PHOENIX—Today, Mayor Kate Gallego shared the City's first Climate Action Plan Progress Report, which provides an overview and summary of climate progress since the City Council adopted the Plan in 2021.
“Phoenix is on the frontlines of climate change, which is why we're working day-in and day-out to develop new strategies to cut emissions, build resilient infrastructure, and importantly, empower residents to take climate action, too," Gallego said in the report. “This progress report indicates that we are on the right track to reach our ambitious targets and will help us sharpen our focus as we continue toward our vision to become the most sustainable desert city in the world."
“U.S. cities are uniquely at risk due to climate change, and one of the most important ways to prepare is to set a climate action plan," said Katie Walsh, Head of Climate Finance for Cities, States and Regions and North America Lead at CDP. “We congratulate the City of Phoenix for publishing this progress report, since evaluating and measuring progress is an important step for any city looking to build environmental resilience for an uncertain future. Phoenix has been a leader in this area for years, consistently earning a spot on CDP's Cities A List, and we look forward to continuing to work with the City as it fulfills its climate goals."
A few high-level achievements and progress markers include:
- Establishing dedicated City offices overseeing Heat Response and Mitigation, Water Resources, Public Health, and Innovation;
- An overall decrease in Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHGs) from government entities and the community—Phoenix per capita GHG emissions have decreased 20.5% since 2012;
- Expansions of the light rail system and alternative mobility programs;
- Increased installations of renewable energy systems across Phoenix facilities, including new solar arrays at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport;
- Electrifying Phoenix bus and vehicle fleets;
- Diverting a third of overall waste from landfills in 2022 and 2023, and achieving nearly 50% waste diversion at Phoenix airports in 2023;
- Increasing equitable access to healthy food systems;
- Harnessing shade, cool pavement, and other tools to beat the urban heat island effect; and
- Bolstering Phoenix's water supply through community conservation programs, investments in water purification, and Green Stormwater Infrastructure.
Read the full progress report HERE.
Gallego has led on combatting climate change since her first day in office. She is currently serving as Vice Chair of C40 Cities, a network of mayors across the globe working together to confront the climate crisis, as well as Vice Chair of Climate Mayors, a bipartisan group of nearly 350 U.S. mayors demonstrating leadership on climate and sustainability. In 2015, Phoenix voters declared their commitment to making Phoenix the most sustainable desert city on the planet—and the mayor is working day-in and day-out to achieve that goal.
From working with ASU on innovations like the first-of-its-kind microfactory for plastics that would otherwise go to a landfill, to electrifying the city's public transit system, Phoenix is leading the way on climate solutions that can be replicated at scale, all over the world. Climate action is not only a public health and environmental imperative—it is central to ensuring equity and accessibility, modernizing our economy, fostering new jobs and talent, and ensuring Phoenix remains competitive for decades to come.