I. 

Many people have been asking me about what happened in Texas, this week, and what it means for the ideas of being all-electric. 

Hopefully, most of you have read the analyses that show clearly the issue was under-investment in weatherization to protect against climate events. (kind of like under-investing in maintenance of electrical lines in California subject to high winds). 

One interesting perspective I read today talked about the failure of the building owners to reduce their consumption of energy, which put strain on the energy infrastructure. One analysis suggested that, had Texans invested in efficient heat pump systems in some significant quantity, it could have reduced system demand and helped to avoid the capacity problems that led to the rolling blackouts. (HERE). 

This is interesting because, as we talk about our Fairfax Energy Future, electric heat pumps is clearly a technology that is going to help us, especially as we think about the issue of building electrification. 

                                             II. 

Another thing that would have helped people in Texas would have been some kind of on-site energy generation and storage, which could have relieved load on the grid, so that demand could have balanced a bit better. 

And, as you know, we are working to develop the first Fairfax Solar Co-op! People are already signing up, which is exciting. Once we hit a critical mass of people, we will get us all together and start to talk about how to get the process really moving. Please join us and lets collaborate to make the world a better place. 

Thank you all, and have a great day!

Ok, Team Fairfax, here is a very cool opportunity. 

Our friends at Sustainable Fairfax are considering partnering with People Power Solar, an NGO from the East Bay, to launch a Solar Coop for our town. (HERE). 

The idea is that not everyone can afford to put solar panels on their roof, or, like my house, we are so covered with trees we can't get enough sun on our roof to generate enough electricity. But, we still want to be part of the clean energy future. 

So, here is how the coop might work. It will be a self-organized, self-managed group of people from the Town of Fairfax. Each person is able to invest up to $1,000. The coop will take this money and use it to buy and install a solar installation on the roof of a Fairfax person or business. The person or business will buy the energy produced by the solar panels, for a period of up to 25 years. 

Then, each investor will earn a small return on their investment - about 3% per year. 

That's it! Very simple. 

We are going to start small, so we can get all of the details worked out. Once we have things figured out, we could scale it up in several ways. In this way, the people of this Town can start to own our own energy future. We can be the ones investing in our local energy, and earning a return for doing so. We can provide our own green energy, and not rely on others to do it for us.

We can be the change. 

If you are interested in learning more; if you are interested in putting panels on your roof or business; if you are interested in investing in the renewable energy future of this Town, sign up below, and we will make sure you are part of it. 

Fairfax has always been a Town of people who come together to make great things happen. Let's do it again. 

People I talk to often take on a concerned look, thinking back to last summer's fires, and talk quietly about the drought we can all feel. 

Today, that realness became more real. The IJ reported that the Marin Municipal Water District, MMWD, is calling now for voluntary water restrictions, warning that this winter is almost as bad as the one in 1976. 

1976. 

In 1976, I was a high school student in Kansas City where I had grown up. I had not heard of global warming, and I was only vaguely aware that there was a state called California (I was pretty un-worldly). I did not experience the drought of 1976, but I did experience the fires of 2020. 

One of the things we are talking about on the Climate Action Committee is the need for us to adopt water reduction strategies ALL the time, knowing that, as the Cal EPA tells us, this kind of drought is our new normal. 

Here are things that MMWD tells us we should be doing:
1. Water outside only before 9 am and after 7 pm. 
2. Don't water when it's raining, or for two days after (if it ever does. 
3. Don't wash sidewalks, walkways, or driveways (don't laugh, my wife likes to have me wash our white metal ROOF; not this year, now I have an excuse). 
4. Fix Leaks 
Believe it or not, these are part of the Water Code. I didn't even know there was a water code, and I don't know if there are water police. What I DO know is that this is really common sense, and that I am going to police myself; I think every one of us owes it to each other to be good neighbors and to do this stuff. 

In addition, the MMWD recommends:
5. MMWD will give you a free water audit and help you figure out how to save water. By the way, if you save water you will save guess what else - MONEY. 
6. Install aerators on your faucets. 
7. Install only high efficiency dishwashers and washing machines. 
8. If you are going to irrigate, use a WaterSense labelled controller 
9. Better yet, rip out water-guzzling plants and put in low water use plants, especially natives. 
10. Install a a graywater system. You can even get discounts on DIY Graywater systems from MMWD (I am going to do this this weekend). 

So, water is a serious issue. Among other things, water is the largest consumer of energy in this state, and, therefore, among the largest source of our state's emissions. HERE. 

Let's take care of each other, and let's take care of this precious resource. Thank you, MMWD, for giving us the heads up. 

Yesterday, the Marin IJ published an article highlighting something being considered by the Fairfax Town Council. HERE. 

One growing trend across the state of California, and, indeed, many places around the world is a move to require NEW buildings to be All-Electric. HERE. The idea is that, if we are, as a state, going to achieve our needed greenhouse gas reductions, we must stop making the problem worse by installing more and more new gas-burning buildings. 

More than 40 jurisdictions across the state, including Marin County, have adopted some form of electrification requirement. Most recently, San Francisco and Oakland passed all-electric requirements. 

The fact is, as Mayor Ackerman stated in the IJ, it saves money to build an all-electric new home. And, because the home will be built with much improved insulation relative to older homes in Marin, it will be less expensive to operate than a similar, multi-fuel new building. (HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE). 

There is the issue of PSPS events, and we are going to need to think about ways to provide energy storage capacity for these events, but new ideas are coming. 

It is time for Fairfax to take this important step. Thank you Fairfax Town Council!

A new study tells us what WE already know - rainy season is starting later and later here, where we live. (HERE)

There are so many frightening implications about this. 

The Climate Action Committee is talking on Monday about how we can work together to bend the climate curve.  

One thing we are doing is to try to move all of us to renewable energy - see HERE for news about what you can do. 

And, be part of the solution. Join us Monday night and let's talk about what we can do. 

​Zoom Meeting:

• https://mazzetti.zoom.us/j/97358122565?pwd=TEEyeFM4YmdLQTQwekJBbTVIelVDQT09&from=addo#success
• Meeting ID: 973 5812 2565
• Passcode: 086983

Phone one-tap:

• US: +16699006833,,97358122565#,,,,*086983# 
• or +13462487799,,97358122565#,,,,*086983# 

The Climate Action Plan of the Town of Fairfax will outline a plan to get us to zero emissions by 2030. 

This will not be easy, and it will mean all of us will need to think and live in new and different ways. 

We will be having our next Open House to talk about the Waste and Water sections of the Climate Action Plan on Monday night. Please come, and BE HEARD. 

Here is the link:

​Zoom Meeting:

• https://mazzetti.zoom.us/j/97358122565?pwd=TEEyeFM4YmdLQTQwekJBbTVIelVDQT09&from=addo#success
• Meeting ID: 973 5812 2565
• Passcode: 086983

Phone one-tap:

• US: +16699006833,,97358122565#,,,,*086983# 
• or +13462487799,,97358122565#,,,,*086983#