YES Prop 1A
Environment California supports Proposition 1A, the Safe, Reliable High Speed Passenger Train Bond Act. Building high speed rail in California is an important long-term global warming solution and a way to further reduce California’s dependence on fossil fuels. In fact, the California Air Resources Board projects that the high-speed rail project would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a million metric tons in 2020 and up to 6 million tons per year by 2030 – the equivalent of removing 1 million cars from the road. Building a high-speed rail system to link northern and southern California is an important piece of a broader vision for a cleaner, more sustainable future. Voters should move it forward by voting “Yes” to Prop 1A.
NO Prop 7
Environment California opposes Proposition 7, the Renewable Energy Generation Initiative. There is a lot to like about Prop 7. Environment California strongly supports the goal of reaching 50% renewable energy by 2025 and we applaud the vision of the initiative’s primary backers. Yet, while the initiative is well intended it was poorly written and, as such, has too many serious policy flaws to advance renewable energy in California. We believe this initiative could hurt California’s renewable energy market sending us in the wrong direction. Our primary concerns with Prop 7 are that it:
a) Locks in loopholes for utilities to skip out on compliance;
b) Excludes small-scale renewable energy technologies such as solar roofs;
c) Limits government oversight and public participation in the siting of dirty garbage
incinerators and other controversial projects;
d) Requires a 2/3rds vote of the legislature to change or correct any unintended errors in the
law. While this requirement is intended to protect the will of the people from weakening
amendments advanced by the legislature, it also works the other way by preventing any
future corrections due to drafting errors.
The development of renewable electricity technologies in California is too important to risk errors like these. If California is to achieve our global warming, clean and energy independence goals, it is crucial that California’s renewable energy laws are written well.
NO Prop 10
Environment California opposes Proposition 10, Alternative Fuel Vehicles and Renewable Energy. Californians should not be fooled by clever packaging and fancy TV ads. This initiative is essentially a special interest give-away to the natural gas industry that promises no environmental benefits. The problem with this initiative, backed by oil and natural gas tycoon T. Boone Pickens, lies in the fact that it requires the majority of the $5 billion bond money to be spent on incentives for “dedicated alternative fuel vehicles” on a first-come, first serve basis. Given the lack of electric cars or other truly clean alternative fuel vehicles available for consumers today, this language steers the bulk of the incentive money toward natural gas vehicles. In addition, the initiative contains weak environmental safeguards , explicitly stating, “Clean alternative fuel vehicle” means a vehicle… that, relative to petroleum use, produces no net material increase in air pollution (including global warming emissions and air quality pollutants)..”.
In other words, there is no guarantee of reduced air pollution as a result of spending these billions of dollars. Furthermore, the definition of “clean alternative fuel” is limited to fuels that result in a 10% reduction in carbon intensity – the standard already required by state law. Lastly, even if there were environmental benefits to the vehicles, there is no guarantee that the vehicle remains in California. California needs to lead the country in a transition away from fossil fuels and toward clean, renewable energy and energy efficiency. Natural gas is just another fossil fuel and one that carries with it significant global warming impacts not to mention ecological impacts from the extraction and transportation of natural gas. California’s should not be fooled. Voters should turn down Prop. 10 and tell T. Boone Pickens to invest his millions of dollars in real clean energy solutions.