Cities Make Net-Zero Carbon Pledge

The World Green Building Council is calling upon companies, cities, states, and regions to pledge to the Net-Zero Carbon Buildings Declaration (NZCBD) to maximize the chance of limiting global warming to below 1.5°C as part of the Paris Agreement signed in 2015 by 196 countries.

The mayors of 19 global cities—including eight U.S. and three Canadian cities—have pledged to the NZCBD that ensures new buildings will operate at net-zero carbon emissions by 2030. The U.S. cities are Los Angeles, New York City, Newburyport (MA), Portland, San Francisco, San Jose, Santa Monica, and Washington, D.C. Canadian cities include Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver. The mayors are also committing that all buildings in those cities will be net zero by 2050.

By Executive Order 13514, U.S. President Barack Obama mandated that by 2015, 15% of existing federal buildings conform to new energy efficiency standards and 100% of all new federal buildings be zero net energy by 2030.

In June 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his intention to withdraw the U.S. from the Paris Agreement. The earliest effective date of withdrawal, under the agreement, is November 2020.

— Environmentalleader.com