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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
ADOPTION OF THE CLEAN ENERGY FRAMEWORK
WHEREAS, over one hundred years ago, visionary leaders had the foresight to create the Forest Preserves of Cook County (the “Forest Preserves”) with the mission “to acquire, restore and manage lands for the purpose of protecting and preserving public open space”; and
WHEREAS, Illinois has experienced a one-degree Fahrenheit increase in average annual temperature since the beginning of the 21st Century; and
WHEREAS, recent climate projections published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and other scientific organizations, predict that if global emissions of greenhouse gases continue to rise, historically unprecedented warming is anticipated in the Midwest region in the next few decades; and
WHEREAS, along with a projected rise in annual temperatures, studies also project that the Midwest region likely will experience increased events of extreme precipitation during winter and spring, and intense summer droughts, stronger storms, more street and basement flooding and combined sewer overflows into Lake Michigan, worse air, and strains on local government budgets as heat and flooding damage infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, the Forest Preserves’ mission drives it to consider the impacts of a changing climate on its own lands, on the communities of which the Forest Preserves is a part, and the planet; and
WHEREAS, two hundred and four U.S. cities and counties across thirty-seven states, including the City of Chicago, have already adopted ambitious 100% clean energy goals, and seventy-two U.S. cities and counties across seven states have already hit their targets to generate 100% of the energy used, community-wide, from clean, non-polluting, and renewable sources; and
WHEREAS, "clean energy" and "renewable energy" include energy derived from wind, solar, existing hydroelectric, geothermal, biogas, and wave technology sources. These sources of energy have significant public health and co-benefits associated that can help address pressing environmental justice challenges in sensitive communities in Cook County and around the country; and
WHEREAS, in January 2019 the Board of Commissioners of the Forest Preserves of Cook County adopted a resolution to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 45% by 2030 and to reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and to implement a plan to achieve such targets (Board Item No. 19-0128); and
WHEREAS, a Clean Energy Framework has been created for the Forest Preserves by the University of Illinois Prairie Research Institute at the Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, along with the support and collaboration of key stakeholders, content experts, climate experts, and Forest Preserves staff; and
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that Toni Preckwinkle, President and the Forest Preserves of Cook County Board of Commissioners hereby adopts the Forest Preserves’ Clean Energy Framework and the goal that One Hundred Percent (100%) of electricity consumed by the Forest Preserves shall be generated through renewable-energy resources and associated technologies by 2050.
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