Sydney became the latest major city to declare a climate emergency on Friday as a way to accelerate efforts to mitigate climate change and transition to a clean energy economy, according to the New York Times.
More than 600 local, state, and other governments have declared climate emergencies in response to activist demands that world leaders take climate change more seriously. Although 22 other local governments in Australia have declared climate emergencies, voters at the national level recently rejected proposals to restrict carbon emissions during federal elections.
In the announcement, the city council urged the federal government to enact a carbon tax and create an office to help workers in the fossil fuel industry transition to sustainable jobs.
Sydney’s Mayor Clover Moore published a mayoral minute on Friday. She said that Australia in particular has to take a strong stance on climate change, the Guardian reports.
“Cities need to show leadership, especially when you’re not getting that leadership from the national government,” Moore said.
“On January 24, 2019, 91 of the hottest 100 places on Earth were in Australia,” she said. “Heat waves on our continent are now five times more likely. But it is not just their frequency that is alarming – they start earlier, become hotter, and last longer.”
I will join the strike for climate action on March 15th at Sydney Town Hall.@MQBiology@BehaveEcologyMQ#ActOnClimate#YouthStrike4Climatepic.twitter.com/d0YTXrdCPO
— Marie Herberstein 🌈 (@MarieHerberstei) March 14, 2019
Read More: Why Cities May Be the Key to Stopping Climate Change
Sydney, which is the most populous city in Australia, already has an ambitious climate action plan. The government is on track to get 100% of its electricity through renewable sources by 2024, six years ahead of its initial target, and it aims to fully eliminate greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the Guardian notes.
Cities and states around the world have become leaders in the fight against climate change because they’re often more capable of rapidly responding to issues than federal governments.
New York, for example, recently unveiled the most ambitious bill to fight climate change in the United States. More than 19 mayors from cities as diverse as Tokyo and Paris, all vowed to make new buildings carbon neutral by 2030. London, meanwhile, recently enacted a law that charges pollution heavy vehicles to use the city’s roads.
Read More: Cities Are the Best Place to Fight Climate Change, UN Says
Local governments have also championed the Paris climate agreement, which urges countries to keep global temperatures from rising more than 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels. In Australia, four cities, including Sydney, were recently given an “A” by the CDP, formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project, for their efforts to meet the Paris agreement’s goals.
Experts contend that without federal action, however, these goals will likely remain out of reach, because federal governments have access to far greater resources and can enact more sweeping change.
In her announcement, Moore highlighted how solidarity is critical to effective climate action.
“This emergency is not just about the numbers, it is about our communities, and its impacts are felt by us all, particularly the poorest amongst us – the vulnerable, the marginalised and those that live in remote communities,” Moore said.
In a world-first, we're trialing a new road made from industrial waste. It uses concrete made from waste from coal-fired power stations & steel manufacturing. We worked with researchers from @UNSW & Low Carbon Living @CRC_LCL on the project. Find out more https://t.co/yCc51asUcSpic.twitter.com/TOJvJevKwO
— City of Sydney (@cityofsydney) June 19, 2019