SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio City Council approved a proposed merger ordinance for the city’s two existing climate advisory committees, putting in place a singular team to oversee the city’s sustainability efforts and climate plan.

Previous committees, the San Antonio Climate Ready Equity Advisory Committee and the Technical and Community Advisory Committee, featured a variety of members with technical expertise in climate mitigation and adaptation.

Both were created after San Antonio adopted its Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP) on October 17, 2019. The process was driven by the approval by the city council of a June 2017 resolution in support of the Paris Climate Agreementaccording to documents from Thursday’s meeting.

Last month, Zabrina Rodríguez Rapozo, climate program manager at the Office of Sustainability, said the office hopes publish an updated CAAP plan in summer 2025.

The two former advisory committees implemented two city climate plans: the SA Tomorrow Sustainability Plan and the CAAP, according to descriptions on the city committee websites.

The office said the divided committees exhibited challenges in addressing climate equity, a goal set for both committees.

Other challenges faced included:

• Limited staff capacity to manage the logistics of two committees with 35 members in total

• Difficulty gathering a quorum for the Climate Equity Advisory Committee

• General membership is inconsistent with current city board and commission standards. The necessary participation of the mayor and the municipal council with individually appointed members was also lacking.

Under San Antonio’s unique Climate Ready Advisory Committee, members will include:

• Ten members appointed by the city council

• A member appointed by the mayor

• The mayor will appoint a member of the mayor’s Youth Engagement Council for Climate Initiatives.

• Five ex officio members will be from CPS Energy, SAWS, VIA Metropolitan Transit, San Antonio River Authority and Joint Base San Antonio.

• Term appointments will be for two years, coinciding with the end of the current term of the municipal council.

Some expectations for the new committee include preparing an annual report to the city council on the activities and progress of the city’s CAAP plan and providing a venue that the public can use to provide feedback on the priorities and goals of the CAAP.

In February, when the Office of Sustainability published its annual reportSocial media users quickly questioned the public participation process, citing the lack of exit committee meetings last year.

“What’s happening to South Africa’s climate-ready boards?” wrote one user on Facebook. “They have not met in a year and all current members’ terms have expired. How are we supposed to update the CAAP with ‘priority emissions reduction targets’ if there is no public input from South Africa’s prepared climate boards?

In 2022, five meetings each were held between the two committees.

The technical advisory committee held two meetings in 2023, while the equity advisory committee canceled its lone February 2023 meeting, according to the committee’s website.

Doug Melnick, the office’s director of sustainability, hopes the merger will focus the office’s goals on promoting future climate and sustainability plans in San Antonio.

“This committee will play a key role in advancing the San Antonio Climate Action and Adaptation Game by providing strategic guidance and expert advice,” Melnick said in a statement emailed to KSAT. “The Office of Sustainability will provide information to the committee so it can help make efficient and collaborative decisions that include participation from the City Council. With this more equitable and diverse membership, the new committee will continue to assist the City with its sustainability efforts.”

Rapozo said the committee is expected to be formed in time for its first meeting in early 2025.

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