On December 18, the Saint Paul City Council voted unanimously to approve the Climate Action and Resiliency Plan (CARP). Following a presentation given by Chief Resiliency Officer Russ Stark, more than 30 Saint Paul community members spoke in favor of adopting the plan with amendments added from St. Paul 350 and Urban Roots highlighting access to community solar, bill financing, metrics for equitable workforce development, and initiatives that support urban agriculture. These are all positive additions for CARP to address.
Fresh Energy thanks the council, the City of Saint Paul, and all the community members who worked to craft this plan and for showing this leadership. Fresh Energy staff will work to ensure equitably in deep energy efficiency retrofits, benchmarking, and shifting remaining energy usage off fossil fuels for beneficial electrification in buildings, single and multi-family homes, and transportation.
Policy associate Janiece Watts was in attendance to give support for the plan and spoke in favor of the proposed community advisory group.
“Establishing a community advisory body as stated in the plan, one that includes representation of Saint Paul’s most underserved neighborhoods, young people, and leaders with expertise in areas that are not solely focused on climate, will provide the accountability required for successful implementation and ensure that environmental justice, racial justice, and social equity are the foundation of the Climate Action and Resiliency Plan.”
We look forward to continuing to work with the city and partners to ensure Saint Paul meets its climate equity goals.
