Shane Levy, Sierra Club - shane.levy@sierraclub.org
SAN FRANCISCO - Ahead of next week’s Global Climate Action Summit, the Sierra Club today announced that San Francisco Mayor London Breed has joined Mayors for 100% Clean Energy as a new national Co-Chair.
As Co-Chair, Mayor Breed will help lead the effort to engage and recruit mayors to endorse a goal of transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy in cities and towns across the country. More than 200 mayors nationwide have joined Mayors for 100% Clean Energy and pledged to support a goal of 100 percent clean energy in their communities. Mayor Breed joins Mayor Jackie Biskupski of Salt Lake City, Mayor Kevin Faulconer of San Diego, and Mayor Stephen K. Benjamin of Columbia, South Carolina as Co-Chair of the initiative.
Mayors for 100% Clean Energy is a program of the Sierra Club’s Ready For 100 campaign, which is working to advance a just and equitable transition to 100 percent clean, renewable energy in communities nationwide. 80 U.S. cities have now formally committed to transition to 100 percent clean energy in the coming years, including San Francisco.
“As the Federal Administration rolls back critical environmental protections, San Francisco continues to lead in the fight against climate change. The Global Climate Action Summit is a chance to highlight San Francisco’s environmental leadership on the world stage,” said Mayor Breed. “We have successfully reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by 30% from 1990 levels, while growing our economy by 111% and increasing our population by 20%. But in order to fully realize the ambitions of the Paris Climate Accord, we must continue to make bold commitments and accelerate actions that reduce emissions and move us towards a clean energy future. That is why, in addition to formally joining the Sierra Club’s nationwide clean energy campaign, San Francisco is committing to reducing landfill disposal by 50 percent by 2030 and ensuring all of our buildings are net-zero emissions by 2050.”
“Mayors can lead our nation toward a healthier, stronger, and more prosperous country by supporting a vision of 100 percent clean, renewable energy in their communities. Cities don't need to wait for Washington, D.C. to act in order to move forward with clean energy,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune. “The Sierra Club applauds Mayor Breed for championing this vision in San Francisco and we look forward to working with her as a Co-Chair of our Mayors For 100% Clean Energy program to accelerate the transition away from dirty fuels to 100 percent clean and renewable sources of energy for all.”
“We are excited to welcome Mayor London Breed and the people of San Francisco to the Mayor’s For 100% Clean Energy movement,” said Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski. “Our drive to transition America’s cities to 100% renewable energy requires new perspectives and leaders willing to take serious action to reverse the threat of climate change worldwide.”
“Mayors for 100% Clean Energy keeps up its great momentum as we welcome Mayor Breed to the collective effort,” said Columbia, South Carolina Mayor Steve Benjamin. “Our pledge to transition to clean energy is a national effort on behalf of local leaders, and we’re excited for our cities to make necessary and critical changes.”
In 2017, the U.S. Conference of Mayors approved a historic resolution that establishes support from the nation’s mayors for the goal of moving to 100 percent clean and renewable energy in cities nationwide. Introduced by the Co-Chairs of Mayors for 100% Clean Energy, the “100% Renewable Energy in American Cities” resolution could pave the way for cities across the country to adopt 100 percent renewable energy targets within their communities.
According to a Sierra Club analysis, if cities belonging to the U.S. Conference of Mayors were to transition to 100 percent clean and renewable electricity, it would reduce electric sector carbon emissions by more than that of the five worst carbon polluting U.S. states combined. If the 100 percent energy targets were achieved by 2025, the total electric sector carbon pollution reductions would fill anywhere from 87 percent to 110 percent of the remaining reductions the United States would need to achieve in order to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement.
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with more than 3 million members and supporters. In addition to helping people from all backgrounds explore nature and our outdoor heritage, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.