Special Notice / Hearing: None__
Vote Required: Majority
To: Honorable Board of Supervisors
From: Supervisor Dave Pine, District 1
Supervisor Carole Groom, District 2
Subject: Declaration of a Climate Emergency in San Mateo County
RECOMMENDATION:
title
Adopt a resolution endorsing the declaration of a climate emergency in San Mateo County that demands accelerated actions on the climate crisis and calls on local jurisdictions and agencies to join together to address climate change.
body
BACKGROUND:
According to the Intergovernmental Plan on Climate Change (IPCC), increasing greenhouse gases (GHG) will cause global temperatures to rise 1.5 degrees Celsius by as early as 2030. For San Mateo County, rising global temperatures will cause sea levels to rise (up to six feet or more by 2100 under certain scenarios), contribute to increasingly extreme weather including intense rainfall, storms and heat events, and heighten risk of large wildfires. The consequences of climate change pose risks to life, safety and critical infrastructure in San Mateo County and throughout the world, and threaten physical, social, and mental well being. Climate change impacts will be most acutely felt by children, the elderly, those with preexisting physical and mental health conditions, low income or communities of color, and residents with unstable economic or housing situations. The County of San Mateo Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment indicates that in the County, over 160,000 children under the age of 18 years, and over 100,000 older adults, are vulnerable to risks posed by sea level rise.
The County has taken a number of actions to address climate change. In 2015, the County reduced GHG emissions by 21.8% below 2005 levels. The County helped launch Peninsula Clean Energy and facilitates the Regional Integrated Climate Action Planning Suite (RICAPS) program that brings together the County and its 20 cities to plan and implement measures to reduce ...
Click here for full text