Berkeley phasing out natural gas infrastructure

#MoveTheDate Solutions

Berkeley phasing out natural gas infrastructure

Personal / Community: Community project

Cities sub-categories: Renewable energy, Legislation, regulation, mandate, Infrastructure

Description: The city of Berkeley has banned natural gas hookups in all new buildings. From the East Bay Express: "Berkeley is about to see a "wave of new multistory construction," with at least 3,100 residential units currently planned, said Councilmember Kate Harrison, who introduced the measure. "These buildings will be in place for 100 years," she said. "Emergency action is needed to prevent locking in the greenhouse gas and safety impacts" of natural gas. In addition to the fuel's impact on climate change, Harrison also noted that using natural gas means "pumping a toxic, flammable liquid over fault lines into our homes." Cooking with gas is linked to asthma attacks and hospitalizations, hitting hardest in children and communities of color. "

Website about this solution: https://www.eastbayexpress.com/SevenDays/archives/2019/07/17/berkeley-city-council-bans-natural-gas-hookups-in-new-construction

Why I love this solution: Finally, politicians are waking up to the long term consequences of building new infrastructure that is fossil fuel-dependent. Hopefully cities across the world will take similar steps, because today's forward thinking will impact our well-being for decades to come.

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