9.6 SR 11-15-2021Request for Action
To
Item Number
Mayor and City Council
9.6
Agenda Section
Meeting Date
Prepared by
Work Session
November 15, 2021
Cal Portner, City Administrator
Item Description
Reviewed by
Climate Change Resolution
Reviewed by
Action Requested
Discuss and provide direction.
Background/Discussion
Councilmember Wagner received an invitation and request from St. Louis Park Councilmember Larry Kraft to
participate in a climate change emergency effort to call on the state government to address climate change.
Mr. Kraft is involved in the MN Cities Climate Caucus group who are seeking communities to declare a climate
emergency by resolution on January 24 or 25.
Councilmember Wagner is seeking Council direction on the request.
Financial Impact
N/A
Mission/Policy/Goal
City Vision
Attachments
CM Wagner Email Request
Climate Emergency Declaration Summary
Climate Emergency Resolution Template
The Elk River Vision
A welcoming community with revolutionary and spirited resourcefulness, exceptional
service, and community engagement that encourages and inspires pi ospei ly.
M
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Updated.• August 2020
Portner, Cal
To: Portner, Cal
Subject: RE: Climate leadership opportunity
From: Larry Kraft <I Ill .i':... ; II! au i .Lar�M>
...................
Subject: Climate leadership opportunity
Date: October 27, 2021 at 10:34:58 AM CDT
To: "u mi1 a 4�ui iumlllmlll a dui uii" <uiliiiiuww� Diu u�ii.:llli�°fiir a ii uii m ciu>
Councilmember Wagner,
I believe Diana McKeown introduced and invited you to the MN Cities Climate Caucus group
earlier this year. We're now pursuing a pretty exciting collaboration. Especially given Elk River's
involvement in Climate Smart Communities, I'd love to talk to you about Elk River joining cities
from around the state (including Morris and Rochester - Duluth has already done it) working
together on a climate change leadership opportunity.
We're going to be simultaneously declaring a climate emergency in our communities on January
24th/25th and calling for state action/assistance.
Here is a I... ) �� suirmruiii,nar, of the effort (including a list of cities involved).
Would you be open to a 15-minute conversation to talk about it sometime over the next few
days? Alternatively, we're having a webinar tomorrow (Thursday) 10/28 at 5pm. If you're
interested, you can Le.i �'�:�........L. .. .
I really hope we can connect either 1:1 or on the webinar.
Best,
La rry
Larry Kraft (he/him/his)
Council Member At Large A
St Louis Park City Council
5005 Minnetonka Blvd, St. Louis Park, MN 55416
Direct: 952.928.1451
Cell: 952.715.7535
Climate Emergency Declarations/Resolutions
Minnesota Coordinated Effort
"The time is now to come together as a united force, to insure a livable future for us, for your
children, for your grandchildren, and for the generations to come. The time is now to create a
sustainable future. " - From then high school junior Sophia Skinner before St. Louis Park City Council
What we're doing:
Local governments of all sizes, and in all regions of Minnesota will join in
on January 24th or 25th, calling for immediate action at all levels of
government to address the climate crisis. By acting simultaneously, these state-wide
localities expect to amplify their impact, speaking together to urge local, state and
federal action.
Why declare a Climate Emergency?
The dramatically evident shift in our climate IS an emergency) It's here now; it's
going to get worse; and it's impacting all regions of our state, country, and world.
o The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change recently
declared (August 21) that world leaders at all levels must take immediate action
to reduce greenhouse emissions to prevent catastrophic impacts.
+ It's impacting Minnesota nowl Unanticipated occurrences of drought, higher annual
temperatures and sustained heat waves, dangerous air quality, repeated incidences of
"hundred year" floods, and forest fires of unprecedented size - are all happening now in
Minnesota.
rs Opportunity to mobilize and magnify: Declaring an emergency will call attention to the
issue and can mobilize people to action. Working together we can magnify our impacts
on our own communities and on Minnesota.
o Acting together will increase our visibility and leverage for state and federal
assistance
o This conspicuous action will provide bold local leadership in a way that connects
to a larger statewide effort. People are empowered when they feel what they do
matters and when they are part of something larger than themselves.
The Climate Emergency declaration customizable template includes local, state, and global
impacts, a commitment to local action, and a call for state and federal support.
Background on "Climate Emergency"
6 Started in U.S. by The Climate Mobilization organization - calling for a mobilization of
government and society to make significant progress on climate change by 2030
* 2000+ jurisdictions in 34 countries have declared a Climate Emergency, including three
leaders in MN (Crystal Bay Township and _ in 2019, earlier this year).
MN jurisdictions (partial list) considering being leaders and declaring a climate emergency:
Bloomington, Columbia Heights, Eden Prairie, Edina, Falcon Heights, Golden Valley, Grand
Marais, Grand Rapids, Lauderdale, Maplewood, Moorhead, Morris, Northfield, Red Wing,
Robbinsdale, Rochester, St. Louis Park. Already declared: Duluth, Minneapolis, Crystal Bay.
RESOLUTION DECLARING A CLIMATE EMERGENCY IN , MINNESOTA
(Alternate Title: A RESOLUTION JOINING CITIES AND COUNTIES ACROSS
MINNESOTA DECLARING A CLIMATE EMERGENCY AND ASKING THE STATE AND
FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS TO HELP ADDRESS IT AND PROVIDE VALUABLE
RESOURCES)
WHEREAS [Name of Community] has just this past year experienced numerous climate change
related impacts including a record June heat wave, dangerous air quality from drought -fueled
forest fires where even healthy people were encouraged to remain inside, and water restrictions
from the same drought, making it clear that the climate crisis is not only a future issue — it is
affecting us here and now;
WHEREAS extreme weather will create new challenges for [Name of Community]'s
infrastructure and finances and will pose a threat to the economic vitality of our residents and
businesses;
WHEREAS the greatest burden from an inadequate response to the climate crisis will be felt by
historically marginalized or underserved communities as well as the youngest generation,
including the children and grandchildren of [Name of Community];
WHEREAS in Minnesota, the ten warmest and wettest years ever recorded have all occurred
since 1998, warming surface waters are leading to a significant loss of fish habitat for many
prominent species as well as increasing the risk of harmful algae blooms, forests are changing
as native northern species are strained by warming temperatures, crops are stressed by cycles
of drought and floods, home insurance rates are rising far faster than the national average from
an average of $368 in 1998 to $1348 in 2015, and faster warming winters are leading to new
pests as well as shorter winter recreation seasons;
WHEREAS, the bi-partisan Next Generation Energy Act, passed by the Minnesota State
Legislature and signed by then Governor Tim Pawlenty in 2007, committed our State to
achieving to an 80% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2050 and with interim
goals of 15% and 30% below 2005 GHG emissions levels by 2015 and 2025, respectively, with
cities being key drivers of achieving these goals;
WHEREAS, our State did not meet its 2015 goal, and is not yet on track to reach our future
targets;
WHEREAS, in April 2016 world leaders from 175 countries, including the United States,
recognized the threat of climate change and the urgent need to combat it by signing the Paris
Agreement, agreeing to "pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5 degrees
Celsius";
WHEREAS, we have already reached a temperature increase of nearly 1.1 degrees Celsius
(nearly 2 degrees Fahrenheit) as compared to pre -industrial times and the death and
destruction already wrought by this level of global warming demonstrate that the Earth is
already too hot for safety and justice, as attested by increased and intensifying wildfires, floods,
rising seas, diseases, droughts, and extreme weather;
WHEREAS, in August 2021 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the United
Nations body responsible for assessing the science related to climate change, released a report
that stated "It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere and land," and
that "Human influence has warmed the climate at a rate that is unprecedented in at least the last
2000 years," and "with every additional increment of global warming, changes in extremes
continue to become larger";
WHEREAS, recent scientific research indicates that to achieve the goal of limiting temperature
increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius, carbon emissions must be halved by 2030 and reach net zero
global emissions by 2050;
WHEREAS, a transition to a clean energy economy, if not carefully planned, would have a
disruptive effect on impact on the livelihoods of many in our community while a well -planned
transition may provide expanded job opportunities for local residents;
WHEREAS, 2,012 jurisdictions in 34 countries including Minnesota leaders Duluth, Minneapolis,
and Crystal Bay Township, have already declared climate emergencies in order to focus
attention on the need for rapid action to address climate change;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that [Name of Community] declares that a climate
emergency threatens our city, region, state, nation, humanity and the natural world.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, [Name of Community] commits to working for a just transition
and climate emergency mobilization effort and will [pick or create what works for your city]:
• Create/Implement a Climate Action Plan
• Create a Sustainability and Resiliency Committee that has purview to propose and
implement responses and address solutions to climate impacts
• Implement GreenStep Cities best practices related to energy, climate actions, climate
adaptation and resilience, or other appropriate practices [use pulldown menu at this link
for ideas]
• Position city with shovel -ready (or identified) projects to take advantage of state and
federal climate action funding opportunities
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, [Name of Community] calls on the Minnesota legislature and
executive branch to immediately and aggressively support cities of all sizes around Minnesota
to both mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change including providing funding and
resources for the development and implementation of climate action plans.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, [Name of Community] calls on the federal government to
immediately commit resources to support the climate mitigation and adaptation efforts of cities
large and small, to invest in the infrastructure needed for a sustainable future, to ensure that
investment is at the scale needed, and to provide the necessary global leadership to keep
global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit).
Reference links (delete this section before finalizing your resolution):
• Duluth - Apr 2021
• Minneapolis - Dec 2019
• Crystal Bay Township - Apr 2019
• The Climate Mobilization - resolution template
• City Climate Action and Sustainability Plans in MN - examples: Northfield, Red Wing,
Rochester, Minneapolis, St. Paul, St. Louis Park, Grand Marais, Morris Model -
Sustainability Strategic Plan, Burnsville Sustainability Plan