Gotham Gets It: Mayor Bloomberg Calls for Government Action on Climate Change

The most solemn commitment borne by an elected official is to promote the public welfare and keep the citizenry safe. As New York City struggles to rebound from one of the fiercest storms in memory, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg rose to that occasion with an urgent call for government at all levels to forcefully address climate change. Yes, folks, Gotham gets it. In an editorial for Bloomberg View, the mayor wrote: The devastation that Hurricane Sandy brought to New York City and much of the Northeast -- in lost lives, lost homes and lost business -- brought the stakes of Tuesday's presidential election into sharp relief. The floods and fires that swept through our city left a path of destruction that will require years of recovery and rebuilding work. . . . In just 14 months, two hurricanes have forced us to evacuate neighborhoods -- something our city government had never done before. If this is a trend, it is simply not sustainable. Our climate is changing. And while the increase in extreme weather we have experienced in New York City and around the world may or may not be the result of it, the risk that it might be -- given this week's devastation -- should compel all elected leaders to take immediate action. He described New York City's own efforts to fight climate change by reducing carbon emissions "by 16 percent in just five years." He could also have noted his city's impressive planning efforts to adapt to those climate effects that can no longer be avoided.