Dear :
Here Are a few items of interest on Sustainable Transport.
Best
Russell Sydney
310-450-7419
In this
Sustainable Transport Club
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Community based action– One Biodiesel Coop Meeting May 28 Outreach and Education - One New Transport Discussion group by One of our Top
Activists - Two Green Days in Beverly Hills is growing in momentum! June 23rd Getting your Sustainable Ride * One Standard Bio Diesel Now Distributing B20 and B99.9 Legislative Actions > One SM Ordinance for Electric Vehicle Charging Outlets in New Garages > Two City Resolution and Good Local Activism from Menlo Park > Three Assembly
bill for Cleaner Vehicles AB493 (Ruskin). You can find the subject you want by looking for the separator bars or by using the active links above with the blue color and underlines. This is a two-way newsletter. You can get word out to the group by sending in any relevant information for inclusion in this newsletter. |
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We will be having our next general meeting on Wednesday May 23rd, 2007. The meeting will start at 7:30 and run till 9pm or so. Meeting Location: Offices of BIG, 3603 Hayden Ave, Culver City, CA 90223 (Park behind the diner, blue doors on the west side of the parking lot) Items on the agenda include – New Membership, Topanga Coop potential, Educational Outreach, Budget Review, Fuel Sourcing and the upcoming election of board members. Also the new revised membership cards for 2007/2008 will be handed out at the meeting. The other thing that is happening is that the annual membership dues of $50.00 are due on June 1st for members who joined up to December 31, 2006 (Members # 85 and lower) What we will be doing is changing the combination on the locks on June 1 and providing the new combination to those who have paid the annual dues or Joined after January 1 of this year. I have attached a copy of the latest spreadsheet showing our membership and contact information. Kent Bullard kent@sustainableoptions.com 805-218-6945 |
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New Discussion group by One of our Top Activists Darrell Clarke This is a new blog put together by Darrell Clarke. He has been active in transportation issues since 1989. He is on the Santa Monica Planning Commissions and has been one of the main driving forces behind the Friends for Expo. He is one of the people we look to for in-depth understanding of mass transit issues. This is a great chance to interact with a highly informed and well-considered activist. Here is his invitation. I'd like to invite you to visit http://lavisions.blogspot.com , my new personal blog on transportation, sustainable energy, global warming, and planning for a more livable Los Angeles region.
I'm seeking a discussion - from my experiences and those of you visiting the site - that leads to solutions that work for critical issues. What's posted so far should give a taste of where I'd like to go, both on fundamentals (especially energy) and current issues.
I also want us to enjoy some of what makes Los Angeles special, current and past.
This is a starting point for an exploration. Welcome!
Darrell Clarke |
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Green
Days in Beverly Hills is
growing in momentum! |
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Standard Bio Diesel Now Distributing B20 and B99.9
Standard Bio Diesel is pleased to announce that we are now distributing B20 and B99.9 biodiesel for business and personal use.
We invite you to visit our website www.castandardbiodiesel.com or call us at 818-719-9967. Please tell your biodiesel friends! Greening the planet just got easier. Thanks from the Standard Bio Diesel Team!
Trice Mikulic Voya Mikulic Giovani Lampassi & Rachel M. Bridges
Standard Bio Diesel 22020 Clarendon Street Woodland Hills, CA 91367 o. 818.719.9967 f. 818.719.9962 www.castandardbiodiesel.com |
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SM Ordinance for Electric Vehicle Charging Outlets in New Garages A motion by Kevin KcKeown at a recent Santa Monica City Council meeting result in all new construction incuding electric outlets at all garage spaces in new construction in the City. This means all new construction will support charging Electric Vehicles. The motion passed unanimously and was based on the work of the Task Force on the Environment with a little support from various activists associated with this Club. This is agreat example of small steps that move us toward sustainability. For more information go to the following location: http://www.smgov.net/cityclerk/council/agendas/2007/index.htm and check out the Agenda, the staff report and the Minutes from the March 20th meeting for more information. The next step would be to get a similar ordinance on to get plugs into existing structures whenever there is a major remodel. Another step is to get charging facilities at all places of employment in City for employee use. A related item is that the City of Santa Monica is putting in ten new Charging stations for their newly acquired EV’s. Many of these will be in publicly accessible places and will include regular 110 volt and 220 volt outlets to accommodate charging a range of EV’s. The more challenging step is how to get charging stations available to all existing apartments, condo’s and rental houses. Perhaps some sort of landlord incentives in the form of tax credits or rental increases would be suitable. Perhaps cost reductions from the City and or the power companies. |
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City Resolution and Good Local Activism from Menlo Park One of our new friends, Mitch Slomiak, was able to help get a resolution passed that support dealing with global warming at the City level. Here is an example of a resolution that was passed with minor changes in Menlo Park. This is a way to get your community to start addressing the issue. Interestingly, this resolution was probably originally found on the Sierra Club website as part of their Cool Cities initiative. Menlo Park is now one of more than 400 cities to endorse the U.S. Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement.
RESOLUTION OF THE MENLO PARK CITY COUNCIL ENDORSING THE U.S. MAYORS CLIMATE PROTECTION AGREEMENT, AS MODIFIED
WHEREAS, the U.S. Conference of Mayors has previously adopted strong policy resolutions calling for cities, communities, and the Federal government to take actions to reduce global-warming pollution; and
WHEREAS, the Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the international community’s most respected assemblage of scientists, has found that climate disruption is a reality and that human activities are largely responsible for increasing concentrations of global-warming pollution; and
WHEREAS, recent, well-documented impacts of climate disruption include average global sea-level increases of four to eight inches during the 20th century; a 40-percent decline in Arctic sea-ice thickness; and nine of the 10 hottest years on record occurring in the past decade; and
WHEREAS, climate disruption of the magnitude now predicted by the scientific community will cause extremely costly disruption of human and natural systems throughout the world, including increased risk of floods or droughts; sea-level rises that interact with coastal storms to erode beaches, inundate land, and damage structures; more frequent and extreme heat waves; and more frequent and greater concentrations of smog; and
WHEREAS, on February 16, 2005, the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement to address climate disruption, went into effect in the 141 countries that have ratified it to date; and 38 of those countries are now legally required to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on average 5.2 percent below 1990 levels by 2012; and
WHEREAS, the United States of America, with less than five percent of the world’s population, is responsible for producing approximately 25 percent of the world’s global- warming pollutants; and
WHEREAS, the Kyoto Protocol emissions-reduction target for the U.S. would have been seven percent below 1990 levels by 2012; and
WHEREAS, many leading United States companies that have adopted greenhouse gas reduction programs to demonstrate corporate social responsibility have also publicly expressed preference for the United States to adopt precise and mandatory emissions targets and timetables as a means by which to remain competitive in the international marketplace, to mitigate financial risk, and to promote sound investment decisions; and
WHEREAS, state and local governments throughout the United States are adopting emission-reduction targets and programs and that this leadership is bipartisan, coming from Republican and Democratic governors and mayors alike; and
WHEREAS, many cities throughout the nation, both large and small, are reducing global-warming pollutants through programs that provide economic and quality-of-life benefits such as reduced energy bills, greenspace preservation, air-quality improvements, reduced traffic congestion, improved transportation choices, and economic development and job creation through energy conservation and new energy technologies; and
WHEREAS, mayors from around the nation have signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, which was amended at the 73rd Annual U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting.
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the City of Menlo Park endorses the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement as amended at the 73rd annual U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting, with modifications as underlined:
A. We urge the federal government and state governments to enact policies and programs to meet or exceed the target of reducing global-warming pollution levels to seven percent below 1990 levels by 2012, including efforts to reduce the United States’ dependence on fossil fuels and accelerate the development of clean, economical energy resources and fuel-efficient technologies such as conservation, methane recovery for energy generation, waste-to-energy technology, wind and solar energy, fuel cells, efficient motor vehicles, and biofuels; B. We urge the U.S. Congress to pass bipartisan greenhouse gas reduction legislation that includes
1) clear timetables and emissions limits and 2) a flexible, market-based
system of tradable allowances among emitting industries; and C. We will strive to the extent economically feasible to reduce global-warming pollution to a level equivalent to that designated by the Kyoto Protocol, which may involve taking actions in our own operations and community-wide, such as:
1. Inventory global-warming emissions in City operations and in the community, set reduction targets, and create an action plan. 2. Adopt and enforce land-use policies that reduce sprawl, preserve open space, and create compact, walkable urban communities; 3. Promote transportation options such as bicycle trails, commute-trip reduction programs, incentives for car pooling, and public transit; 2 4. Increase the use of clean, alternative energy by, for example, investing in “green tags,” advocating for the development of renewable energy resources, recovering landfill methane for energy production, and supporting the use of waste-to-energy technology; 5. Make energy efficiency a priority through building-code improvements, retrofitting City facilities with energy-efficient lighting, and urging employees to conserve energy and save money; 6. Purchase only Energy Star equipment and appliances for City use; 7. Practice and promote sustainable building practices using the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED program or a similar system; 8. Increase the average fuel efficiency of municipal-fleet vehicles; reduce the number of vehicles; launch an employee-education program including anti- idling messages; convert diesel vehicles to bio-diesel; 9. Evaluate opportunities to increase pump efficiency in water and wastewater systems; recover wastewater-treatment methane for energy production; 10. Increase recycling rates in City operations and in the community; 11. Maintain healthy urban forests; promote tree planting to increase shading and to absorb CO2; and 12. Help educate the public, schools, other jurisdictions, professional associations, business, and industry about reducing global-warming pollution.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the City of Menlo Park, California, will work in conjunction with International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability) and other appropriate organizations to track progress and implementation of the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement as amended by the 73rd Annual U.S. Conference of Mayors meeting. I, Silvia M. Vonderlinden, City Clerk of Menlo Park, do hereby certify that the above and foregoing Council Resolution was duly and regularly passed and adopted at a meeting by said Council on the _____ day of _________, 2007, by the following votes: AYES: Council Members:
NOES: Council Members:
ABSENT: Council Members:
ABSTAIN: Council Members: IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the Official Seal of the City of Menlo Park on this ______ day of _________, 2007. SILVIA M. VONDERLINDEN, City Clerk |
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Assembly
bill for Cleaner Vehicles AB493 (Ruskin). There is a bill that has come to our attention by way of Plug In America. Please check this out and see if you can help support that effort. Her is what one of the Plug In people had to say about it. The Assembly bill I mentioned was AB493 (Ruskin). It is not specifically about EV's, but it is a very worthwhile idea to offer incentives to buy the cleanest most energy efficient vehicles and to penalize the dirtiest least efficient. Here is a link with information. www.ecovote.org/cleancars I had postcards on my table for that, and postcards to go to the California Air Resources Board specifically re: Plug-Ins and Plug-In Hybrid vehicles. Below is an announcement that has the CARB postcard. Any posting of this information would be helpful I'm sure.
Thanks! Dency
Nelson Please take a moment to cut, paste, print and mail this letter to CARB so they know how many people demand Plug in Hybrids as they prepare for their critical Board meeting May 24th. Dr. Robert Sawyer, Chair Dear Dr. Sawyer: As a consumer, I want to have the choice to use cleaner, cheaper, domestic electricity to power my car. It is time for CARB to do everything in its power to promote plug-in cars, including plug-in hybrids and all-electric battery cars. Grid-connected cars can make an extraordinary contribution to reducing toxic and greenhouse gas emissions and lowering our dependence on petroleum. The ZEV mandate has already proven the technological and economic viability of all electric cars. CARB should do everything possible to expedite and facilitate the availability of electric cars and plug-in hybrids Sincerely, |
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