Saco approves climate emergency resolution

SACO — Local middle school students working to mitigate climate change have made an impact on city government.

On Monday night, the City Council unanimously approved a resolution endorsing the declaration of a climate emergency and emergency mobilization effort to restore a safe climate.

In the document, the city resolves to prioritize zero-carbon solutions for local electricity, heating, and transportation systems, and accelerate local adaptation and resilience strategies in preparation for intensifying local climate impacts.

The resolution also lists steps the city must take to reach these goals, including engaging residents and local stakeholders in public deliberations on climate change, investigating training for city department heads, and also requiring the city administrator to review opportunities for greenhouse gas emissions reductions and report back in a year’s time to the city council.

The resolution was proposed by students at Saco Middle School who worked with teacher Andrew Fersch. Revisions on the draft were made through collaboration of the students with the city’s Energy Committee and the Conservation Commission.

Climate change can cause changes in precipitation patterns, more draughts and heat waves, more intense and stronger hurricanes, rises in temperature and rises in sea level said student Zach Arsenault at Monday night’s City Council meeting.

Zach referred to the resolution, which states that in October 2018, the United Nations released a climate report which projected that limiting the warming to target this century of 1.5 degrees Celsius, which would still have serious impacts,  would require an unprecedented transformation of every sector of the global economy by 2030.

“We need to do our part in eliminating greenhouse gas emissions for our city, our state and our world,” he said.

Councilor Lynn Copeland thanked Zach, the other students who worked on the resolution, and Fersch.

“This has my full and complete support,” she said. “It’s wonderful, we hear you. We’re going to do it.”

Councilor Alan Minthorn said he admired the students’ passion and Councilor Jodi MacPhail said she was proud of the work and research the students conducted.

Publisher Liz Gotthelf can be reached at [email protected].