We, here in the North Bay, are all too familiar with the increasing signs of the Climate Crisis. Today, I read that PG&E is about to implement another Public Service Power Shutdown to prevent wildfires. And the wildfires that are happening right here (thank you to the public servants who have acted so decisively to control them!) And the worsening drought. And the hottest summer on record.
We, here in the North Bay, also know that we have the power to do something, and, more, to lead in showing others a way out of the crisis.
This week, the City of Larkspur, our neighbor, passed a Climate Emergency Resolution, becoming the 8th Marin Jurisdiction to do so (Fairfax was the first).
One of the key things we are going to need to do is to continue to reduce our reliance on natural gas. This is so hard, in so many ways, but we can do it.
Fairfax has started by saying, lets not make the problem worse; lets ensure that all new buildings in our beloved Town will be powered by electricity, knowing that the California Electrical Grid, and, especially, the MCE electricity, is increasingly derived from renewable sources.
Fairfax Town Staff are now starting to walk the talk, and they are exploring ways to electrify the operations of our buildings - something we have advocated for years.
Now, the Bay Area Air Quality District is considering regulations that would prohibit the sale or installation of any appliance that burns natural gas to work. This will essentially force all of us, over time, to move our homes to all-electric. The meeting will be held on Monday, October 18th, at 9 am. (Agenda, with meeting details, HERE).
Electrification of existing buildings is a huge ask. It will cost us all something to make certain we have electrical Services large enough to support the change (doing so will also provide, in many cases, a significant improvement in fire safety, due to the high failure rate of many older electrical panels). We will need to replace our furnaces, our water heaters, our gas dryers, and our beloved gas stoves.
The issue of methane in our environment is terribly serious, and we ignore it at our peril. (More HERE).
Each of us can start to move towards the future we inevitably face by ensuring that, the next time we need to replace any of these (furnace, water heater, gas dryer, stove), we do so with electrical ones. There are many financial incentives out there to help, and we at the CAC will continue to provide information about these incentives and financial supports, and we will continue to fight for more ways to help our people.
It might soon be the law. It is, today, the right thing to do. Lets be good ancestors.
We, here in the North Bay, also know that we have the power to do something, and, more, to lead in showing others a way out of the crisis.
This week, the City of Larkspur, our neighbor, passed a Climate Emergency Resolution, becoming the 8th Marin Jurisdiction to do so (Fairfax was the first).
One of the key things we are going to need to do is to continue to reduce our reliance on natural gas. This is so hard, in so many ways, but we can do it.
Fairfax has started by saying, lets not make the problem worse; lets ensure that all new buildings in our beloved Town will be powered by electricity, knowing that the California Electrical Grid, and, especially, the MCE electricity, is increasingly derived from renewable sources.
Fairfax Town Staff are now starting to walk the talk, and they are exploring ways to electrify the operations of our buildings - something we have advocated for years.
Now, the Bay Area Air Quality District is considering regulations that would prohibit the sale or installation of any appliance that burns natural gas to work. This will essentially force all of us, over time, to move our homes to all-electric. The meeting will be held on Monday, October 18th, at 9 am. (Agenda, with meeting details, HERE).
Electrification of existing buildings is a huge ask. It will cost us all something to make certain we have electrical Services large enough to support the change (doing so will also provide, in many cases, a significant improvement in fire safety, due to the high failure rate of many older electrical panels). We will need to replace our furnaces, our water heaters, our gas dryers, and our beloved gas stoves.
The issue of methane in our environment is terribly serious, and we ignore it at our peril. (More HERE).
Each of us can start to move towards the future we inevitably face by ensuring that, the next time we need to replace any of these (furnace, water heater, gas dryer, stove), we do so with electrical ones. There are many financial incentives out there to help, and we at the CAC will continue to provide information about these incentives and financial supports, and we will continue to fight for more ways to help our people.
It might soon be the law. It is, today, the right thing to do. Lets be good ancestors.