San Francisco Sun

San Francisco, CA – Mayor London N. Breed has released findings from San Francisco’s 2022 Sector-based Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory, indicating significant progress in the city's climate efforts. The report shows a 48% reduction in overall emissions and a 53% decrease in per capita emissions since 1990, despite a 12% population increase.

Contrary to expectations of rising emissions as economic and social activities resumed post-COVID-19 pandemic, emission levels remained stable. This stability underscores the effectiveness of climate policies under Mayor Breed’s Climate Action Plan.

“Today’s announcement is a testament to our continued effort to make San Francisco a more equitable, resilient, and sustainable city for all of our residents,” said Mayor Breed. “From investing in housing and public transit to expanding access to clean and renewable energy, our City is leading the way and proving to cities around the world that you can adopt bold climate policies while growing your economy. There is still a lot of work to be done, but together, we can ensure that San Francisco continues to lead the fight against climate change.”

The inventory, published biennially by the San Francisco Environment Department, tracks emission levels across six sectors: Transportation, Buildings, Landfilled Organics, Municipal, Agriculture, and Wastewater. Except for agriculture and wastewater—which account for less than 3% of total emissions—all sectors have shown substantial declines from 1990 levels.

“We anticipated a temporary dip in emissions due to the stay-at-home health orders issued during the pandemic,” said Tyrone Jue, Director of the San Francisco Environment Department. “However, the real triumph is that as San Francisco’s economy continues to rebound, our commitment to sustainability has not wavered. An increasing number of people are contributing to a greener City by riding public transportation, walking or biking, and by being more mindful with their waste. They’re also opting for 100% clean energy through services like CleanPowerSF. Together demonstrating that economic vitality and environmental sustainability go hand in hand.”

Key drivers behind these reductions include increased low-carbon trips, vehicle electrification advocacy with expanded curbside charging infrastructure, construction of all-electric buildings alongside gas appliance replacements in existing structures, and ensuring clean energy provision through CleanPowerSF and Hetch Hetchy Power programs. The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA) boasts an all-electric fleet ranked as the greenest transportation fleet in the U.S.

Mayor Breed has consistently championed environmental legislation throughout her tenure at City Hall. In 2021 she updated the Climate Action Plan with 174 actionable steps aimed at achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2040 while embedding social and racial equity frameworks within it.

San Francisco recently received a $1 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Government-to-Government program supporting environmental justice initiatives aimed at benefiting communities disproportionately affected by environmental harms.

As former Supervisor, Mayor Breed enacted significant measures such as passing one of the strongest Styrofoam bans nationwide and initiating prescription drug take-back programs. She also played a crucial role in launching CleanPowerSF which now provides electricity free from greenhouse gases to critical municipal services among others.

San Francisco aims for complete renewable electricity usage by 2025 while continuing its leadership role in promoting low-carbon economies essential both environmentally and economically since establishing its baseline year back in 1990 when citywide emissions were just under eight million mtCO2e.