Posts Tagged: gases

Opinion

California can cut wildfire risk by investing in resilient forests

A path into a Northern California redwood forest. (Photo: C. Levers, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: As a 34-year employee of Cal Fire, I am deeply familiar with the consequences of state policy that for too long emphasized putting out all wildfires, rather than emphasizing the natural restorative role fire plays in California’s landscapes. With Gov. Newsom’s new $1 billion wildfire budget, we have an opportunity to prioritize wildfire resilience rather than just wildfire suppression.

Opinion

On environment, some lessons for Brown

A hazy day in the Los Angeles Basin, New Year's Day, 2015. (Photo:Trekandshoot, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: Gov. Jerry Brown has called Donald Trump’s election the proverbial “heart attack” to get California off of the equivalent of cigarettes — climate-destroying fossil fuels. But for Brown to be the foil to Trump’s anti-environmental policies, it’s going to take a lot more than launching California’s own climate-tracking satellite.

News

Pavley’s legacy: premier warrior fighting greenhouse gases

Fran Pavley and former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger at a Capitol news conference in 2009. Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/AP

As a longtime former middle school teacher, Fran Pavley thought she would focus her energies on education when she got elected to the California Legislature 15 years ago.
But Robert Hertzberg, who was then Assembly speaker, gave the Southern California politician some advice. “He said we have several champions on education, we need you to focus on the environment,” Pavley said. She did.

News

Who decides on greenhouse gases: Voters or lawmakers?

A smog-tinged view in black and white of Century City, Beverly Hills and West Los Angeles. (Photo: Trekandshoot, via Shutterstock)

It’s a familiar fight in the Capitol: Oil companies and their allies say jobs and Californians’ ability to get from place to place at reasonable cost are at stake, which can have a dramatic impact on lower income workers. Environmentalist say the future of the planet is what it’s all about, starting in California. Ultimately, the issue may be decided by millions of voters — not Sacramento lawmakers.

News

Fran Pavley: The quiet crusader

Sen. Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills, chair of the Senate Natural Resources and Water Committee, addresses colleagues on the Senate floor.(Photo: Rich Pedroncelli/AP)

To environmentalists in California, across the nation and around the world, she is a trailblazing leader. To the California Chamber of Commerce and many Republicans, she is the unrealistic author of job-killing, la-de-da legislation. To some, she is a futurist who predicts gas stations will disappear in 10 years. She is Fran Pavley, a pleasant, gray-haired Democratic state senator from Southern California who does not come across as a firebrand but can grow passionate about protecting the environment.

News

Major new cuts eyed for greenhouse gases

The power plant in El Segundo, Calif. (Photo: Don Solomon, via Shutterstock)

Nearly a decade after California’s landmark law curbing greenhouse gases was signed, a key author of AB 32 wants to dramatically boost the crackdown on climate-changing carbon emissions over the next 35 years.

News

Cap-and-trade: Transportation fuels on the block

As rush hour approaches, traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge. (Photo: Frontpage)

Permission slips covering an array of fuels used in California – and which account for nearly 40 percent of the state’s carbon emissions – will be put on the auction block as part of the state’s landmark law to curb climate-changing greenhouse gases.

News

Senate leader: No delay in cap-and-trade plan

A motorist pumps gas at a Costco station in South San Francisco. ((Photo: Broken Sphere)

An attempt to delay inclusion of transportation fuels in California’s program to fight greenhouse gases has been blocked by the leader of the Senate, who said any delays would harm the public’s health and diminish air quality. Senate Leader Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, said the bill, AB 69 by Assemblyman Henry Perea, D-Fresno, would not receive a hearing before the legislative session adjourns on Aug. 31, a move that virtually assures the measure’s demise.

News

Poll: Curb greenhouse gases — but watch the wallet

The San Ardo oil field, Monterey. Photo: Loco Steve, Wikimedia

Most Californians support the state’s landmark law mandating the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, according to a statewide survey released today. More specifically, strong majorities support two aspects of the state’s efforts to address global warming: a requirement that oil companies produce cleaner transportation fuels and the goal that a third of California’s electricity come from renewable energy sources. But residents’ support declines significantly if these two efforts lead to higher gas prices or electricity bills.

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