Edina Joins Coalition, Declares Climate Emergency

EDINA, MN — Edina recently joined a growing number of Minnesota cities in declaring a climate emergency, with local leaders hoping to put pressure on state lawmakers to act on climate change during the upcoming legislative session.

The resolution that was passed unanimously by the Edina City Council on Jan. 19 calls for cities to “acknowledge the threat” to health, infrastructure and property from climate change, as well as the “shared opportunity and responsibility” to respond.

The resolution also urges state officials to take a leading role in coordinating responses to climate change across city and county lines.

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Edina is one of 19 cities across Minnesota that are passing a climate-emergency resolution to spur action, City Council member Carolyn Jackson said last week.

Though the cities are scattered throughout the state and face unique challenges, leaders have “learned that we had a number of things in common,” Jackson said.

“The most moving to me was the fact that cities are already having to adjust to climate change and expend money as we get more extreme weather as a result of climate change,” she told the council.

Minnesota experienced its first-ever December tornadoes in 2021, and severe droughts affected much of the state last summer, which city leaders have cited as clear signs of climate change.

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The coalition of cities seeking a more robust response to climate change was formed to document the effects that cities are seeing from climate change; to share ideas about ways to improve responses; and to call on the state to give cities “the tools we need” to enact meaningful change and overcome “stumbling blocks,” Jackson said.

“We’re asking the legislature to step up and help us out,” Jackson said. The Minnesota legislature is scheduled to reconvene at noon Monday for the start of its 2022 legislative session.

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St. Louis Park, Eden Prairie, Golden Valley, Grand Marais, Grand Rapids, Moorhead and Red Wing are among the other cities that have declared climate emergencies in recent weeks.

The Edina City Council in December passed a Climate Action Plan that includes 200 actions the city can take to meet environmental goals by 2030.

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Edina officials set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030 — in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement — and achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.

The first phase of actions under the CAP could include improving infrastructure for pedestrians and bicyclists; acquiring more electric vehicles; increasing commercial/industrial energy efficiency; and planting more trees.