City speeds up climate change response with new ‘0-80-100-Roots’ framework

The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a set of goals Tuesday to combat climate change that sets new targets to speed up the cutbacks on greenhouse gas emissions within the city.

Tuesday evening, Mayor London Breed announced passage of the ordinance, which she co-sponsored with supervisors Rafael Mandelman and Ahsha Safai.

In her news release, Breed said the city has long been a leader on climate policy, adding:

“Now we must build on these successes and push even further, because our future depends on it. … These new, bold targets put us on track to reduce our emissions more quickly — with the urgency that climate change demands and with social and racial equity at the forefront of our work.”

According to Breed’s office, the ordinance updates the city’s environment code, targeting six areas: energy, transportation, housing, buildings, zero waste and roots.

Two major goals include reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 61 percent below 1990 levels by 2030 and reaching net-zero emissions by 2040 (while allowing for any residual emissions to be sequestered using nature-based solutions).

By adopting the ordinance, the city has committed to a framework called “0-80-100-Roots,” where “0” refers to a goal of zero waste, “80” refers to a goal of 80 percent low-carbon trips, “100” refers to a goal of 100 percent renewable energy, and “Roots” refers to the sequestering of carbon through natural systems.

The ordinance requires the city to prepare a climate action plan by the end of the year, a roadmap for achieving the goals passed Tuesday.