Honorable Mayor Taylor and City Council Members, Thank you for your leadership on climate action. This is to ask that you support the proposed Climate Action Plan and goal for Zero Carbon emissions by 2030 – and especially the annual gasoline sales reduction goal. As a young adult, I look to leaders like you to take direct, immediate, and strong action regarding the climate crisis– the future of my generation depends on it. I look up to leaders like yourselves who vow to protect our collective future locally and globally. I also understand that this particular avenue, reducing carbon emissions from transportation, ought to be one of the, if not the, highest priorities on your list. · Burning gasoline is by far Menlo Park’s biggest source of carbon emissions. We must reduce gasoline use to meet our climate goals and be clear about our intention to do so. · Gasoline sales is the most important metric for reducing transportation emissions, as it directly correlates to greenhouse gases from transportation. Every gallon of gas sold and burned releases 20 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere. · Tracking gasoline sales lets us assess whether transportation emissions reduction measures (such as expanding EV charging) are effective in displacing gasoline. · If we set and publicize a gasoline sales reduction goal, the citizens of Menlo Park will rise to the challenge – like we did with water conservation during the drought. · Menlo Park’s focus on gasoline sales will lead the way for other cities to set gasoline sales reduction goals – resulting in our city having an outsize impact on climate. · Reducing gasoline use is something every citizen can take part in – whether they can afford to buy or lease new electric vehicle or not. On behalf of all teens everywhere, I encourage you to please adopt the Climate Action Plan, and especially the goal of reducing gasoline sales. Sincerely, Georgia Wluka 17, she/her Received on Tue Jul 14 2020 - 09:34:41 PDT
