Leon County, Florida declares 'climate emergency' - Tallahassee Democrat

Leon County, Florida declares 'climate emergency'

Leon commissioners declare 'climate emergency;' city touts 100% clean energy by 2050
Elena Barrera

After a near-miss hurricane and a long summer of record-breaking severe heat, Tallahassee's young environmentalists say now more than ever is the time to fight against climate change — and they now have local government's support.

In a 6 to 1 vote, Leon County commissioners endorsed a declaration stating the capital county is in "a climate emergency" and will continue to work with the GenCLEO advocacy group, a branch of the CLEO Institute, which advocates for climate action and policy.

"This climate emergency resolution that was passed is a huge, huge deal," said Samantha Kaddis, the 22-year-old Tallahassee regional manager for GenCLEO. "Leon County has now joined eight other municipalities in passing similar climate emergency declarations."

Kaddis said the resolution is there to help keep officials accountable for the current sustainability work they have undertaken.

The approved resolution calls on the county to reduce greenhouse gases, improve water quality, support the importance of native plants and the local food movement.

"I'm really excited that we're going to have further youth input in our sustainability summits and in our community stakeholder groups because they really are the group that will be most affected by this," Commissioner David O' Keefe said. "I think it's perspective that we need as much as possible."

Commissioner Brian Welch was the only commissioner to vote against the resolution. He told the Democrat he believes leaders have to be careful with what they declare as emergencies.

"I'm a local elected official. I'm not a national elected official," Welch said. "There's very little that we can do as a county to affect climate change on a global level, beyond what we're already doing."

He said he thinks crime and homelessness issues in the county are more appropriate to be declared as emergencies and that it's important to keep nationalized politics out of the local scene.

Although he didn't support the resolution, he said he was proud of the group's passionate advocating and the county's sustainability efforts.

The county coordinated closely with the young advocates, as their aspirations and visions match the county's sustainability program, according to county agenda documents. But one request in their resolution was denied.

In the initial proposal, the group asked commissioners to consider creating a youth advisory committee, according to county agenda documents. But the idea was squashed because "creation of a standalone youth advisory committee for ages 7-29 would detract from the collaboration already occurring with area stakeholders."

Currently, the county has an "Insights and Input" forum that holds monthly meetings to discuss the county's sustainability efforts and how to improve them. The county invited GenCLEO to participate in this forum's meetings instead of establishing a separate committee.

Even though the original request wasn't met, the commissioners' support for the rest of their resolution is a big step in the right direction, said Nia Ogletree, the 19-year-old lead campus organizer for GenCLEO. They plan to send numerous youth representatives to the county's committee.

"I'm proud of all our youth advocates because it's not often that our voices are really valued, we're often overlooked," Ogletree said.

Column: Rising to the Challenge: Uniting for climate action and empowering youth voices in Leon County

City of Tallahassee moving toward 100% clean energy over next three decades

Prior to the county declaring a climate emergency, Tallahassee city commissioners also took on climate change as they work toward their pledge"of achieving 100% net, clean renewable energy no later than 2050 or sooner."

In their Aug. 23 meeting, commissioners unanimously voted to pass a clean energy plan. The city is working to invest in more solar energy and electric-powered public transport, as well as find ways to make buildings more energy efficient.

Members of Tally Green Sing sang a song of celebration in the city commission chambers as the city works toward a greener future for Tallahassee.

Local leaders are committing to "turning Tally greener" — the words the musical advocacy group sung out — as both the city and county take action against climate change.

Elena Barrera can be reached at ebarrera@tallahassee.com. Follow her on Twitter @elenabarreraaa.