11/4/2021
Welcome to Monitor Notes, a weekly roundup of news items, event announcements, and updates on past Bay Area Monitor articles.
Clean Cars For All
The Air District is taking its Clean Cars for All Program back out of the garage. Launched in March of 2019, the program helps members of communities disproportionately impacted by air pollution to trade in old vehicles for hybrids, electric cars, e-bikes, or transit cards. Additional funding from the California Air Resources board has enabled the program to get a jump-start and continue to bring equitable access to clean clean air transportation options. More information about the program, including eligibility verification, and application instructions, can be found at the District’s Clean Cars for All website.
Future of Energy
The League of Women Voters of Los Altos Mountain View’s Climate Action Team is hosting a public event to share information on California’s carbon emission reduction goals over the next 30 years. Hosted next Thursday, November 11th at 4pm, the free, online event will feature presentations from Silicon Valley Clean Energy’s Don Bray and Zoe Elizabeth to discuss current and near-term priorities for decarbonizing the power grid. The session will also cover new technological innovations coming out of Silicon Valley and elsewhere that could have implications on how clean energy is generated in the future.
Housing Talk
The Greenbelt Alliance is hosting a pair of talks on housing next Wednesday, November 16th. At 5pm, they join Housing Leadership Council and Save the Bay to discuss how housers and environmentalists can collaborate to help achieve the goals of each movement. The Big Question: “How do we use the General Plan to advance nature-based solutions climate-smart housing policy, and community equity?” Later that evening at 6pm, part three of the ongoing “Creating a More Affordable Future,” will look at housing issues in San Mateo County. The County’s communities are updating the housing element of their general plan, and Greenbelt’s series is designed to inform the public about the problems and their possible solutions.
Biochar Benefits
Biochar, a type of charcoal typically used with compost to boost a soil’s agricultural yield, may have a role to play in managing atmospheric carbon. Raymond Baltar, Sonoma Biochar Project Director, will be giving a presentation this Monday, November 8th, about this resource and its potential as a cheap and easily scalable way to manage carbon in the atmosphere. Baltar’s presentation is hosted by the League of Women Voters of Berkeley, Albany, and Emeryville.
Twin Peaks Trail Survey
The Twin Peaks Trail Improvement Project in San Francisco wants to hear from you about the future of the area’s open space. To help the project best figure out how to complete its vision of a permanent promenade and trail system, the project has sent out a survey of the public’s preferences for the trail system and promenade design. The deadline to fill it out is this Sunday, November 7th.
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