In a significant turnaround, city council tonight (Monday) unanimously voted to declare a climate emergency in St. Thomas. Council previously had twice voted to defer the matter to a future date. In front of a packed gallery at city hall, climate advocate Doug Walker urged council to join the more than 1,300 jurisdictions worldwide in declaring such an emergency. Failing to do so, stressed Walker, will not only harm our children, but their children.
St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston said he throws his support behind the motion, but added “make sure we understand why we are doing this in strategic fashion.
Walker urged members to sound a climate alarm for the sake of future generations.
Prior to the vote, Coun. Steve Peters observed, “we can’t just stop at declaring an emergency, it has to be a tangible plan.”
