Agenda Text
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That the Director of Sustainability and Environment and others in the Administration work with this Council to convene a task force to provide recommendations to eliminate the use of natural gas and other fossil fuels in new buildings.
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Official Text
WHEREAS: Somerville's 2016 Green House Gas Inventory documented that 64% of our carbon emissions come from buildings, and reducing and offsetting these emissions is essential to reaching carbon neutrality by 2050; and
WHEREAS: Although retrofitting existing buildings remains a critical and challenging goal, it is imperative to immediately ensure that new buildings do not continue to add to our carbon emissions, in order to avoid another generation of net carbon-positive buildings; and
WHEREAS: Communities across the country and in Massachusetts have begun working on policies to prohibit fossil fuel combustion in new buildings and in significant renovations, yet a number of legal and practical questions remain for the most effective path forward for Somerville; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT
RESOLVED: That the Director of Sustainability and Environment and others in the Administration work with this Council to convene a task force that will work urgently to provide recommendations that will eliminate the usage of natural gas and other fossil fuels in new buildings in Somerville.