CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO

COMMISSION ON THE ENVIRONMENT

 

POLICY COMMITTEE

Thursday, February 24, 2005 5:00 P.M.

City Hall, Room 421

1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place

San Francisco, CA 94102

 

 

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:  Johanna Wald, Chair, Christina Desser, and Arlene Rodriguez

 

APPROVED MINUTES

 

ORDER OF BUSINESS

 

 

1.      Call to Order and Roll Call.  The meeting was called to order at 5:02 p.m.  Present:  Commissioners Christina Desser and Johanna Wald.  Excused/Absent:  Commissioner Arlene Rodriguez.

 

2.      ACTION:  Adoption of Minutes of September 23, 2004 and November 18, 2004 Meetings. Upon motion by Commissioner Wald and second by Commissioner Desser, the Minutes of the September 23, 2004 and November 18, 2004 meetings were unanimously adopted. 

 

3.      PUBLIC COMMENTS:  Members of the public may address the Commission on matters that are within the Commission’s jurisdiction and are not on today’s agenda.  No public comment was heard at this time.

 

4.      ACTION:  Draft Resolution from Commission to the Board of Supervisors urging support of San Francisco Marine Life Protection Act Resolution.

Sponsor:  Johanna Wald Speaker:  Kate Wing, NRDC Policy Analyst

 

Ms. Wing announced that Supervisor Mirkarimi introduced the San Francisco Marine Life Protection Act Resolution No. 119-05 at Board and it was approved.  It is a state program to create protected areas along the California coast that will be completed in phases.  The State Panel is deciding what the Central Coast is and whether the first phase to be completed in 2006 should include San Francisco.  A recommendation was made for the San Francisco Department of the Environment or the Environment Commission to send comments to the State Panel if they feel strongly about being part of the first phase of this process.  Director Blumenfeld was asked to write a letter as soon as possible supporting a definition of the Central Coast that includes San Francisco.

 

5.  PRESENTATION:  Burton Center for Human Rights on expanding World Environment Day (WED) draft accords to incorporate “Education for Global Citizenship.”

Sponsor:  Johanna Wald Speaker:  Bill Hough, Representative, Burton Center

Mr. Bill Hough proposed that a second document be drafted for the signatures of the Mayors for WED entitled the “Declaration of San Francisco” that he presented to the Commission. The document outlines additional principles to add to the WED draft accords. Foremost, he requested that the Stockholm declaration be mentioned in the WED draft accords and that there be a public process to consider the document.  A request was made to have Department of the Environment staff review Mr. Hough’s recommendations.

 

The Burton Center is developing an “Education for Global Citizenship” program that they are requesting be incorporated into WED. 

 

Public comment from Michelle Leighton, Co-Founder of the Natural Heritage Institute in San Francisco recommending that the Preamble to the Urban Environmental Accords be amended to include references to the right to a clean, healthy and safe environment and to address the adverse effects of globalization on the environment, human rights and worker rights. Incorporating corporate social responsibility in municipal procurement was discussed. 

 

Director Blumenfeld advised that San Francisco focuses on the Precautionary Purchasing Ordinance. A workshop on procurement hosted by CAL Federal EPA and the Department of the Environment would be given to the Mayors.  He stated that the right to a clean, healthy and safe environment and references to the Stockholm declaration should be added to the accords.  A request was made to work on a specific accord that relates to procurement and worker health.  April 22^nd is the deadline for finalizing the accords.

 

6.      INFORMATION:  New Business.  No new business was discussed at this time.

 

    7.  PUBLIC COMMENTS:  Members of the public may address the Commission on matters that are within the Commission’s jurisdiction and are not on today’s agenda.

Public comment from Mr. Kiat Nun, Graduate Student, Audubon Institute would be forwarding two drafts on environmental education to the Director for review/addition to the WED draft accords.

 

8.  ADJOURNMENT:  The meeting of the Policy Committee adjourned at 5:32 p.m.

 

** Copies of explanatory documents are available at the Commission’s office, 11 Grove Street, San Francisco, California between the hours of 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., or when possible, on the Commission’s webpage or upon request to the Commission Secretary, at telephone number 415-355-3709, or via e-mail at [email protected].

 

Respectfully submitted by,

 

Monica Fish, Commission Secretary

 

Adopted:  April 28, 2005