Focus
California lawmakers pass sweeping rent cap bill
The Mercury News – September 11
In a significant victory for California renters struggling to find affordable housing, state lawmakers this Wednesday sent a sweeping rent cap bill to the governor’s desk. Assembly Bill 1482, which passed the Assembly 46-22, is set to limit rent increases across the state to 5 percent plus inflation. Governor Gavin Newsom, who helped broker a compromise between tenant advocacy groups and apartment owners, is expected to sign the bill into law in the coming days. The state joins Oregon, which passed similar legislation in February, and New York in enacting widespread rent caps. AB 1482, which sunsets in 2030, will apply to apartments built at least 15 years ago, as well as houses and condos of the same age that are owned by large corporations. Tenant advocates also succeeded in pushing lawmakers to include just cause eviction protections for renters who have been in their home at least a year.
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News
White House to relax energy efficiency rules for light bulbs
The New York Times – September 4
The Trump administration plans to significantly weaken federal rules that would have forced Americans to use much more energy-efficient light bulbs, eliminating requirements that effectively meant that most light bulbs sold in the United States — not only the familiar, pear-shaped ones, but several other styles as well — must be either LEDs or fluorescent to meet new efficiency standards. The rules being weakened, which dated from 2007 and the administration of President George W. Bush and slated to start in the new year, would have all but ended the era of the incandescent bulb invented more than a century ago. Rapid technological change in the light bulb has been one of the largely unsung success stories in the fight to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. Energy consumption in American homes had been on the rise for decades. But that has reversed significantly in recent years, thanks in part to the growing acceptance of technologies like LED bulbs and compact fluorescents. California’s attorney general, Xavier Becerra, said he would fight the administration’s action in court.
Airlines are under rising pressure to cut their carbon emissions
Los Angeles Times - August 28
Airlines account for about 2 percent of carbon dioxide emissions globally. However, a growing body of research shows that the climate impact of airplanes is about twice as much as their carbon dioxide emissions alone would suggest — closer to 5 percent of human-caused warming. With the rise of flight shame, airlines are racing to find an answer for how to decarbonize and reduce their climate impact. Some airlines believe one of the most promising areas is alternative, low-carbon fuels, which could be used in existing aircraft but with a lower carbon footprint, such as biofuels. Others are pinning their hopes on electric aircraft and hybrid battery-fuel designs. At present, the only one of these technologies that is being used commercially is biofuels, albeit at a very small scale. In Southern California, Paramount-based AltAir Fuels supplies United Airlines with biofuel made from agricultural waste. In the Bay Area, United has also partnered with Fulcrum BioEnergy of Pleasanton, which is developing waste-to-fuel refineries.
Natural gas soon to be outlawed in almost all new Menlo Park buildings
Marin Independent Journal – August 28
At the front line of a growing movement to fight climate change, Menlo Park will be ushering in one of the most restrictive natural gas bans in California. By January 1, 2020, heating systems in all new homes and buildings in the city must run on electricity, and all new commercial, office, and industrial buildings, as well as high-rise residences, must rely entirely on electricity. Although new one- and two-story homes will be allowed to have natural gas stoves, they must be built “electric ready” with the proper wiring to enable all-electric operation in the future.
SLO council passes policy to make new buildings all-electric — but gas is still an option
The Tribune - September 3
With an eye on its ambitious 2035 carbon neutrality target, 10 years ahead of California’s statewide goal, San Luis Obispo’s City Council has passed a new energy policy that paves the way for all-electric new buildings. The new law either mandates constructing buildings with all electric power or, alternately, retrofitting gas-powered buildings to electric elsewhere in the city. A third option is to pay an in-lieu fee in the thousands of dollars to help fund retrofits elsewhere in the city to transition from gas to electric. About 40 percent of the city’s carbon emissions currently come from the use of natural gas generated from buildings, according to city officials.
UC Irvine tops list of green U.S. colleges
The Orange County Register – September 3
For the fourth time in six years, UC Irvine was named as the most environmentally sustainable college in the United States by a Sierra Magazine ranking that considers curriculum, research, and on-campus practices. This year, 282 colleges in the U.S. and Canada vied in the “Cool Schools” ranking as ranked by the Sierra Club publication. UCI received recognition for five green initiatives. For example, working with the Irvine Ranch Water District, the school is using recycled water to cool its central plant, which provides heating and cooling to much of the campus. By replacing potable water, the treated-wastewater operation saves more than 80 million gallons of drinking water annually.
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