Resolution 240766

..Title Affirming the City of Philadelphia's ongoing commitment to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, endorsing the call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, urging the federal government to support this initiative by entering into treaty discussions, and committing the City to prioritizing a fair and equitable clean energy transition. ..Body WHEREAS, The scientific consensus is clear that human activities are primarily responsible for accelerating global climate change and that the climate crisis represents one of the greatest threats to global civilization; and WHEREAS, Changes in Philadelphia's and Pennsylvania's climate are already being felt, with longer and hotter summers, warmer winters, rising heights on local waterways and intensified flooding, increasingly unhealthy air quality linked with exposure to wildfire smoke, and a decline in biodiversity and ecological habitat; and WHEREAS, Our communities are experiencing adverse health effects and the safety risks of fossil fuel expansion, particularly those who also face socioeconomic and health inequities as well as communities on the frontlines of environmental injustice; and WHEREAS, Our youth and future generations have the most to lose from a lack of immediate action to stop fossil fuel expansion as they face major and lifelong health, ecological, social, and economic impacts from the prolonged and cumulative effects of climate change, including food and water shortages, sharp increases in infectious diseases, natural disasters, geopolitical instability, and warfare; and WHEREAS, Burning coal, oil, and gas is the greatest producer of greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gasses are warming our atmosphere, destabilizing our weather patterns, intensifying natural disasters, creating extreme heat, supercharging forest fires and threatening human health. The Paris Climate Agreement is silent on the need to phase out these greenhouse gas producers to keep global warming at or below 1.5�C. Thus, an effort to limit new fossil fuel production should occupy a central place in broader collective efforts to address climate change; and WHEREAS, The fossil fuel industry is currently planning new projects that will result in 120% more emissions by 2030, and such plans risk undoing the work that our City has completed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The construction of new fossil fuel infrastructure and the expanded reliance on coal, oil, and gas exposes communities to untenable risks to human health and safety at local and global levels while the economic opportunities presented by a clean energy transition far outweigh those presented by the fossil fuel economy; and WHEREAS, Development without meaningfully including community voices is causing adverse effects to community health and the local environment through increased flooding, the urban heat island effect, and increased air pollution; and WHEREAS, Our Philadelphia communities are committed to a just energy transition prioritizing employment opportunities for Philadelphia residents experiencing the most adverse effects of climate change. We are also committed to appropriate investments in clean energy necessary to respond to the current and future climate crisis; and WHEREAS, The City of Philadelphia commits to energy saving and decarbonization through increased efficiency and the addition of renewable energy sources as our first choice; and WHEREAS, The people of the Philadelphia area have called for climate and environmental justice, with thousands of people having protested to defend climate justice, especially since 2019; and WHEREAS, In 2019, Philadelphia passed a Resolution urging the federal government to enter into the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, thereby setting precedent for utilizing resolutions to urge our federal administration to enter into Treaty talks with the purpose of reducing or eliminating a threat to human life; and WHEREAS, A global initiative is underway calling for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty that would end new fossil fuel exploration and expansion, phase out existing production in line with the global commitment to limit warming to 1.5�C, and accelerate equitable transition plans; and WHEREAS, The City of Philadelphia opposes the rollback of climate policy at any level of government, affirms its ongoing commitment to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, and pledges to meet its proportionate greenhouse gas reductions under the Paris Climate Agreement; and WHEREAS, The City of Philadelphia is committed to exploring and developing local initiatives that limit fossil fuel infrastructure expansion, reinvest in our community spaces and make them climate resilient, and prioritize electrification and energy efficiency to ensure a clean energy future for a safe and healthy Philadelphia; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby affirm the City of Philadelphia's ongoing commitment to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement, endorse the call for a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty, urge the federal government to support this initiative by entering into treaty discussions, and commit the City to prioritizing a fair and equitable clean energy transition. ..End