Business

Phoenix Voters ‘Say Yes to the Future,’ Rejecting Koch-Backed Effort to Ban Light Rail Expansion in Least Sustainable US City

Published

8 years ago

July 16, 2017

padmin

Photo: Paul Martinez/Flickr/cc

By Julia Conley
The city of Phoenix dealt a decisive blow to a Koch Brothers-backed measure on Tuesday when voters rejected a proposition that would have banned any expansion of the city’s light rail system.

Proposition 105, which was partially drafted by the head of a Koch-funded non-profit, would end expansion of the public transit system that was built in 2008 and prohibit any future building-out of the system, which serves 50,000 residents each day in one of the United States’s fastest-growing and least sustainable cities.

The proposition was rejected by 62 percent of voters. The defeat will allow the city to expand the light rail to lower-income neighborhoods populated by many black and Latinx Phoenix residents. Proponents say the growth of public transportation will help cut down on the city’s high levels of air pollution and carbon emissions while making the city center more accessible to marginalized communities.

Phoenix just said yes to the future. For those following the Koch-backed ballot measure to kill light rail in the city, Prop 105 is going down in flames https://t.co/0hWtHGn9UM pic.twitter.com/gNVgklEV4g
— Alissa Walker (@awalkerinLA) August 28, 2019
Phoenicians-we did it. From the outset, it was clear that Props 105 and 106 were about more than a difference in opinion–it was more fundamental than that. This election was about what we want our city to be.
— Mayor Kate Gallego (@MayorGallego) August 28, 2019

Local and national observers applauded the effort to defeat the measure after the Arizona Free Enterprise Club, a non-profit which is backed by Americans for Prosperity and other Koch-funded organizations, became involved in supporting Proposition 105, aiming to divert money to road projects.

Scot Mussi, president of the group, donated $40,000 to the movement to pass the ban and spearheaded efforts to get the question on the ballot. He told local reporters in July that the project would involve “rampant cost overruns” funded by taxpayers and drafted the language in the bill which went further than simply banning the recently-proposed expansion to lower-income neighborhoods—prohibiting light rail growth entirely.

Groups affiliated with David and Charles Koch, who made billions of dollars funding fossil fuel projects and together contributed $127 million to groups that deny the climate crisis up until David’s death on August 23, have also shut down efforts to build public transportation in Nashville; Little Rock, Arkansas; and other cities across the country in recent years. The anti-public transportation moves are part of an effort on the part of the Koch family to keep the country reliant on the fossil fuel industry while climate action advocates push for a shift to sustainable infrastructure and energy sources.
The defeat of Proposition 105 served as a blow to the powerful, deep-pocketed network the Kochs have established as the family invests in climate-warming fossil fuels, and those who worked to stop the measure’s passage called on residents to remain wary of efforts to threaten sustainable, forward-looking infrastructure projects.

“This is not the first time that outside influences have sought to mislead Phoenix voters—and I doubt it will be the last,” tweeted Mayor Kate Gallego Tuesday night. “We are a diverse city made up of residents willing to fight for our future and who refuse to let our trajectory be dictated by anyone other than Phoenicians.”

“We will have to step up to protect PHX again in the future but we should be encouraged that, together, we continue to move forward,” she added.

Source: commondreams.org
Photo credit: Paul Martinez/Flickr/cc

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Business

‘Monumental’: Chicago Commits to 100% Renewable Energy by 2040

Published

6 years ago

July 22, 2019

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Photo: hectorlo/flickr/cc

Chicago made history on Wednesday by becoming the largest U.S. city to commit to 100 percent renewable energy before the middle of the century.

It is, in the summation of Kyra Woods, Chicago organizer with the Sierra Club’s Ready for 100 Action Campaign, “a monumental achievement.”

Chicago Becomes the Largest City in the Country Committed to 100 Percent Clean Energy https://t.co/WhL0mTgJWe #readyfor100action pic.twitter.com/ylbsW1e9Df

— Sierra Club (@SierraClub) April 10, 2019

Chicago city council passes its commitment to 100% clean, renewable energy unanimously!! #ChicagoisReady as the largest city in the country to make the commitment to an equitable, 100% renewable transition #ReadyFor100Action pic.twitter.com/TE2H1d6SDu

— Illinois Sierra Club (@SierraClubIL) April 10, 2019

According to the Sierra Club, the city council unanimously passed a resolution that commits the city to 100 percent renewable energy in buildings by 2035 and electrification of the city’s bus fleet by 2040.

The nonbinding resolution, backed by the Ready For 100 Chicago Collective, points to the kind of extreme weather including catastrophic flooding the region is already experiencing. “Climate change,” it reads, “will bring unprecedented environmental changes including extreme heat, heavy precipitation, and flooding to our region.”

“Residents of communities experiencing disproportionate cumulative impacts of environmental exposures and population vulnerability, as well as other communities across Chicago, desire a just transition away from all fossil fuels that prioritizes environmental justice, public health, community self-determination, high-quality jobs, and ownership opportunities for local residents,” the resolution also states.

As Woods noted, the move adds the Midwest metropolis to a list of over 100 other cities including Atlanta, Ga., Berkeley, Calif., and Gainesville, Fla. that have adopted clean energy goals.

“The Chicago Collective who wrote this resolution—comprised of frontline environmental justice communities, green groups, and unions—proves that not only can Chicago build a climate-safe future for next generations, but that a truly just transition also creates good, family-sustaining jobs to lift up communities,” said Kassie Beyer, campaign director of Jobs to Move America Illinois.

“We look forward to working with the mayor’s office in making our vision for a just transition a reality,” she added.

Source: commondreams.org

Photo credit: hectorlo/flickr/cc

Business

Glenwood Springs Moves to 100 Percent Renewable Electricity

Published

6 years ago

July 16, 2019

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“Many cities and towns across the country have set aggressive targets, and we are doing our part now — our future is now,” said Glenwood Springs Mayor Jonathan Godes.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado, one of the oldest historic resort towns in America, will launch a 100% renewable energy program on June 1 of the year 2019. The announcement was made at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, a nationwide park in Colorado that overlooks Glenwood Springs, becoming one of the first such parks to be powered by 100% clean, renewable energy.

Glenwood Springs, Colorado’s Western Slope city, will become the seventh US city to be 100 percent dependent on renewable energy. Aspen was the first Colorado city to have everything be on its electricity from renewable energy sources. Its mix is 50% wind, 45% hydropower, and 5% from solar and gas, as reported by the Sierra Club.

Wind energy will be the dominant supply of Glenwood’s renewable energy, with energy generated at the Western Area Power Administration (WAPA) and MEAN generating stations on the eastern prairies supplying 6.8 percent.

“Sustainable tourism is an important issue these days and this move is a huge step in the right direction for Glenwood Springs as a whole,” – said Beckley, owner of the park.
– said Beckley, owner of the park

The caverns are the very first area park in the country to be powered entirely with renewable sources. There are organisms that live deep in the caves that are part of the Beckley ecosystem and because of that the caverns are not simply for an adventure tourist.

The city decided to commemorate a move to renewable energy by signing the contract in a theme park above the Iron Mountain elevation of about 7,000 feet in Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park. The park provided a free gondola ride for attendees and the 1st fifty guests got a free LED light bulbs.

Glenwood Springs has been encouraging energy conservation with customers and companies by supplying a rebates program since 2009. Glenwood Springs has been 35% renewable on the power grid since 2013. According to MEAN, 77,156 tons of CO2 emission would be saved if switched to 100% “green energy”, that could otherwise be released into the environment by the City of Glenwood Springs.

The new contract will reduce the city’s cost per megawatt-hour (kWh), from $51 to $46. This will save the city approximately $500,000 per year.

“We are thrilled that Glenwood Springs is on the cutting-edge utilizing 100 percent renewable energy. Our community has proven that clean energy is an important part of our local economy. This commitment to sustainability makes our community shine in a positive way.” – said Angie Anderson, president and CEO of the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association
– said Angie Anderson, president and CEO of the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association

On 100 percent renewable energy are already running other six cities Burlington, Vermont, Georgetown, Texas, Aspen, Colorado, Rock Port, Missouri, Greensburg, Kansas, and Kodiak Island, Alaska.

References: inhabitat.com
aspentimes.com
glenwoodcaverns.com
denverpost.com

Business

Spain plans to close all nuclear plants by 2035

Published

6 years ago

June 15, 2019

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Teresa Ribera, energy minister of Spain, has announced that the country will have all energy furnished by renewable resources by 2050. The government supports a denuclearized country.

The government will soon be requested to approve plans to shut down the 5 plants and the investment in nuclear-waste management infrastructures for afterward. The entrance of new, advanced solar-powered technology has turned the nuclear power industry into a profitable government agency. It’s looking for options for nuclear plants that will last for years.

Energy minister Teresa Ribera reported Tuesday that the government will provide the National Integrated Plan of Energy and Climate, to be afterwards examined by the European Commission.

In 2017, the second source of power after renewable energy in Spain’s power came from nuclear energy, over a fifth of its energy production.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said last month, that Spain’s planned overhaul of its energy system, which made 40 percent of its mainland electricity from renewable energy sources in 2018, will cost an estimated 235 billion euros (US$266 billion) between 2021 and 2030.

Phasing out nuclear power accounts for a small fraction of Spain’s electrical output and was a key campaign promise of the Socialist leaders, who took office last year after their conservative predecessors were voted out of office in popular support.

Spanish power plants first began operating in 1983, and are run by three companies: Iberdrola, Italian-owned Endesa, Naturgy and Portugal’s EDP.

Spain will need over 100 billion euros of investment to reach its ambitious energy goals, Jose Ignacio Galan, the chief executive of Iberdrola, shared to the Financial Times.

Sources:
www.surinenglish.com
cnduk.org
kallanishenergy.com
antinuclear.net
www.yenisafak.com