Climate Action Now | Climate Partnership | reLeaf | Restore Our Waters | Green Building Capital
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Mayor Nickels’ Climate Action Plan
 The City of Seattle has gained national recognition for its foresight in addressing global warming. Mayor Greg Nickels led the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement inspiring hundreds of cities across the nation to meet the Kyoto Protocol and cut their greenhouse gas emissions.
Seattle launched "Climate Action Now," a grassroots campaign giving residents the tools and inspiration to reduce their carbon footprint at home, at work and on the road. The “Seattle Climate Partnership” engages businesses and institutions.
“Seattle reLeaf” brings neighbors together to grow the city’s tree canopy. “Restore our Waters” is working to enhance and protect the quality of Puget Sound, lakes and creeks. And Mayor Nickels has challenged Seattle to become America’s Green Building Capital, increasing energy efficiency in buildings and developing healthy communities that promote walking, cycling and transit use.
U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement
When the federal government refused to participate in the Kyoto Protocol target for reducing climate pollution, Mayor Nickels took action at a local level. On February 16, 2005, the date that the Kyoto Protocol became law for the 141 countries that had ratified it, Nickels pledged that Seattle -- the entire community not just City government -- would meet or beat the targeted suggested for the United States in the Kyoto Protocol: reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 7 percent below 1990 levels by 2012.
Acknowledging that climate protection is a global issue, Nickels challenged other mayors in 2005 to make the same pledge in their communities. To date, more than 900 mayors representing more than 81 million Americans have signed on, joining Mayor Nickels’ vision.
The Climate Protection Agreement serves as an example to other communities not only for how to reduce emissions, but to clean the air, save money, thrive economically, and make cities more livable for all. In Seattle, Mayor Nickels created the Green Ribbon Commission on Climate Protection, a group of city and community climate leaders who developed recommendations to guide Seattle to the Kyoto target.
Cities interested in signing on to the U.S. Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement are urged to contact the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Center at 202-861-6735, or lgarcia@usmayors.org.
In addition to the Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, Mayor Nickels spearheaded an effort to create a larger federal climate policy framework in June 2007. In 2008, Nickels championed a resolution establishing city priorities in a federal cap-and-trade system that embraced 80 percent reductions of global warming pollution from 1990 levels by 2050 as the appropriate and necessary national goal, and urged the federal government to act quickly to enact cap-and-trade legislation.
In 2007, Mayor Nickels and the City of Seattle hosted the U.S. Conference of Mayors Climate Protection Summit. The Seattle summit was the largest-ever meeting of American mayors devoted solely to climate protection. More than 100 mayors from across the country representing millions of Americans met to discuss the impact of climate change on their communities and the steps cities are taking to reduce greenhouse gas pollution. For two days, America’s mayors took center stage in the effort to stop global warming as they discussed actions to spur local and federal action on climate change. The U.S. House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming also held a special hearing with mayors during the summit.
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Seattle Climate Action Now
 Seattle Climate Action Now is an exciting effort to give everyone in Seattle the tools needed to start making a real difference at home, at work, and on the road. It will bring you together with people across the street and across town to take action to protect the climate for all of us and for future generations.
Getting involved is simple. By taking easy, practical steps that improve our quality of life today, we're also creating a brighter future for our children.
 Seattle Climate Action Now is a City-led effort, but is grounded in partnerships with businesses, organizations and individuals throughout Seattle. So whether you're adding insulation to your home or you're going car-free one day a week, you will be contributing to a broad, communitywide effort to address climate change.
When we work together we can tackle a serious challenge like climate protection. We can build a stronger community today and leave behind a greener tomorrow for our children and their children. Working together, Seattle CAN make a difference!
Visit the Climate Action Now Web site.
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Seattle Climate Partnership
 The Seattle Climate Partnership is a voluntary program for businesses and institutions that want to take a serious look at their carbon footprint and reduce it over time. The Partnership provides its members with tools to assess and reduce their carbon consumption, including a comprehensive Carbon Footprint calculator, sector-specific climate action guidebooks, individual consulting advice, workshops and other assistance.
 To get involved, businesses start by signing the Partnership Agreement, pledging to assess their carbon footprint, take steps to reduce it and collaborate with others to build the Partnership. To date, more than 110 Seattle-area businesses have joined.
Visit the Seattle Climate Partnership Web site.
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Seattle reLeaf
 There are many opportunities to get involved in supporting Seattle’s urban forest. Seattle reLeaf brings people together to keep the Emerald City green.
Visit the Seattle reLeaf Web site: Find out how to get involved planting and maintaining trees in your neighborhood and restoring our tree canopy.
 Seattle’s Urban Forest Management Plan: This 30-year plan is the first-ever comprehensive plan for the city’s urban forest, establishing a goal of 30% tree canopy cover. It includes a broad range of actions to achieve this goal including more tree planting, improved maintenance of city-managed trees, tree preservation and community engagement.
Green Seattle Partnership: The City, the Cascade Land Conservancy, and Seattle’s residents have joined together to form the Green Seattle Partnership working to restore 2,500 acres of forested parkland by 2025. Volunteers help remove invasive plants, plant new native trees and understory plants, and perform long term maintenance and monitoring of restoration sites.
Heritage Tree Program: Nominate a special tree to be recognized and celebrated as Heritage tree This program is a partnership between Plant Amnesty and the Seattle Department of Transportation.
The Tree Fund: Part of the Neighborhood Matching Fund, the Tree Fund provides free trees to neighborhood groups to enhance the City's urban forest. The City provides the trees, and neighbors share the work of planting and maintaining them.
“Bridging the Gap” Tree Planting: The Seattle Department of Transportation plants more than 800 street trees per year. SDOT is interested in finding neighborhoods where about 100 trees can be planted within an approximate 4 to 5-square block area. If your neighborhood has curbed planting strips that are a minimum of 5’ wide, you may be eligible to receive these free trees.
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Restore our waters
 Mayor Nickels launched the “Restore our Waters” strategy to protect and enhance our creeks, lakes, the Duwamish River and Puget Sound. Using sound science and effective partnerships with neighborhood groups, environmental organizations and businesses, the city is making smart investments to restore habitat.
 In the course of development, Seattle’s watersheds have been covered by buildings, roads, parking lots and other impervious surfaces. Seattle is focusing on slowing the high-volume, rapid flows that carry pollution to water bodies—causing flooding neighborhoods and destroying fish and wildlife habitat. “Restore our Waters” is working on innovative ways of restoring habitat, improving water quality and working with residents on ways to capture rainwater, reduce pesticides and keep contaminants from polluting area waters.
Visit the Restore our Waters Web site.
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Seattle: America’s Green Building Capital
 Mayor Nickels has challenged Seattle to become America’s Green Building Capital. There is tremendous opportunity for greenhouse gas emission reductions by increasing energy efficiency in public and private, residential and commercial buildings. Buildings have a tremendous impact on environmental quality, resource use, and human health and productivity. Green building meets current building needs and reduces impacts on future generations by integrating building materials and methods that promote environmental quality, economic vitality, and social benefit through the design, construction and operation of our built environment.
Green Building Task Force: Mayor Nickels convened the Green Building Task Force to provide guidance on new policy proposals aimed at making Seattle the nation’s green building capital, including meeting a target of 20% increased energy efficiency in Seattle's new and existing building stock.
Seattle City Light 5-year Conservation Plan: In 2008, the mayor launched a major energy savings program today that will double Seattle City Light's current energy conservation program during the next five years. The $185 million investment in dozens of efficiency programs will save customers more than $310 million in their residential and business bills over five years and create more than 1,000 green jobs.
City Green Building: The City Green Building program provides customized tools and assistance that successfully help incorporate green building techniques into remodeling, construction and development projects. Providing incentives, technical assistance, education programs and recognition, the City Green Building team can help whether it’s a home remodel, a new apartment building, office tower, or a neighborhood park.
Green Factor: A new landscaping requirement is helping create lush new plantings in neighborhoods throughout the city. Known as the Seattle Green Factor, this program is designed to improve the quantity and quality of planted areas while allowing greater flexibility for developers and designers to meet open space requirements. Currently, it applies to new development in commercial and neighborhood commercial zones outside of downtown, and it is proposed for multifamily residential zones and the south downtown planning area.
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