By John Hankins
It’s been hot this summer and not only the weather, but politics and issues of keeping open gas power plants, the oil industry elated over some regulatory success and the fights go on for doable renewables. Check out the stories and links below.
Please join our activities and activism; we encourage all to go outside on your own or via our free hikes with leaders via Meetup. Donations help a lot, and the money stays here at home doing good stuff. Donate at https://www.sierraclub.org/donate/1000
July 25: Diablo Nuclear Power Plant issue to shut down or extend its life: CA Public Utilities Commission holds two virtual hearings. “The Sierra Club remains unequivocally opposed to nuclear energy...every dollar spent on nuclear energy is one less dollar spent on truly safe, affordable and renewable energy sources.” Go here: https://tinyurl.com/NukeFreeSClub
July 25: Goleta Moratorium could end. That’s according to the Goleta Water District, which informed the City Council that the moratorium on new water hookups may be revised, thanks to winter rains and backup sources that could end the drought. Developers are likely to take advantage of the possibility.
July 20: Plastic Free webinar: You didn’t miss it because you can check it after-the-fact via SB Community Environmental Council’s website: https://cecsb.org/
July 19: Call to sign petition not to allow the Ormond Beach power plant to be extended for another three years, past Dec. 2023. The CA Energy Commission is voting on it Aug. 9 and the State Water Board is voting on Aug. 15. Keep apprised and sign the petition here: https://tinyurl.com/OrmondPetition and https://causenow.org/
July 19: Hot Springs Trailhead issue is likely to go to the CA Supreme Court, according to three Montecito property owners who SB County believes deliberately placed barriers to parking alongside the road at the popular hiking site. Two lower courts agreed with the property owners to require an environmental impact report, but the Second Appellate District Court ruled on this day that the county has the right to remove the barriers.
July 12: Rad Waste Alert: “In an attempt to prevent radioactive waste from the contaminated Santa Susana Field Lab site near Simi Valley to be melted down and recycled in Ventura County for commercial metal use, or dumped in conventional landfills, three activist groups appealed lower court losses to the California Supreme Court,” was the lead by Kit Stolz in the Ojai Valley News. Read about this dangerous issue here: https://lnkd.in/gBW2U_Gc and https://tinyurl.com/VtaNukeWaste
July 10: Chumash Casino Resort received a hard-to-get ‘TRUE’ certification from Green Business Certification Inc. “As the original stewards of this land, our tribe remains committed to environmental sustainability,” said Kenneth Kahn, tribal chair for the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. An example: in 2021, the Resort diverted 93% of waste from the landfill, which included leftover food to those in need.
July 6: Environmental Hub grand opening by the SB Community Environmental Council. It’s the Central Coast’s first E-Hub and featured the “Return of the Western Monarch Butterfly” exhibition. Designed to be an epicenter for education, activism and art at 1219 State St.
July 2: Eating Our Way to Extinction, a documentary film narrated by Kate Winslet with a town hall flavor. Watch the whole film here: https://youtu.be/LaPge01NQTQ
July 1: End Dependence on Fossil Fuels, a companion rally in Ventura to Santa Barbara’s paddle-out June 29. Happened at the Orchard Drive bike path at 10am to tell Gov. Gavin Newson we want No New Fossil Fuels. Join the action: https://lastchancealliance.org/
June 30: Mt. Pinos Opens many roads, trails and campsites in time for the busy Fourth of July weekend. Remaining closed are six roads/trails/campsite areas. For details go to: https://www.fs.usda.gov/lpnf
June 30: Bike On: Carpinteria’s Santa Claus Lane Bikeway will be open for summer through Labor Day, then closed to complete construction on a permanent barrier rail.
June 28: Great strides for the 101-corridor project from SB to Carpinteria that will include carpool lanes, electric buses, EV charging stations, bike connector routes in Montecito and Summerland and more, thanks to voter-approved SB1, noted the SB County Association of Governments which included an electric Ventura commuter bus. SB1 and Measure A tax has been a game-changer for transportation in SB County investing $316 million into the U.S. 101 corridor. Lots more detail here: https://www.sbroads.com/
June 27: Green Business Program of SB County honored the Montecito Water District as an Innovator Green Business. It is actively recruiting businesses to get certified, offering free technical assistance, advertising and incentives to those who qualify. To apply, contact Kori Nielsen at: knielsen@environmentalin.com
June 20: Multi-use Goleta Path along San Jose Creek from Hollister Ave. to Goleta Beach is expected to cost $33 million + but Goleta City Council is determined to make it happen. A resolution would allow the city to use eminent domain to acquire certain segments, owned by CalTrans, SB County, the railroad and private parcels.
June 14: We lost one, but it may be appealed re the subject of Exxon’s pipeline ownership permit amendment. At the SB County Planning Commission, Laura Capps' District 2 appointee to the commission, Laura Bridely, voted for Exxon, and we lost 3-1. Chair John Parke, appointed of District 3 was the only no vote. This was a surprise break by Bridely, who had voted against Exxon in our 3-2 defeat of the Exxon trucking plan and the valve upgrade, in its attempts to restart Gaviota Coast offshore oil drilling.
June 11: Green and Blue yearly event for the Environmental Defense Center had more than 500 guests at Stowe House. It celebrated more than 45 years of environmental preservation and to honor its 2023 Environmental Hero, Patagonia, Inc. Highlight was an interview with Patagonia’s CEO Ryan Gellert with UCSB professor Leah Stokes. Worth it to hear: https://tinyurl.com/EDCsInterview
June 10: World Ocean Day at Harbor Cove beach Ventura, with a Sierra Club booth erected and staffed by Steve Colomé, Kent Bullard, Marie Martin and our Ventura Network Chair Julie Henszey. Shout-out to Sierra Club member Rocio Lozano-Knowlton whose Merito Foundation was a primary organization of this event. Learn more here: https://www.meritofoundation.org
June 9: Creekside property acquired by the Ojai Valley Land Conservancy, in between its Confluence and San Antonio Creek preserves. The creek is the Ventura River’s principal tributary. For more detail and to donate to the cause, go to: https://ovlc.org
June 7: Toxic pit that was covered up in 1974 by Union Oil (Chevron subsidiary) and sold to Kevin Wright in 1985 where he unknowingly built his home has been awarded $63 million by a Santa Barbara jury. Wright was diagnosed with multiple myeloma 30 years later; he is now in remission, but Chevron isn’t, it intends to appeal the verdict.
June 5: Offshore fracking can’t be done without an environmental analysis, according to last year’s decision by the US Circuit Court of Appeals. But the oil industry disagreed so it asked the Supreme Court to intervene which declined to even consider the lower court’s ruling.
June 4: Change the name of Los Padres National Forest, an op-ed in SB’s Noozhawk and repeated June 21 in Edhat. It corresponds to our own Chapter vice-chair Jim Hines who’s been lobbying for the same thing for years and who was primarily responsible for our chapter changing its name from Los Padres Chapter to the Santa Barbara-Ventura Chapter. Brian Sarvis writes that Los Padres Forest “is not the homeland of the Spanish padres and none of our missions are in the national forest.” Instead, he opts for Condor National Forest, a name that would please Condor John.
June 2: Battery storage system by Gridstor is helping Santa Barbara’s clean energy transition with cranes installing 44 emission-free batteries at the company’s new 25,000-square foot facility on a 2.6-acre lot on Cortona Drive in Goleta. Once online, it will be the biggest in the County, capable of powering over 30,000 households.
June 2: Disaster Declaration by federal government for the February and March storms given to Santa Barbara and Los Angeles counties, but not to Ventura County which is between the two.
June 1: GHG Proposals from the Ventura County Climate Emergency Council requesting that the Board of Supervisors create a policy to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from new and existing County-owned buildings and create a program to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing residential and nonresidential buildings.
May 31: Fascinating webinar on "How Science Can Help Protect Birds and Their Habitat" presented by Channel Islands Restoration. Available to view after-the-fact here: https://cirweb.org/