Santa Fe — At the U.S. Conference of Mayors (USCM) 75th Annual Meeting held in Los Angeles June 22 -June 26, 2007, Edward Mazria of Architecture 2030 called on the mayors to "protect their efforts" addressing the causes of global warming. Mazria presented daunting digital maps illustrating that a mere one- to two-meter rise in sea level would devastate many US coastal cities and towns, and destabilize the nation. According to Mazria, “Mayors across the US are investing large amounts of time, resources and money to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and combat climate change, but if they allow conventional pulverized-coal plants to continue being built in the U.S., all of their efforts are for naught.”

To bring this point home, Mazria explained that in just one year, the CO₂ output of a conventional pulverized-coal plant negates the benefits of planting 30 million trees. He went on to say that, “the annual CO₂ emissions of a large conventional pulverized-coal plant would also negate the mayors’ efforts to reduce by 50 percent the fossil-fuel energy consumption and GHG emissions of approximately half a million existing residences.”

Immediately following Mazria’s presentation, the Energy Committee of the USCM met. Mayor Martin Chavez of Albuquerque and co-sponsors Mayors Will Wynn of Austin, Frank Cownie of Des Moines, Greg Nickels of Seattle, Manuel Diaz of Miami, Dan Coody of Fayetteville, Frank Ortis of Pembroke Pines, Robert Cluck of Arlington and Jennifer Hosterman of Pleasanton submitted Resolution #110 calling for:

• the federal government (EPA) to establish CO₂ capture and storage as the Best Available Control Technology (BACT) for all new coal power plants, and
• the installation of advanced coal technologies to capture and store CO₂ emissions and other pollutants as the logical next step for the construction of any new coal-fired power plants in the US.
  

The resolution urged “all mayors from around the nation to join this effort to encourage their state and the federal government to promote the use of these technologies to mitigate climate change.” The resolution passed unanimously. According to Mayor Chavez, “this is the first step toward a much needed national and global dialogue on coal.”

In November of 2006, Architecture 2030 called on the USCM to adopt The 2030 Challenge, which also passed unanimously (Resolution #50). With the Building Sector responsible for almost half of all US GHG emissions annually, the Challenge, a global initiative, calls for all new buildings and major renovations to reduce their fossil-fuel GHG-emitting consumption by 50 percent by 2010, and all new buildings to be "carbon neutral" by 2030. The Challenge has been adopted and supported by numerous organizations, states, cities and firms, including the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the US Green Building Council (USGBC).

Since that time, Architecture 2030 has worked with key leaders in the Building Sector to establish the benchmark for the reduction targets called for in The 2030 Challenge. “Having established the targets and baseline, and having begun to implement the changes needed in the Building Sector to address climate change, the next critical step is to protect these efforts,” states Mazria.

With 76 percent of all electricity generated at a power plant going to operate buildings, the resolution by the USCM is an important first step in this effort. According to Mazria, the next steps are congressional action on conventional pulverized-coal plants and an updated national Building Energy Efficiency Code Standard that incorporates the new benchmarks and 2030 Challenge targets, along with the financial incentives to implement the Standard. “To achieve these critical goals, it is essential that the US Conference of Mayors work with other organizations, such as the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and state and congressional leaders who have called for GHG reduction targets. They need to work together toward a global call for GHG emissions standards in both the building and energy sectors,” states Mazria.

About Architecture 2030
In January of 2006, Architecture 2030 issued The 2030 Challenge, a global initiative calling for all new buildings and major renovations to reduce their fossil-fuel GHG-emitting consumption by 50 percent by 2010, and that all new buildings be "carbon neutral" by 2030. The Building Sector accounts for almost half of all greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. annually. By galvanizing and collaborating with the key players in this sector, including the US Conference of Mayors (USCM), Department of Energy (DOE), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), US Green Building Council (USGBC), Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED), American Institute of Architects (AIA), American Society of Heating, Refrigeration and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE), International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI), and many others, Architecture 2030 is working to achieve a dramatic reduction in the global-warming-causing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of buildings by changing the way they are designed and constructed.