The mayors of 4 of the biggest cities on the West Coast of the US recently came together in Portland, Oregon, for a 2-day summit that culminated in the creation of a signed declaration calling for the slashing of carbon emissions by 80% by 2050, and also for the “accelerated” conversion of gas-powered city vehicle fleets to electric and biodiesel standards.
The 4 cities in question — San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland, and Seattle (the mayor of Eugene signed the declaration as well, but didn’t attend) — represent a substantial chunk of the West Coast economy, making this declaration one to take note of.
The new goal means that greater renewable energy support, along with greater electric vehicle (EV) support, and also greater public transit support, is likely over the coming years in and around the cities in question.
Green Car Reports provides more:
The announcement follows the recent state-level announcement that California, Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia have signed on to a Pacific Coast Collaborative aiming to “build thriving, livable, low-carbon economies along the West Coast.”
Along with other ZEV-emissions states, the same group also simultaneously joined the International ZEV Alliance, which aims to make all new cars emission-free by 2050. Both movements have made mention of pushing ahead with progress during what’s perceived as a time of federal-government inaction.
…Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti stressed that this isn’t symbolic, but a means to set a roadmap to take unified action. Garcetti announced that the initial steps have been made to establish a consortium between the cities, to leverage purchasing power for buying electric vehicles—all the way from sedans to medium and heavy-duty trucks.
“The idea is that if we put out a request for interest, which I think we’re going to do, we have a formal consortium, we can have companies step up and say we might not be able to just do trash trucks for LA, but we can if we can do them for Portland, for Eugene, Seattle, San Francisco,” said Garcetti. “And we feel like the West Coast can really drive change in the way people get around and the way these vehicles are used.”
Wondering why San Diego is not part of the pact
San Diego government isn’t so keen on EV. You only have to look at EV TOU electric rates that’s almost double what it is in LA: $0.19/kWh vs $0.11/kWh.
No, I don’t think that’s it. Our avg, electricity rate is around $0.25, so $0.19 is right in line.
Plus, check this out, seems they may be ahead of the pack but doing their own thing: http://ecomento.com/2015/12/23/san-diego-aims-for-100-renewable-energy-by-2035
What they say doesn’t mean as much as their actions. LA’s EV rate is $0.11/kWh, no such thing in San Diego. But SDGE is keen to raise electric rates, about 30% in last 2 years and busy trying to eliminate low use (aka solar) tier. Meanwhile, I sometimes hear some SD politicians brag about pro-EV stance when the reality is opposite.