US mayors approve climate change initiative

A bipartisan group of mayors from across the United States voted Monday to approve a resolution calling on cities to use natural solutions to fight the impact of climate change, U.S. media reported.
Mayors attending the U.S. Conference of Mayors voted Monday in Dallas to pass unanimously the 2014 U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, as the resolution is called, the Dallas Morning News reported.
The resolution encourages, rather than mandates, cities to use nature to "protect freshwater supplies, defend the nation's coastlines, maintain a healthy tree and green-space cover and protect air quality," sometimes by partnering with nonprofit organizations.
On top of infrastructure projects aimed at mitigating climate impacts, cities will look to combine conventional pipes with open spaces to build effective storm water collection systems.
By tackling such projects, more parks and recreation areas will be created.
The overall strategy will address water, waste water and storm water runoff, heat island effects, preservation of open space and provide an inventory of emissions from fossil fuels for city operations to set reduction targets, according to the resolution.
Though the resolution was passed with ease, divisions remain between Republicans and Democrats. While science shows human industrial activity is contributing to global warming, some conservatives remain skeptical.
The U.S. government recently unveiled new rules aimed at cutting carbon emissions from existing power plants, the single largest source of carbon pollution in the country, by 30 percent below 2005 levels by 2030. The proposal was met with fierce opposition from some hard-line Republicans.