Dec 17, 2018 - City of Mountain View Votes to Divest from Fossil Fuels

Mountain View city council members approve divestment from fossil fuels and a ban on investments in “entities that engage in the direct exploration, production, refining, or marketing of fossil fuels.”

Mountain View, CA–On December 11, 2018, the City of Mountain View quietly passed two important items from the ​ Consent Calendar​ (Item 4.8 on page 4): divestment from fossil fuels and a ban on future investments in the fossil fuel industry. The City joins a bold and rapidly-growing group of ​ 1000+ organizations​ that have committed to fossil fuel divestment in response to climate change and calls from indigenous and other climate leaders to #DivestTheGlobe

Local activists say public money should hasten, not delay, the transition to clean energy and urged the City’s Investment Review Committee to divest its holdings in Chevron and Exxon and safeguard against future investments in the industry

“I don’t want to see investment in a dying and deadly form of energy production. We have 12 years to shift to sustainable, clean energy. If we fail it is going to be pretty awful for everyone. As a tax payer I have no problem at all ponying up to fund a rapid transition to a green economy.” –Chris Bedford Mountain View resident

“Seeds from Standing Rock have blown far and wide. Congratulations on pushing the city of Mountain View to divest from fossil fuels. Divestment is a powerful tool to use to take our money out of institutions and industries that are destroying our communities and the planet.”​ –Matt Remle, (Hunkpapa Lakota) editor and writer with Last Real Indians and co-founder of MazaskaTalks

Mountain View resident Hala Alshahwany of Cuesta Park posted on NextDoor: ​ “This is fantastic and very timely action, in light of all recent highly credible reports- U.N. IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) in Oct.2018 and US Climate Assessment issued by 13 federal agencies in Nov.2018, regarding the severity of climate change and the importance of reducing fossil fuel emissions. Divesting from oil companies is a great investment towards a sustainable community; thank you city of Mountain View.”

This past year, the City of Mountain View’s Environmental Sustainability Task Force 2 engaged residents, staff, environmental experts and stakeholders in a mighty 9-month effort to “[help] the City meet its climate goals”, producing a 318-page report of recommendations.

Over the same period, the City’s external investment manager, Chandler Asset Management, doubled down on investments in Chevron (from $5.5M in June 2017 to $7.9M in June 2018) and Exxon ($5.9M in June 2018) despite hearing concerns (albeit no prohibitions) regarding dirty energy from the Investment Review Committee in June 2017.

The Investment Review Committee recommendations (page 3) as passed on consent include:

  • Divest the City’s holdings in Chevron and Exxon Mobil as soon as possible.

  • Update the areas of the Policy related to the Supranational Securities for clean-up and correction and other minor clean up language.

  • Add Subsections 6.1.3 and 6.3.3 to the Policy related to environmental social responsibility as follows:

6.1.3 Investments are encouraged in entities involved in the production of renewable energy and sustainable agriculture, and that demonstrate a commitment to environmental sustainability, and the transparency and accountability in corporate governance.

6.3.3 No investment is to be made in entities that engage in the direct exploration, production, refining, or marketing of fossil fuels.

Further background on the Annual Report of the Investment Review Committee for Fiscal Year 2017-18

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Melanie Liu, melliu02@gmail.com, 650-930-0039

Last Real Indians