Operations Climate Action Plan (GOCAP) that was first adopted in 2012 (Resolution No. 072149). The 2020 GOCAP outlines a comprehensive strategy for reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from County operations to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035. Carbon neutrality requires reducing GHGs in government operations by 100% from the 2005 baseline, which was the first year the County completed a GHG emissions inventory. Since the adoption of the 2012 GOCAP, the State has adopted two landmark policies calling for accelerated climate action including Senate Bill 32 in 2017, which established a statewide GHG emissions reduction target of 40% below 1990 levels by 2030. In 2019, the State passed Executive Order B-55-18 to achieve carbon neutrality statewide before 2045.
In 2019, the County declared a Climate Emergency (Resolution No. 076887) to address the harmful impacts of climate change that the County is experiencing, including rising temperatures, heatwaves, wildfires and hazardous air quality, extreme storms, sea level rise, and coastal erosion. These climate impacts are most acutely felt by children, older adults, those with pre-existing physical and mental conditions, communities of color, and residents with unstable economic or housing situations. To protect County residents, especially those most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, the County strives to demonstrate leadership to accelerate climate action by achieving carbon neutrality in its own operati...
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