[San Francisco Carbon Fund Grant Awards]
Resolution approving Department of the Environment Funding recommendation for a San Francisco Carbon Fund grant award to California Interfaith Power and Light.
WHEREAS, since July 2009, the City and County of San Francisco has levied an innovative carbon fee on municipal air travel; and,
WHEREAS, Ordinance 172-09, codified in Chapter 52 of the Administrative Code, instructs the Department of the Environment to administer the revenue generated through this fee and invest in local projects that mitigate and sequester carbon emissions; and,
WHEREAS, the Department of the Environment administers these funds through the San Francisco Carbon Fund; and,
WHEREAS, San Francisco Carbon Fund projects not only mitigate and sequester carbon, they enhance the quality of the living environment, engage residents throughout the City and provide a range of co-benefits; and,
WHEREAS, San Francisco’s faith based organizations provide tremendous help to the City by delivering services as diverse as food security; support for seniors, low-income and homeless populations; pre-schools and daycare; workforce and youth development; and community resiliency; and,
WHEREAS, Many of these congregations are interested in taking action to reduce their environmental impact, however, may lack the staffing and technical capacity to calculate their organization’s greenhouse gas emissions, set goals for emissions reductions, and access City resources that will reduce their footprint; and,
WHEREAS, San Francisco’s faith based organizations are a trusted voice with a high-touch connection to large numbers of residents, and provide an ideal opportunity to educate the general public about environmental issues and secure their support for taking individual action to reduce their own carbon footprint; and,
WHEREAS, after a competitive process California Interfaith Power and Light has been selected to implement a Low Carbon Congregation Program targeting faith based organizations in San Francisco; and
WHEREAS, California Interfaith Power and Light will work with the Department of the Environment to select organizations to participate in the program; and
WHEREAS, the tools and processes developed through this project will be used in congregations throughout the country, contributing to San Francisco’s reputation for environmental innovation; now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, the Commission approves the award of a San Francisco Carbon Fund grant of $120,000 to California Interfaith Power and Light to support its work in helping ten faith-based organizations become Low Carbon Congregations.
I hereby certify that this Resolution was adopted at the Commission on the Environment’s March 14, 2018 meeting.
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Anthony Valdez, Commission Secretary
Vote: 5-0 Approved
Ayes: Commissioners Ahn, Hoyos, Stephenson, Wald and Wan.
Noes: None.
Absent: Commissioner Bermejo.