Attachment 1
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CITY OF MOUNTAIN VIEW
RESOLUTION NO.
SERIES 2022
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF MOUNTAIN VIEW TO SUPPORT THE BAY ADAPT: REGIONAL STRATEGY
FOR A RISING BAY JOINT PLATFORM
WHEREAS, climate change will result in the accelerating rise of San Francisco Bay waters, increased and regular storm frequency and intensity, and rising groundwater.
The confluence of more intense winter storms, extreme high tides, and higher runoff, with higher sea levels, will increase the frequency and duration of shoreline flooding long before areas are permanently inundated by sea level rise alone; and
WHEREAS, sea levels are rising at an accelerating rate and will continue to rise for the foreseeable future. A major storm, within the next decade, in the San F rancisco Bay Area could result in temporary flooding impacts to 13,000 existing housing units and 70,000 planned housing units, 28,000 socially vulnerable residents, 104,000 existing jobs and 85,000 planned jobs, and 20,000 acres of wetlands habitat that m ay become permanently inundated within 40 years; and
WHEREAS, there are multiple local, regional, State, and F ederal government agencies with authority over the San Francisco Bay and its shoreline, and , while local governments have broad authority over s horeline land use, local governments have limited resources to address climate change adaptation , and their individual actions would be less effective than a regional approach; and
WHEREAS, the San Francisco Bay Area (Bay) is a vibrant, diverse, ecologically unique, innovative, and pioneering region that will be deeply and deleteriously affected by climate change without tremendou s effort and investments to adapt to a constantly changing shoreline. The San Francisco Bay shoreline constitutes approximately one-third of the California coastline, but the Bay Area is estimated to experience two -thirds of the negative economic impacts due to the flooding that would occur absent adequate measures to adapt and protect people, places, and habitat; and
WHEREAS, the Bay Area region’s most socioeconomically vulnerable frontline communities are at the greatest risk of exposure to climate thr eats, and the impacts of historic and ongoing social and economic marginalization will compound the risks posed by flooding to those communities by reducing a community’s or individual’s ability to prepare for, respond to, and/or recover from a flood event; and
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WHEREAS, the Bay ecosystem is already stressed by human activities that drastically lower its adaptive capacity, and climate change will further alter that ecosystem by inundating or eroding remaining wetlands, changing sediment dynamics, altering species composition, raising the acidity of Bay waters, changing freshwater flows and/or salinity, altering the food web, and impairing water quality. Moreover, further loss of tidal wetlands will increase the risk of shoreline flooding; and
WHEREAS, flood damage to vital shoreline development, public infrastructure, and facilities, such as neighborhoods, commercial centers, airports, seaports, regional transportation facilities, landfills, contaminated lands, and wastewater treatment facilities, absent adaptation, will require costly repairs and likely will result in the interruption or loss of vital services and/or degraded environmental quality; and
WHEREAS, the increasingly frequent and severe impacts of climate change in the Bay Area do not conform to jurisdictional boundaries or the planning and regulatory authorities of any one agency or organization; and
WHEREAS, in 2019, the Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC), in collaboration with a Leadership Advisory Group comprised of 35 Bay Area public, private, and nonprofit leaders , embarked on the development of “Bay Adapt,” a consensus-driven strategy for regional sea level rise adaptation; and
WHEREAS, in 2020 and 2021, hundreds of stakeholders participated in the creation of the “Bay Adapt: Regional Strategy for a Rising Bay Joint Platform” (Bay Adapt Joint Platform or Joint Platform ) through nine Leadership Advisory Group meetings, two public forums, many expert Working Group meetings, 10 community and stakeholder focus groups, over 50 presentations to local governments around the region, and a month-long public feedback opportunity; and
WHEREAS, the Bay Adapt Joint Platform lays out a set of guiding principles, priority actions, and vital tasks whose implementation will enable the region, and most notably local governments, to adapt faster, better, and more equitably to a rising San Francisco Bay. If fulfilled, it will reduce flood risks for communities, businesses, infrastructure, and habitat; increase technical assistance for local governments a nd funding for adaptation; protect natural areas and wildlife; recognize and equitably support low -income, frontline communities; robustly integrate adaptation into community-focused local plans; and accelerate permitting and project construction of local adaptation projects; and
WHEREAS, the BCDC adopted the Bay Adapt Joint Platform on October 21, 2021; and
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WHEREAS, implementing the Bay Adapt Joint Platform’s many and varied actions and tasks goes beyond the capacity of any single organization or jurisdiction and requires strong and broad leadership and participation at both the local and regional levels, and a broad coalition of stakeholders shares responsibility for the success of the tasks outlined in the Joint Platform;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Mountain View that the City Council:
1. Supports the Bay Adapt Joint Platform, including the guiding principles, actions, and tasks contained within; and
2. Supports the implementation of the Bay Adapt Joint Platform to help ensure that it serves the City of Mountain View and the Bay Area as a whole in achieving resilient and equitable adaptation to sea level rise.
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RW-LA/TS/4/RESO
931-01-25-22r