On Monday, March 8th, the Kern County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to pass a revised ordinance supported by oil industry interests to approve over 2,700 new oil wells per year. This amounts to 40,000 new wells by 2036. Hundreds of constituents and community leaders spoke out against the ordinance in a daylong board meeting. … Read more
I live in an area where big polluting trucks are far more common than electric vehicles (EVs), but public support for policies to shift away from polluting vehicles is not. The transportation sector is responsible for roughly 40% of California’s carbon pollution and for much of the air pollution in the region where I live. … Read more
During this time of COVID-19, many Fresno residents are unable to pay their power bills because of economic hardships. The unemployment rate in Fresno County was 15.7% in May of this year. The average residential electricity rate in Fresno 1.63% greater than the California average and 31.2% greater than the national average. Fresno residents are … Read more
Community Choice Energy agencies are supporting their customers and communities across the state during this pandemic, offering millions of dollars in relief efforts in response to COVID-19. The City of Fresno could benefit from this model once implemented to utilize revenues for our own impacted residents and local businesses rather than waiting for aid. If … Read more
The first Earth Day, on April 22, 1970, activated 20 million Americans from all walks of life and is widely credited with launching the modern environmental movement. More than 1 billion people now participate in Earth Day activities each year, making it the largest civic observance in the world. On April 22, 2020 the California State … Read more
During the holidays, the word “peace” is thrown around a lot. It’s usually used to describe a state of being that may feel elusive in a world being swallowed by climate change. For me, peace directly relates to working for social justice. This became especially clear to me in a recent interview with Jim Grant, … Read more
I woke Monday morning feeling poorly. My nose was stuffed, my eyes irritated and runny, my chest in pain. These are the effects of residual unhealthy air quality from the last week. Despite the fact most of the larger fires have been contained in the surrounding area, the heat from the Valley bakes the already … Read more
My name is Destiny Rodriguez, and I am an advocate for a stable climate and clean air, water, and soil – and for the environmental protections that are required to achieve those things. I have been an advocate for these things for as long as I can remember – from organizing recycle days and beautification projects in high … Read more
