“Now that we have experienced unprecedented heatwaves and fires in our own backyard in just the last week, we know that there is no cavalry coming to save us. We can create a climate-safe, climate-resilient future here in O.C.” — Tomas Souza de Castro
In 2023, we released our inaugural Orange County Climate Action Plan (CAP) Report Card and found that Orange County was falling behind its neighboring jurisdictions in climate action.
One year later, our newest Report Card Update shows OC still falls behind on climate. Our OC CAP Report Card Update dives into how OC and its cities are progressing—or lagging—on climate action.
With wildfires and heat waves dominating our headlines this week, it’s clear our communities are not ready for worsening climate impacts. The fires upended lives and caused widespread air pollution. Extreme heat exacerbates chronic conditions like asthma and diabetes and puts outdoor workers, children, and seniors at immediate risk of dehydration and heat strokes.
Orange County is not prepared for climate impacts. Three Orange County cities—Irvine, Santa Ana, and Anaheim rank among the least prepared for climate dangers in the United States, landing in the bottom third of 96 U.S. cities for climate readiness.
This is why our region need to act on climate immediately. We need bold CAPs to make pathways to a clean air, clean water, and a healthy and safe future.
The good news is that since the release of our inaugural Report Card last year, we’ve seen the county and eight of its cities start working on or continuing to develop a CAP.
This is largely due to community members across Orange County raising their voices for climate action, creating climate-focused advocacy groups, meeting with local leaders, and using the first edition of the CAP Report Card to demand change. Time and time again, we have seen that change is possible when the community comes together to hold our leaders accountable.
Our grassroots advocacy is slowly changing the landscape of Orange County. Together, we can protect the people and places we love. Thank you to all the incredible speakers and community members who attended our press conference release—we're making change happen 💚
We thank Supervisor Foley and Supervisor Sarmiento for their incredible efforts in making climate action a county priority. We also want to recognize Joe Thompson, a group of Chapman University students, and related faculty and residents who developed the first-ever sustainability plan for the City of Orange.
Comments