As the Turnbull government struggles to implement a clear and effective climate change policy, the City of Sydney will redouble its efforts to reduce emissions in a bid to bypass the federal impasse.

Lord mayor Clover Moore, who returned from C40 Mayors Summit in Mexico earlier this month, said the climate conference had alerted her to the scale and urgency of the action required by cities to address climate change.

Cr Moore said she now believed the city needed to do "twice as much in half the time" and, at Monday night's council meeting, called on the council to accelerate its existing targets and re-allocate funding if necessary.

"It was clear from the conference that we need bolder action at a faster rate if we are to play our part in meeting the Paris Agreement," Cr Moore stated in her report from the summit, which was tabled at Monday night's council meeting.