Following a unanimous vote of the city council, Irvine has decided to develop a Climate Action Plan (CAP). On July 9, the City Council voted 4-0 for Councilmember Farrah Khan’s proposal to do a full CAP. Though Councilmember Melissa Fox was absent from the vote, she blogged ahead of the meeting that she supported the CAP proposal.

Producing the plan will cost the city between $250,000 and $500,000, and will take 18 to 24 months, city staff told the Council (activists dispute this number, saying similar plans done in other cities cost around $70,000). Nonetheless, it was welcome news to the activists with Climate Action Campaign, who have long lobbied Irvine to produce the plan.

“We’re thrilled that Irvine wants to be a leader in taking action to stop climate change and reduce emissions,” Orange County Climate Action Campaign activist Robin Ganahl said after the City Council meeting. “And we hope this will be a model for other cities in Orange County to follow. This is a big turning point for climate action in Orange County.”

A CAP is simply a document that specifies how a city or county will reduce harmful greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which are driving climate change.  “CAPs generally focus on those activities that can achieve the relatively greatest emission reductions in the most cost effective manner, and cover all sectors in the community such as energy use in buildings, transportation, and waste generation,” states a July 9 City of Irvine staff report on the matter.

At the City Council meeting, 21 residents spoke in favor of the plan (no one spoke in opposition). “We need local action on climate change now to protect the Irvine community, my generation, and future generations,” UC Irvine student Ari Jong said.