What is the Community Climate Action Plan?

The Cedar Rapids City Council declared an urgency for our community to take climate action, calling for the creation of a Climate Action Plan in February 2020.

Our Community Climate Action Plan (CCAP) centers on equity and builds on our community’s existing strengths in sustainability. The plan’s goal areas and action items relate directly to the targets of Council’s climate resolution, including significant reductions in greenhouse gas emissions; resilience to climate hazards; and access to basic needs — including clean air and water, healthy food, parks and nature with lots of amenities, green jobs, and direct connections to City government — for Cedar Rapids’ most underserved residents.

The plan’s two key goal areas are:

In all, the plan has 24 actions, including areas like enhancing transit and shared transportation options, developing sustainable business and development policies, preparing for electric vehicle infrastructure, protecting water quality, and developing a food access policy.

All 24 actions and more details can be found in the Community Climate Action Plan at CityofCR.com/Climate.

To develop the Community Climate Action Plan, the City used public surveys, focus groups, and an advisory committee — encompassing several months of planning and public engagement — to integrate the community’s priorities. Community is in the name, after all!

The Cedar Rapids community provided extensive input on the plan. Initial engagement included virtual introduction sessions, along with online and in-person surveys translated into several languages. A Community Climate Advisory Committee also met to provide equitable community perspective and guide the development of the CCAP. Focus groups — including such stakeholders as small businesses, neighborhood groups, nonprofits, schools, large businesses, and local industries — provided additional valuable input on the plan.

Cedar Rapids’ primary climate hazards:

Heat | The number of days over 90 degrees is forecasted to triple by mid–late 21st century.

Heavy Rain | Heavy rainfall events have increased 42 percent since 1958 and will increase another 40 percent by mid-late 21st Century.

Major Flooding | The Cedar River is rising one inch per decade. Heavy rainfall in the watershed increases chances of flooding.

• Residents identified heat as a primary climate hazard of concern.

• Residents’ top climate priorities included:

- Replanting trees

- Increasing renewable energy

- Winterizing homes

- Healthy food access

- Energy-efficient homes

As climate change intensifies, our CCAP calls for the basic needs of under-resourced residents in Cedar Rapids to be prioritized. Residents who have barriers to achieving basic needs — such as speaking a language other than English, living in poverty, not owning a vehicle, or having a disability — experience extra daily stress, making them susceptible to greater challenges when faced with extreme weather. These residents are most impacted by extreme heat and flooding — waiting outside for the bus, living without air conditioning, or working outside can be difficult and dangerous in those conditions. These same residents are often disconnected from City decision processes, because traveling downtown to a meeting or getting online to provide feedback may not be feasible with limited funds, mobility, time, and familiarity.

Public input for the creation of the Community Climate Action Plan prioritized equitable engagement, with a particular interest in surveying populations classified as vulnerable or underserved by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In the second round of surveys, 29 percent of respondents came from households earning under $25,000 (18 percent of Cedar Rapids’ households have incomes of less than $25,000), and 28 percent of respondents identified as non-white (17 percent of Cedar Rapids residents identify as non-white).

Equitable engagement is the process for developing understanding and partnership with residents who are underrepresented and under-resourced. As our community looks to reduce carbon emissions and build resilience to a changing climate, residents with vulnerabilities are central to the planning and decision-making processes and outcomes.