Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson. (File photo)
Staff Report
Benicia Mayor Elizabeth Patterson was one of more than 100 local elected officials throughout California who signed a letter to Gov. Jerry Brown yesterday calling for a statewide plan to phase out oil and gas drilling.
“We are here with a message to Governor Brown and the nation,” Patterson said in a statement. “We are local elected leaders taking bold steps to ask the state’s leaders including Governor Brown to clean up our cities, towns and agricultural lands and protect our people by calling for an end to the extraction, processing and burning of fossil fuels.”
The letter marks the launch of Elected Officials to Protect California, an independent elected officials network working to demand an end to fossil fuel extraction. The network is urging Brown to take the first step by ceasing permits for new fossil fuel projects, prohibiting drilling within 2,500 feet of homes and vulnerable areas and committing the state to 100 percent renewable energy.
“Oil fields make dreadful neighbor,” Meghan Sahli-Wells, the vice mayor of Culver City, said in a statement. “ In Culver City, we’re taking steps to end oil extraction in our city. I urge Governor Brown to follow suit and protect Californians’ health and our planet’s future from dirty drilling operations.”
The letter claimed that oil and gas production is a “significant contributor to California’s greenhouse gas emissions, and is particularly polluting.”
“Scientific evidence demonstrates that exposure to toxic air contaminants and other pollution caused by oil and gas wells is a significant threat to public health, and disproportionately affects disadvantaged communities and people of color,” the letter wrote. “According to the California Council on Science and Technology, the greatest health risks occur within one-half mile from active oil and gas development, yet nearly 8,500 active California oil and gas wells are within 2,500 feet of homes, schools, and hospitals. Unconscionably, California has no statewide policy limiting the proximity of oil and gas wells to homes and vulnerable areas like schools, parks, and hospitals.”
Other signatories of the letter include mayors, councilmembers and county supervisors throughout California. In addition to Patterson, the letter was also signed by Vice Mayor Steve Young and Solano County Supervisor Monica Brown.
To read the letter in full, go to http://uselectedofficials.org/sign-on-letter-from-california-elected-officials-to-governor-brown-on-fossil-fuels/.
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100 hundred local elected officials. Not very many opt in. The usual suspects in Benicia but not all elected officials. This goes nowhere.
Fracking is know to cause earthquakes and has had a history of emitting large amounts of methane. Their is also the problem of potential ground water contamination. I applaud the efforts of these elected officials to help stop this dangerous practice to earthquake prone California.
I absolutely agree. Get rid of any carbon based fuel. We can come up with something else to replace it later, once the lights go off and the buildings get hot or cold. Oh yeah, and we can come up with something else to keep the economy going – I know, cannabis will solve the problem.
Get some facts straight Pat.
https://earthquake.usgs.gov/research/induced/myths.php
And while fossil fuel production is causing a significant portion of the increase, so is wetlands and farming. Do we get rid of wetlands and farming too since they are obviously harming the environment?
the researchers found that some 17 teragrams of the 25 teragram annual increase is from fossil fuel production, 12 is from wetlands or rice farming, while fires are decreasing emissions by 4 teragrams (17 + 12 – 4 = 25).
In 2015, there were some 57,000 gas and oil wells in California of which about 650 used fracking to stimulate production.
The mayor does NOT speak for me.
She is a loon. Let’s kill Valero. Let’s kill oil and gas production. Let’s kill water supply. Let’s kill First Street with noise regulations.
Does the mayor understand how an economy works? She is a whack job.
And BTW … fracking does NOT cause earthquakes. That is also a loony statement. I am a registered geologist. Also, the amount of methane generated by fracking statewide is less than the amount of a dairy farm. Oops … shouldn’t have said that … the mayor will now want to shut down the dairy industry!!
Matter that was good.
The problem is wishful thinking. I honestly don’t think Elizabeth is a literal idiot as this sort of thing suggests…but she (and the other hundred or so who signed the letter) just wishes for a different reality where lights come on and refrigerators still work and houses are heated and TVs and computers still function….but without the messy infrastructure that make it possible to have all those things. Hey, I read fantasy novels, too; but I sure don’t let my fantasy life affect the way I act in real life.
Agree 100%. While my post definitely questions the mayors intellect, calling her an idiot, I must state that diagnosis is only circumstantial. I am sure she is not literally an idiot.
Her actions, however, are very naive and would liken her to Wendy in Neverland. It’s all a dream. Mayor Wendy, I mean Patterson, simply wishes for the next great adventure of ridding the nation of oil and gas, while all of us living in a green, solar powered nirvana. We all will share and be equally wealthy. Work will not necessary as Mother Government will nanny us and supply everything. And the only industry will be green based where our open borders will allow us to import all the free labor from around the hemisphere. What a marvelous dream!
But I am sure she is competent and intelligent. I just hope she can find her marbles.
Speaker and Matter you both are to kind to the Mayor. She is a far left lean Socialist Progressive that thinks like Warren and Bernie as is Vice Mayor Young. Way out there.
Who authorized Mayor Patterson and Vice Mayor Young to sign a letter on my behalf. The letter states “ON BEHALF OF OUR COMMUNITIES”. Mayor Patterson Vice Mayor Young you are not authorized to make a statement on my behalf. Is Valero and other “Refineries” to blame for the recent fires also. My suggestion is you both resign and if not recuse yourselves from further discussion on Valero or an ISO. Your Socials Ideals are out of touch with Benicia “My Opinion”.
Unfortunately, just as 49% of US citizens hate having Trump represent them;; those of us who disagree with Patterson are in the minority here in Benicia…so she has the right to say “on behalf…” NOW, if you want to start a recall campaign, I’ll sign up, but I expect we’ll still be in the minority since we do live among a lot of liberal zombies.
Speaker, she was elected and has one vote. Just who authorized her to represent me. Did the three other councilmember or the City Attorney? No she did it on her own with the Vice Mayor falling in line also. Bad news. But as we all know she lost on ISO and will lose on this. She does have the Reverend Straw behind her.
Mayor Patterson and Vice Mayor Young at one time there was over 40 refineries in California. At present no more than 15/17. That is progress. Just where have you two been. Resign and get rid of your misery you cause wonderful Benicia Residents/VOTERS. You two are out and over and done with. BYE BYE
The history of Patterson’s political career is that she has prevailed over a man every election and that many folks regard those men as stooges for big oil, proving Patterson’s views are shared by a majority of voters. If you are hoping to get elected this November, it was foolish to publicly come out against the ISO. The smart play would have been to clam up if you are already in quicksand for raging against commercial cannabis, also popular with a majority. The Southampton precincts are going to reject anyone advocating to keep on trusting big oil and work with them despite a history of failures. For the money?
STM 10-7
Then you would have to advocate for the destruction of the city by closing Valero. I would rather go down fighting. I do NOT believe the majority of Benicia supports killing Valero. I believe the majority of Benicia does NOT understand Patterson’s true intention: the shut down of Valero.
PATTERSON WANTS TO SHUT DOWN VALERO.
I shall keep the pressure on.
SORRY STM you are wrong. Yes she did win four elections in a row but by very small margins. In 2020 if she choses to run or the Vice Mayor both are toast. Mainly because of their authoritarian and totalitarian approach to the voters/residents . It is over and her term is up. Poor Steve Young has got caught up in the “RING IN THE NOSE” approach and has done nothing to stop it . He is also out big time.
STM your logic is specious. “she has prevailed over a man every election” that part is OK…but then “many folks regard those men as stooges”…that part is OK as well, but then you say “proving Patterson’s views are shared by a majority”. S’OK, logic isn’t a strong suit among liberals. Here’s how one trained in logic would look at this…Premise A AND some Premise B implies Statement C. That isn’t logical. Spock would laugh, and he’s Vulcan.
103 signatories is not hundreds. Only 3 from Solano county.
Isn’t this really just an election tactic they can point to? “Look, I did something ”
Can someone send me the link to the studies on how to make jet fuel from algae?
https://www.pnnl.gov/main/publications/external/technical_reports/PNNL-23227.pdf
Interesting study. Indirect costs are not realized in their analysis nor is the ROI for financing. There will have to be a greater return than 9% in order to secure financing. And in order have greater margin of return, they will need to sell at a higher price.
But this may become viable in the future. And if can be viable, the free market will take advantage and an entrepreneur will make a fortune while helping the world. Same can be said of the entrepreneur who will bring forward the 90% efficient solar cell and the paper weight battery. These technologies are coming and will be viable within 100 years.
In the meantime, carbon fuels will be the lowest cost means of energy. The Earth will survive just fine for 100 years.
While it is a nice concept, the key issue is the algal growth and harvesting cycle which is entirely omitted from the study. It is easy to say that we can create biofuels; but ask any corn farmer whether or not any oil company is offering to buy his crop. 10 years ago we thought it’d be easy to process oil shale to make fuel…works, but not as easily as expected. This is a similar pie in the sky issue.
Thomas – thanks for the link. Though I have not had time to read the entire study, from the synopsis, it looks like it will take 1340 tons of dry alga biomass per day (the cost to produce, dry and transport is $430 per ton.+ how much surface area is needed to product a ton of dry biomass is not discussed) This will produce 11.2 million gallons of naphtha (jet fuel) per year. In 2016 US airlines used 17.7 billion gallons of jet fuel – excluding military fuel needs.
I will read the full study at some point and maybe the question of surface area to produce a ton (x1340 tons per day) will be needed.
The mayor has no idea about science or economics. She is a reactionary. She buys what the “disband ICE” crowd is selling. She may not know it, but she is a tool of the extreme Left. She should stop using Soros funded columns as her research material.
The day Benicia gets her out of office, will be a good day. Dismiss her.
Matter, you and many others are now on the tail of the mayor. I cracked the code long ago. Now all we have to do is get the ring out of the nose of all of her followers that are now starting to drop like flies. Bye Bye Mayor Patterson you will bring others down with you. Thanks Matter.
Get her out of office is correct. The council agenda is out for the July meeting. The mayor is requesting a rehearing on her big DEFEAT on the first go around. This will not set well with the three council members who chose step two. The mayor is a sore loser and just wants to use valuable time to get her own agenda shoved down the throats of not only city staff and city council but the residents/voters. She must go along with her ring in the nose tactics and council partner. Yes Vice Mayor Young. 2020 cannot come fast enough.
Thanks Dave, Looking forward to what you find out.
Dave it also appears there are no mayors from Contra Costa County. Only two Richmond City Councilmembers. That county has four refinery’s. Very strange. Where is Richmond Mayor Butt. I guess he knows what side of the money train he wants to be on. There could be an updated list coming out. I do not know. But I think Mayor Patterson could tell us. HAPPY 4TH OF JULY. Also read my article/LTTE in todays paper. Thank you.
I would urge all of you to read the City Council Agenda for July 17th. Mayor Patterson has request for “Rehearing of Vote Cast 6/19/18 concerning the ISO. She blast City Managers staff as not doing as she said. Also states that city staff has done nothing for over a year. Also states city staff report contained almost no meaningful information . Talk about insulting city staff. She lost and now everyone is wrong. Very sad situation the mayor has put herself in. Yes she must go.