Confronting Global Warming

By April Vargas

As individuals, as well as Democrats and residents of San Mateo County, it is our responsibility to take steps to address climate change and reduce carbon emissions wherever possible.

I have considered global warming a serious and credible threat for several years. I have a home based business which allows me to drive far less than those who work at off site locations. We conserve energy in our home and are fortunate that our monthly PGE bill for both gas and electric for a family of two adults is $45-55. We have also enrolled in the Climate Smart program.

I currently serve on San Mateo County's Green Building Task Force, a group that has developed an ordinance to encourage homeowners of new structures or remodels in excess of 75% of the total value of the home to employ green materials and building practices. The Board of Supervisors passed the ordinance in February. We are seeking to expand the program to include commercial projects as well. This is exactly the type of program that the County should be implementing to address climate change.

In addition, on May 20 Supervisor Mark Church introduced Solar San Mateo County, an initiative to study the use of solar energy within the county. This program will include incentives for homeowners to convert to solar and the possibility of converting some of the buildings in the County Center to solar power. Financing alternatives will also be investigated. I attended the Board of Supervisors meeting to support this initiative. The Board passed it unanimously and the study will now begin.

Despite the acknowledgment of climate change, we continue to see the county and the cities approving large projects that generate jobs but do not include housing for the workers who will be employed. This makes traffic and congestion worse and in the majority of cases, the effects cannot be mitigated. I have argued vigorously for years that the jobs/housing imbalance must be factored into development decisions more prominently. On the Bayside, there are more jobs than housing and there is a lack of housing choices that workers can afford. On the Coastside, the opposite is true and we need to encourage job creation where housing exists while still protecting our precious coastal resources.

The Cool Cities initiative addressing climate change is certainly a welcome effort that many cities have begun to embrace, but county and municipal planning efforts must demonstrate a tangible commitment to enacting spoken agreements. The projects that are approved and built must reduce carbon emissions, not add to them.

Caltrain has made a proposal to electrify its service and replace aging cars with more efficient rolling stock that will cut commute times, reduce emissions and allow greater capacity. Projections forecast that ridership will continue to increase, especially in light of rising gas prices. Support for convenient, efficient mass transit must be a priority for the county.

We in the Midcoast (the communities from Montara through Miramar) introduced a proposal to build a parallel trail along Hwy 1 for use by pedestrians and bicycles to allow commuting between Montara and Half Moon Bay during highway gridlock conditions. We were successful in having this proposal included in the list of projects eligible for Measure A transportation funding. No allocations have yet been made, but as a member of the Transportation Authority Citizens Advisory Committee, I will work to see that coastal cities, including Half Moon Bay and Pacifica and all of the communities in between and to the south, receive the transportation improvements that we need. A multi use trail reduces emissions and provides a safe and healthy way for people to move about through their communities.

Finally, support for locally grown agricultural products keeps our farms in production and cuts down on emissions caused by transporting food over long distances. I am currently involved with a working group that studies our local food systems and finds ways for farmers, fishermen, consumers and merchants to work together more effectively to provide healthy food to county residents of all ages and income levels.

Our County Democratic Party can champion all of these efforts by supporting local initiatives, including climate change reduction provisions within the party platform, pushing for adoption of the Kyoto protocols, and helping to elect candidates who recognize global warming as the highest priority on the worldwide, national and local levels.