December 2009 - Sustainability

[Sustain] richard stone wants to share approved contacts on Boxbe
by richard stone 16 Dec '09

16 Dec '09

GPSF, I use Boxbe to manage my inbox. I think Boxbe can help you, too! Here's the link: https://www.boxbe.com/register?tc=1048215558_1380861935 -richard Please do not reply directly to this email. This message was sent at the request of zentropical(a)gmail.com. Boxbe will not use your email address for any other purpose. Click the link below if you would prefer not to receive any further invitations from Boxbe members: https://www.boxbe.com/unsubscribe?email=sustainability@sfgreens.org&tc=1048… Boxbe integrates with Yahoo!, Gmail, Google Apps, and AOL. Get Boxbe today! Boxbe, Inc. | 2390 Chestnut Street #201 | San Francisco, CA 94123

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[Sustain] Urgent! Call City Hall For Tenant Rights!
by Eric Brooks 14 Dec '09

14 Dec '09

Hi all, Call Supervisor Bevan Dufty today to insist that he support full tenant protections in San Francisco! San Francisco Supervisor John Avalos has sponsored an ordinance to close a loophole in City law and require that all landlords in San Francisco must participate in -Just Cause- for evictions. Just Cause means that if a landlord is going to evict a tenant, the landlord must have a good reason before being allowed to do so (such as damage to an apartment or non-payment of rent). Currently, City law only protects tenants in buildings built before 1979. In all other buildings, a landlord can evict a tenant at any time for no reason. The Avalos measure would amend the law to protect -all- tenants, ensuring fairness and housing security for everyone. BUT, Supervisor Bevan Dufty (who announced recently that he is a candidate for Mayor of San Francisco) says he is opposed to the Avalos ordinance and intends to vote 'no' in tomorrow's 2pm Board of Supervisors meeting! WHAT YOU CAN DO: CALL DUFTY NOW! Urgent calls are needed to Supervisor Dufty's office right now to demand that he switch his position and vote 'YES' on the ordinance. Please take a quick moment to phone Bevan Dufty's office at 415-554-6968 with the following message: -Supervisor Dufty, if you want to run for Mayor, you need to prove that you will protect tenants' rights. Vote 'YES' on the Avalos eviction protection ordinance AS IT IS with NO further amendments!- IMPORTANT NOTE: If you are calling at night or get a recording, leave your message as voice mail. Calls must be in by 1:45pm tomorrow (Tuesday, December 15th). Thanks, as always, for your action and support! Eric Brooks Campaign Coordinator Our City http://our-city.org

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[Sustain] Help Save Rainbow Snake From Climate Change - This Wednesday
by Eric Brooks 12 Dec '09

12 Dec '09

Hi all, The most beautiful snake in California, the rainbow colored San Francisco Garter Snake, is in jeopardy due to climate change and needs our help. (To see and learn about the snake go to http://creagrus.home.montereybay.com/CAsnakeSFGarter.html ) The snake is in trouble because a poorly designed coastal golf course was built right on top of its habitat in the 1920s and the snake has been declining ever since. Though the habitat, called Sharp Park, is in Pacifica California, the land is owned by the City of San Francisco. Recent efforts by Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi are now giving us the chance to save this beautiful animal. Climate change could mean the end of the snake unless the golf course is removed and the habitat fully restored. Part of the habitat is a protected natural area called Mori Point (managed by the National Park Service) where the snake is starting to make a comeback. But rising sea levels triggered by the climate crisis will soon create flooding in Mori Point, and if the golf course is not removed, the rainbow snake will have no good place of retreat from the rising salt water. This Wednesday, December 16, at 1pm, in San Francisco City Hall, Room 263, a hearing will be held on proposed alternatives for Sharp Park. But unfortunately, under pressure from golf enthusiasts, the San Francisco Recreation & Parks Dept. is planning for the golf course to remain, and is making false claims that the course is good for the snake! WHAT YOU CAN DO Come to the hearing and speak up to insist that the entire golf course be removed from Sharp Park and the habitat be restored. Join other San Francisco residents, and members of the Center for Biological Diversity, Restore Sharp Park, Golden Gate Audubon Society, Our City and many others at the hearing, to save the rainbow snake. HEARING DETAILS - Government Audit & Oversight Committee, Hearing On Sharp Park Restoration - San Francisco City Hall, Room 263, Wednesday, December 16, 1pm - Directions: From Civic Center BART/Muni station, cross United Nations Plaza to City Hall (on Polk between Grove and McAllister) FOR MORE INFORMATION go to: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/campaigns/restoring_sharp_park_californi… Thanks for your action and support! Eric Brooks Campaign Coordinator Our City 415-756-8844

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[Sustain] Copenhagen Reports :)
by Eric Brooks 10 Dec '09

10 Dec '09

Hi all, Both deeply disappointing, but also some powerful uplifting things, are happening in Copenhagen. For video and text reports see: http://oneclimate.net/ and http://www.linktv.org/climatechange/live

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[Sustain] Outrageous PG&E Attack Mailer/Site On Clean Power SF!
by Eric Brooks 10 Dec '09

10 Dec '09

Hi all, Just yesterday, I discovered a new and big glossy 'Business Beware' mailer from PG&E viciously attacking San Francisco's new clean energy program, Clean Power SF (Community Choice Aggregation), which just went out for contractor bids last month. The attack is absolutely outrageous because, by California state law, PG&E is -required- to "cooperate" with any community attempting to establish a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) program. Further below is a web address where you can see the arguments that PG&E is making in its attack piece. It is important for all to understand that the key attack which the piece uses - a 2007 Controller's office statement that San Francisco electricity bills would go up by 24% under CCA - was so specious that even the fiscal conservatives on the SF Board of Supervisors ignored it and voted unanimously with the other Supervisors to establish Clean Power SF. The reason that the controllers 24% statement was rightly seen as ridiculous is that it totally and purposely ignored the fact that the higher up front costs of the renewables (and a service charge for dropping PG&E as a provider) will be spread out over the entire 15 to 20 year life of the project so that the high up front costs of -starting- the program will be totally eliminated by later -savings- from the renewables and efficiency programs which make up the project! If you look through the entire Controller's report (attached PDF), you'll see that the Controller even openly admits this fact in the report itself, and further, that the document does not make any definitive claim whatsoever that rates would go up. In fact, Clean Power SF is purposely and carefully designed to ensure that rates will stay the same or even go -down- (not up), and the ordinance establishing it expressly -requires- that the program must be structured to meet or beat PG&E rates. You can see the PG&E attack material at: http://www.commonsensesf.com/ The war with PG&E over clean energy is now fully on folks. It is -crucial- that you join in to help keep Clean Power SF strong and on track. Please watch closely for further alerts on Clean Power SF. (Note: If you are on -both- the 'Campaign' and 'Rapid' clean energy lists and are receiving two copies of this email, please email me directly at brookse32(a)aim.com and I'll make sure that you are only kept on one list so you don't receive duplicates.) Clean Power SF will switch us to 51% clean electricity within the next decade; a number that will put us in line with the reductions that scientists are saying nations should be adopting at the Copenhagen climate talks (but are clearly not going to). It's up to us to lead the world now. peace Eric

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