Tag: climate change

RELEASE: IPCC Climate Change Report

RELEASE: IPCC Climate Change Report

PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release

August 9, 2021

Contact:
Cheryl Cort, cheryl@smartergrowth.net 
Jane Lyons, jane@smartergrowth.net
Sonya Breehey, sonya@smartergrowth.net

Today’s Alarming Climate Report – The DC Region Can and Should Do its Part 

Today, the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change issued what the U.N. Chief calls a “Code Red for Humanity” highlighting worse climate impacts to come unless we act without further delay to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. See today’s Washington Post story on the IPCC report. Lead author, scientist Claudia Tebaldi, is quoted in the article urging people to focus on what can still be done to quickly reduce our emissions footprint.

The Coalition for Smarter Growth therefore urges every local, state, regional, and federal official to make fundamental changes in our land use, transportation, housing, and energy policies to slash our emissions. The DC region has committed itself to a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. With transportation now our number one source of emissions, we need to commit to reductions in this sector in particular. Electric vehicles are essential for meeting our climate targets, but studies show that they are not enough and that our cities and suburbs must also reduce the need to drive for daily needs.

The good news is that by focusing on creating walkable, bike-friendly, mixed-use, transit-oriented neighborhoods, creating more housing and more affordable housing in these communities, expanding transit, and ending highway expansion, we can reduce the amount that we have to drive and slash our emissions.

In addition to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, walkable, transit-accessible communities provide a wide range of benefits including lower combined housing and transportation costs, cleaner air and improved health, and access to opportunity for all levels of our workforce.

We can do this! The smart growth climate-friendly solutions are:

  1. More transit that serves travel outside of traditional 9-5 office commutes;
  2. More transit-oriented centers and corridors;
  3. More housing and dedicated affordable units close to jobs and transit;
  4. Streets where walking and biking are priorities for safe travel;
  5. 15-minute neighborhoods where you can walk or bike to daily needs within 15 minutes, without having to get into a car;
  6. Stopping the never-ending and futile highway and arterial expansion that simply increases sprawling development, driving and traffic;
  7. Greener, more energy-efficient buildings;
  8. Switching to clean, renewable energy, and electric vehicles starting with buses, high-use fleet vehicles, and trucks for maximum emissions reductions.

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Sign-On Letter to Transportation Planning Board on Cutting Carbon Emissions

The undersigned organizations call on the National Capital Transportation Planning Board (TPB) to strengthen the resolution before it to affirm COG’s accepted long range CO2 target of 80% reductions by 2050 in two ways: 1) Include a deadline of September 30, 2015 to complete committee work and the final report in time to inform the next CLRP process 

Testimony on Need to Set a Target for Reducing CO2 Emissions from Transportation

Recent reports show sea level rise will contribute to flooding of our Monumental Core. Reports on the impacts of climate change are increasingly dire. We are the nation’s capital, the capital of the most powerful nation the world has ever known, and this region is collectively wealthier than 99% of the rest of the world. If we don’t lead on this issue from this region, who will? What will it take to get the leadership we need?

 

 

Testimony Concerning the Transportation Gap to CEEPC and MWAQC Committees

The 2014 CLRP performance assessment makes clear that while COG’s regional climate goal is to reduce emissions 80% by 2050 below 2005 levels, that the list of regional transportation projects, if built, will cause emissions to rise rather than fall. We have on our hands a Transportation Emissions Gap – a major discrepancy between our goals, and our regional plans. Our question is, how can we work together to close that gap now? Because transportation decision take so long to implement, getting started now is critical to make the changes needed.