The City of Hoboken was recently announced as the only City in New Jersey and one of only 121 municipalities worldwide to receive a top score on climate action from the environmental impact non-profit, CDP. Hoboken’s distinction was achieved by only 12 percent of the 1,002 participating cities and counties. According to CDP, as an A List City, Hoboken has taken twice as many climate action mitigation and adaptation measures as non-A List local governments. CDP’s Cities A List is based on environmental data disclosed by local governments to the CDP-ICLEI Track and is designed to encourage and support local governments to increase their action on climate change.
“There are few cities across the country that feel the impact of climate change more than Hoboken, which is why it’s critical we continue to do all that we can to mitigate its effects,” said Mayor Ravi S. Bhalla. “I am honored that CDP ranked the City on its prestigious A List for climate action, and I thank our Department of Environmental Services and the residents of Hoboken for implementing the action items within our ambitious Climate Action Plan into their daily lives. I look forward to continuing our progress as we strive to be carbon neutral by 2050 and net-zero energy by 2030.”
Mayor Bhalla signed an executive order in 2019 establishing the City’s Climate Action Plan, which provides key action items to further the City’s goals to be carbon neutral by 2050 and net-zero energy by 2030.
Since then, Hoboken has taken significant steps to mitigate its contributions to climate change, which includes the phasing in of hybrid and electric vehicles to the City’s municipal fleet, reducing dependency on fossil fuels. So far, the City has replaced 17 vehicles and will also purchase a new electric garbage truck and Hop shuttle bus utilizing $1.2 million in State funding awarded by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP).
Next year, the City will also increase its electric vehicle charging infrastructure to more than double the amount of publicly accessible charging ports. Through a partnership with Volta, residents will have significantly greater access to electric charging infrastructure, to encourage more electric vehicle ownership.
The City also expanded its residential composting drop-off program in 2021 from four sites to 12, making it more convenient to drop off compostable materials while reducing landfill contributions. Hoboken also banned single-use plastic bags and Styrofoam food containers by ordinance in 2020. In September, the City of Hoboken announced the Zero Waste initiative to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve the quality of life for residents as part of the City’s Climate Action Plan, as solid waste accounts for approximately 10 percent of the City’s GHG emissions.
In addition, Hoboken is making it easier and more cost-effective for residents to reap the benefits of renewable energy. Last year, Hoboken launched the Hoboken Renewable Energy Program, which provides homeowners with 10 percent more of their power from renewable sources than the State mandated standard. This year the City began enrolling qualifying residents in the new Community Solar Program, which will provide low-to-moderate-income residents with solar energy from an offsite location, reducing their electric bills by an average of up to 25 percent.
In 2020, Hoboken became the first municipality in New Jersey to file a lawsuit against nearly a dozen fossil fuel-related companies for their decades-long campaign of misinformation that has directly contributed to the damaging effects of climate change in Hoboken. The litigation comes at no expense to the City of Hoboken or Hoboken taxpayers. Legal fees associated with the lawsuit are funded, in part, by the Institute for Governance and Sustainable Development and, in part, through a contingency arrangement.
“Congratulations to the City of Hoboken for earning a spot on the CDP Cities A List — one of 49 cities and counties in North America to make the list in 2022,” said Katie Walsh, Head of Cities, States, Regions and Public Authorities, CDP North America. “From mitigating carbon emissions in line with science, to building resilience against floods, drought and other climate hazards, to centering marginalized and vulnerable communities in their response, A List local governments are demonstrating best-practice environmental action. Hoboken is in the vanguard of cities and counties leading the way toward a climate-safe future.”
For more information on CDP, go to https://www.cdp.net/en/cities/cities-scores.
About CDP
CDP is a global non-profit that runs the world’s environmental disclosure system for companies, cities, states and regions. Founded in 2000 and working with more than 680 investors with over $130 trillion in assets, CDP pioneered using capital markets and corporate procurement to motivate companies to disclose their environmental impacts, and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, safeguard water resources and protect forests.
Nearly 20,000 organizations around the world disclosed data through CDP in 2022, including more than 18,700 companies worth 50% of global market capitalization, and over 1,100 cities, states and regions. CDP is a founding member of the Science Based Targets initiative, We Mean Business Coalition, The Investor Agenda and the Net Zero Asset Managers initiative. Visit cdp.net or follow us @CDP to find out more.
