A CLIMATE EMERGENCY DECLARATION AND
A RESOLUTION IN SUPPORT OF THE GREEN NEW DEAL

WHEREAS: On November 23, 2018, the federal government issued a comprehensive climate study that made it clear that urgent action over the next 12 years was needed by Congress to avert catastrophic damage to our planet. Only a decade now remains; and

WHEREAS: For decades, working-class communities and communities of color have been first to be hit by pollution, and last to be rebuilt after a climate disaster; and every Nacogdoches resident and American has the right to clean air and water, protection from disasters, and healthy food, no matter the color of their skin or where they were born; and

WHEREAS: Texas has first-hand experience with the devastating effects of Global Warming charged weather disasters. From the off-the-charts drought of 2011 that saw most of the state in flames, to Hurricane Harvey where some areas experienced 1 in 500,000-year flood events, the evidence is clear that Global Warming is happening now and is a growing threat to all residents of Texas, including those living here in the Town of Nacogdoches; and

WHEREAS: Every generation should share the same right to life, liberty, and property, yet the fact is that younger members of our community, including most of Stephen F. Austin State University’s student body, do not enjoy the same rights previous generations took for granted; and

WHEREAS: Inaction and indecision at the federal and state level in the face of the overwhelming scientific consensus on Global Warming means the City Council of Nacogdoches – the democratic institution closest to the community – must do everything in its power to lead the fight for Climate Justice the youth of Nacogdoches and the planet deserve; and

WHEREAS: To address the urgent climate crisis, on February 7, 2019, members of Congress proposed House Resolution 109 and Senate Resolution 59, collectively known as the “Green New Deal” outline, which is a 10-year plan to mobilize every aspect of American society to 100 percent clean and renewable energy by 2030, a guaranteed living-wage job for anybody who needs one, and a just transition for both workers and frontline communities; and

WHEREAS: Key goals stated in the legislation include efforts to:

• Ensure a just transition for all communities and workers to ensure economic security for people and communities that have historically relies on fossil fuels
• Secure clean air and water, a stable climate, healthy food, and access to nature for generations to come
• Guarantee a job with a family-sustaining wage, labor protections, and retirement security to all members of our society; and
 
WHEREAS: To achieve these goals, the Green New Deal legislation calls for a 10-year national mobilization effort, which would include:

• Building resilience against climate change-related disasters;
• Providing funding for community-based solutions to climate change;
• Overhauling transportation systems to remove pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector as much as is technologically feasible.
• Repairing and upgrading infrastructure;
• Expanding the use of clean, renewable and zero-emission sources of power with the goal of zeroing out fossil fuel sources;
• Creating energy-efficient, distributed, and “smart” power grids;
• Cleaning up existing hazardous waste and abandoned sites; identifying other pollution sources and creating solutions to remove them;
• Maximizing water and energy efficiency in new buildings and by retrofitting existing buildings;
• Removing greenhouse gases and restoring natural ecosystems through proven low-tech solutions that increase soil carbon storage, such as land preservation and reforestation.
• Removing pollution and greenhouse gas emissions from industry as much as is technologically feasible;
• Restoring and protecting fragile ecosystems by enhancing biodiversity; and

WHEREAS: Doing what is now necessary to adequately address the climate crisis requires a national mobilization of a scope and scale that is a historic opportunity to address inequities caused and exacerbated by the fossil fuel economy for all people in the United States; NOW THEREFORE BE IT

RESOLVED: That the Nacogdoches City Council, in a meeting assembled, go on record declaring official recognition that we are in a Climate Emergency. And further go on record in support of H. Res 109 and Sen. Res 59 “A Resolution Recognizing the duty of the Federal Government to create a Green New Deal” in an effort to advance clean and renewable energy, a guaranteed living-wage job for anybody who needs one, and a just transition for both workers and frontline communities.