May 16, 2022
San Rafael City Council
1400 Fifth Avenue
San Rafael, CA 94901
RE: Wood Roof Replacement
Honorable Mayor and Council Members,
Thank you for moving forward with requirements to replace flammable wood roofs with more fire-resistant materials. We encourage the City to prioritize additional 'home hardening' steps and incentives to protect the actual structures we are trying to save from the threat of wildfire brought on by accelerating climate change, while also maintaining healthy, firesafe, and carbon-sequestering landscapes around those structures.
We request that the City augment information and communications with property owners concerning the significant task of replacing roofs with information about other steps that can be integrated into such work that would help reduce the causes of climate change itself. Such suggestions associated with roof replacement include:
• Roof and attic insulation that can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from building heating and cooling, as well as reducing home energy costs. • New roofing that is light colored, providing reflective or 'albedo' benefits that cool buildings during heat waves and reduce community 'heat islands.' • Installation of solar panels in conjunction with roofing work, with the potential to bundle overall project costs, benefit from additional rebates and incentives, and increase both GHG-free energy generation and resilience during power outages.
By folding such climate-change-reducing measures into the work required to 'adapt' to the impacts of climate change, residents can help reduce both future impacts and future costs. We urge the City to consider and encourage such co-benefits whenever addressing the escalating economic and social costs of the growing climate crisis.
Thank you for your ongoing stewardship of our community.
Sincerely,
William Carney
President, Sustainable San Rafael