The U.S. Conference of Mayors convened in Miami this weekend and adopted a resolution that would oppose the government purchase of dirty, unconventional fuels such as tar sands, liquid coal, and oil shale.  The resolution calls for the creation of guidelines and purchasing standards to prohibit taxpayer dollars from being spent on fuels with greenhouse gas emissions higher than conventional petroleum. 

The High Carbon Fuels Resolution was submitted by Mayor Piercy of Eugene, OR and co-sponsored by ten other mayors: Mayor Newsom of San Francisco, CA; Mayor Cownie of Des Moines, IA; Mayor Blum of Santa Barbara, CA; Mayor Hosterman of Pleasanton, CA; Mayor Nelson of Waukesha, WI; Mayor Palmer of Trenton, NJ; Mayor Buol of Dubuque, IA; Mayor Cabaldon of West Sacramento, CA; Mayor Coody of Fayetteville, AR; Mayor Wynn of Austin, TX; and Mayor Johnson of Alameda, CA. 

Unconventional and synthetic fuels are derived from lower-grade, difficult to access raw materials and production can emit two to five times the global warming pollution than that of conventional oil. 

“We don’t want to spend taxpayer dollars on fuels that make global warming worse,” said Mayor Piercy. “Tar sands oil emits up to three times the greenhouse gases in the production process per barrel as conventional oil production.”

In the last few years, U.S. mayors have come out as leaders on environmental initiatives, specifically in the fight to stop global warming.  As the Federal government fails to pass climate legislation, over 850 mayors across the country have advocated for and adopted emissions targets for their own cities, pushing forward with measures that decrease their city’s impact on the environment. 

"There is incredible public momentum for energy innovation,” said Mayor Piercy.  “Our cities are asking for environmentally sustainable energy and not fuels from dirty sources such as tar sands.”

The resolution:
• encourages fuel lifecycle emissions analyses that include production emissions;
• supports Federal and State guidelines for tracking the origin of various types of fuel; and
• encourages mayors to track and reduce lifecycle emissions from their city’s municipal vehicles, paying special attention to the use of unconventional and synthetic fuels. 

“The mayors have once again confirmed that they’re serious about combating climate change,” said Mayor Blum.  “Not only will we give preference to clean, renewable energy sources, we are standing our ground when it comes to synthetic petroleum-based fuels that exacerbate global warming.”

"Global warming is the one of the most critical issues facing our cities," said Mayor Cownie. "This resolution shows our willingness to take action to move forward - not backwards which is where fuels such as tar sands oil will take us."