|
|
I spent this week, in Glasgow at the COP26 Climate Summit. I was joined by other Mayors, national and global leaders to discuss real action plans to address our climate crisis. From a new normal of smoky summers and dangerous heat in Seattle, I have never seen the impacts of climate change that we are now facing.
On Monday, I announced my newest Executive Order to accelerate action toward net zero emission buildings, healthy and equitable transportation, and clean energy workforce development to advance climate justice. Actions announced this week are projected to reduce the City’s building carbon emissions an additional 27% by 2050.
Cities are leading the fight against climate change across the globe. Here in Seattle, we have invested billions to support green transportation, efficient buildings, and other policies to mitigate climate change, but we know we need to do more to reach net zero. In the last four years, we have already taken actions to eliminate oil heat in residential homes, eliminate natural gas in new buildings, and increase transit access.
Residential and commercial buildings account for over one third of Seattle’s pollution, and are one of the fastest growing sources of emissions. The order I announced will:
-
Create legislation for Carbon-based Building Performance Standards for existing commercial and multifamily buildings 20,000 sq ft or larger in 2022. This standard is estimated to reduce building greenhouse gas emissions 27% by 2050.
-
Prohibit fossil fuels in City-owned buildings by 2035 to continue Seattle leading by example.
-
Provide options to lower upfront and operating costs for affordable housing to address the climate crisis and improve resilience as we build, operate, and maintain affordable housing.
One major part of my announcement is expanding transit access. This week, I announced expanded free transit for SPS middle school students – this builds on our efforts for free transit for high school students that I announced back in 2018, which has saved families hundreds of dollars a year and saved so many car trips.
In addition, under the Executive Order the city will also expand out Stay Healthy Streets, take legislative and permitting action to incentivize electrification, launch a $1 million pilot to concert heavy-duty diesel trucks, launch a City clean energy workforce committee, and deploy new 2022 clean energy workforce summit.
The actions we take today will are some of the boldest in the nation. The COP26 Climate Summit brought cities and nations together to accelerate our climate actions, as we all work towards a greener future. We are playing our part in the City of Seattle to lead the way in the battle against the climate crisis.
Mayor Jenny A. Durkan issued the following statement regarding the election of Mayor-Elect Harrell:
“I’ve extended my sincere congratulations to Mayor-Elect Bruce Harrell. I’ve known Bruce for over 30 years, and I know as Mayor he will work hard for the people of Seattle. Voters showed their commitment to a just and hopeful future for all Seattle residents. I know Bruce wants every family to thrive in Seattle. He will bring people together to tackle the tough challenges we face on COVID-19, homelessness, public safety, and climate change. I hope all of Seattle joins to support him in these critical times.
Mayor Jenny A. Durkan issued on Oct. 29 an emergency order that provides $10k – $25k hiring bonuses to Seattle Police Officers and to 911 dispatchers at the Community Safety and Communications Center (CSCC). Within five days of declaring the new hiring incentive, the CSCC has seen a 10-fold increase in the number of applicants and inquiries for 911 dispatcher positions. More than 35 applications and inquiries have been received by the CSCC in the five days since the announcement.
 |
Mayor Jenny A. Durkan Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda (Position 8, Citywide), Councilmember Lisa Herbold (District 1, West Seattle & South Park), and Councilmember Tammy J. Morales (District 2, South Seattle) announced that the City will be adding $2 million to the Office of Economic Development (OED) Small Business Stabilization Fund (SBSF) to support small businesses and organizations impacted by the new vaccination verification requirement in King County. Up to 2,000 eligible small businesses and organizations that are required to enforce this policy will receive additional funding of up to $1,000 to help offset the economic impacts of this requirement.
This week, the City of Settle joined King County in announcing plans to activate equitable COVID-19 access for children ages five to eleven following CDC approval. Starting this weekend, City of Seattle vaccination clinics at Amazon downtown and West Seattle will begin administering pediatric doses (doses for children 5 – 11 years old) by appointment only. With nearly 183,000 five to eleven year olds in King County now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine, doses at City of Seattle vaccination sites will be extremely limited for the next two weeks.
City of Seattle clinics are not accepting walk-ups at this time.
This week, President Joe Biden announced his intent to appoint the following individuals to serve in key regional roles at the United States Department of Agriculture and the Small Business Administration. Included in this announcement was the appointment of former Senior Deputy Mayor, Mike Fong as the Region 10 Administrator.
AP Photo/David Cliff
On a train hurtling toward Glasgow, the mayors of Seattle and Freetown, Sierra Leone, greeted each other like long lost sisters, bonded by years of Zoom calls and collaboration in the fight against climate change.
They lead cities on different sides of the economic and climate divide — one in the cool, northwestern corner of the one of the world’s richest nations; the other the capital of an impoverished country in the tropics of West Africa.
But Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and her Freetown counterpart, Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr, are both on the front lines of global warming, working to ensure their cities are prepared for rising sea levels, torrential rains and extreme heat.
On Monday, they traveled to the U.N. climate conference in Scotland with a group of big city mayors to demand that world leaders follow the science and act now to head off a catastrophic increase in global temperatures.
Aki-Sawyerr describes herself and mayors as the captains of small boats trying to warn an ocean liner of the dangers ahead.
“I’m going to stand on top of the bow and I’ll be waving my hands furiously and I’m going to be saying, ‘Look over here, you’re hitting an iceberg and you need to stop now,’” she said. “And I’m hoping that there’ll be enough of us doing the same thing for it to make a difference.”
Aki-Sawyerr and Durkan are part of a delegation from the C40 group of big city mayors who are demanding that they be included in decisions about how to combat global warming and mitigate its effects. City leaders will be asked to implement many of the decisions made by presidents and prime ministers, so they should be consulted and receive funds to do the job, the group says.
The delegation also included the mayors of Los Angeles, Paris and London, as well as the Nordic cities of Oslo and Stockholm, and North Dhaka in Bangladesh.
The mayors sought to underscore their environmental credentials by making the 645-kilometer (400-mile) journey from London to Glasgow by rail. The electric train they traveled on generates about seven times less greenhouse gas emissions per passenger than flying.
Together, the C40 group’s 97 members are home to more than 700 million people, or almost 10% of the world’s population. Their organization also tries to help local communities, backing a program in which over 1,000 communities supported a campaign for a “net-zero” emissions future.
The mayors aren’t alone in saying that cities will play a big part in the fight against climate change.
More than half the world’s population now live in urban areas, and the trend is only going to continue. Despite the economic shock caused by COVID-19, cities are still seen as gateways to a better life because density and diversity lead to creativity and innovation, said Bernice Lee, director of futures at Chatham House think tank in London.
|
|
|
