Mayor Rawlings
Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings announced his support for the Mayors’ National Climate Action Agenda, led by Mayor Annise Parker of Houston, Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles, and Mayor Michael Nutter of Philadelphia, at the first ever Climate Extremes Conference in Dallas on September 17, 2015. The Climate Action Agenda calls for binding emissions reductions at the national level and support for the United States at the 2015 Conference of Parties in Paris.
The City of Dallas met the first Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, signed in 2006 by then-Mayor Laura Miller, goal of reducing community-wide greenhouse gas emissions 7% (translating to roughly 33% for City operations) over 1990 levels by 2012.
The Mayor also announced that the City of Dallas will support the new U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Agreement which was approved in Dallas during the 2014 Conference of Mayors. Currently, the City is working toward fulfilling its commitment of reducing emissions from City operations to 39% over 1990 levels by 2017. Strategies include on-site energy generation from waste streams and the purchasing of renewable energy credits to cover 100% of municipal electricity use. The City has also installed LED lighting in many municipal buildings, and has upgraded many traffic lights and street lights to LED. New City facilities, including fire stations and libraries, are built to LEED standards, further reducing greenhouse gas emissions through energy and water conservation.
The Mayor insisted that addressing climate change should not be a controversial or partisan issue, pointing out how leaders and the marketplace can work together to figure out solutions to create a sustainable and resilient city.
