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EARTH DAY PROCLAMATION WHEREAS, Planet Earth is a closed environmental system that generations of inhabitants change for good or ill by our actions, that we share with contemporaries everywhere, and leave to our successors, and WHEREAS, President Barack Obama cautioned that, “we must protect our land, wildlife, water and air the resources that have fueled our growth and prosperity as a Nation and enriched our lives…not only to acknowledge the environment's central role in the development of our Nation but also to recognize the strong ecological interdependence among nations,” and WHEREAS, Earth Day is celebrated around the globe as a reminder of our individual and collective responsibility to care for this precious and vulnerable place, and WHEREAS, The first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970, and WHEREAS, Since the advent of the Industrial Age, human activities have contributed significantly to greenhouse gas emissions, resulting in alarming changes to the Earth’s climate, melting glaciers and polar ice, thawing permafrost, and raising sea levels, and WHEREAS, People are shocked to learn about a whirlpool of trash twice the size of Texas in the open ocean 1,000 miles northeast from Hawaii, but are ignorant of so many other less outrageous affronts to planetary health, and WHEREAS, Even small changes can make big differences collectively, and WHEREAS, We can all do our parts, however large or small, to improve the odds for sustaining life on this planet, and WHEREAS, It makes good economic sense to take measures like incorporating renewable energy, building efficiently, reducing waste, and lessening water consumption, and WHEREAS, The City of Moscow, University of Idaho, and area residents are making incremental strides to become more sustainable through energy efficiency, trash clean-up campaigns, responsible purchasing practices, recycling, waste reduction, water conservation, compact development, transportation choices, planting trees and native vegetation, environmental education, and more, NOW THEREFORE, I, Nancy Chaney, Mayor of the City of Moscow, Idaho do hereby proclaim April 22, 2010 as Earth Day in the City of Moscow, and I urge citizens to reflect on Earth's tender gifts, to plant trees and flowers, clean the environment, and take part in other activities to celebrate the quality of life that we enjoy and the natural resources that are necessary to support it, now and in the future. DATED this 19th day of April, 2010. Copy Copy Copy Nancy Chaney, Mayor