Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisors Dave Pine and Carole Groom
Subject: Affirmation of San Mateo County's Commitment to the Paris Agreement on Climate Change
RECOMMENDATION:
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Adopt a resolution affirming San Mateo County's commitment to the Paris Agreement by continuing to prioritize greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction efforts, clean energy investment, and improving resiliency to the effects of climate change.
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BACKGROUND:
According to a majority of climate scientists, an increase of greenhouse gas emissions trapped in the Earth's atmosphere is responsible for global temperature increase and associated climate risks, such as sea level rise. To address this issue on a global scale the United Nations initiated an international treaty, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. The Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement followed.
On December 12, 2015, the Paris Agreement (Agreement) was adopted with the purpose of bringing nations together to globally combat climate change by agreeing to reduce GHG emissions.
On November 4, 2016, the Agreement was ratified when the required vote of 55 countries, accounting for 55 percent of global GHG emissions, was achieved. To date, 195 countries have entered into the Agreement (148 ratified), pledging to mitigate GHG emissions, increase adaptability and resilience, and limit the global average temperature growth to less than 2?C above pre-industrial levels. Former President Barack Obama committed the United States to a goal of lowering emissions 26-28 percent below 2005 levels by 2025. These targets were intended to become more stringent over time.
On June 1, 2017, President Donald Trump announced that the United States will withdraw from the Paris Agreement.
San Mateo County is Vulnerable to the Effects of Climate Change
San Mateo County is among the most vulnerable counties in United States to the im...
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