Don’t miss part two of the four-day Dust-Up debate on Measure B at the L.A. Times as Jack Humphreville and Sarah Leonard do a point/counterpoint on today’s topic:Today’s topic: Why did the city rush to put Measure B on the March 3
ballot before a full analysis of its cost and effect on rates was
completed?
Here’s more news in today’s Clean Energy report:
Green Energy Not Cutting Europe’s Carbon
Wind farms and solar panels are a European success story. But the dirty
little secret is that using renewable energy isn’t reducing carbon
emissions
Those are the headlines on a new article from Der Spiegel at Business Week online that looks at Europe’s extraordinarily successful efforts at generating clean energy and finds a big problem.
“The climate hasn’t in fact profited from these 
developments. As
astonishing as it may sound, the new wind turbines and solar cells
haven’t prohibited the emission of even a single gram of CO2,” Anselm Waldermann reports.
“Even more surprising, the European Union’s own climate change policies,
touted as the most progressive in the world, are to blame. The EU-wide
emissions trading system determines the total amount of CO2 that can be
emitted by power companies and industries. And this amount doesn’t
change – no matter how many wind turbines are erected.”
That’s because those who reduce their emissions get pollution credits that are sold to others who need them to avoid going the clean energy route. This is now dawning on the German Green Party and other environmentalists who are pushing for actual reductions instead carbon emissions and real conservation measures that reduce energy use.
It’s the heart of what’s wrong with L.A.’s Measure B: It doesn’t reduce our dependence on fossil fuel or clean the air as supporters claim. It’s a feel-good measure that perpetuates the problem instead of solving it.
Los Angeles’ Bungled Solar Plan
How D’Arcy and Villaraigosa turned clean energy into a dirty dispute
The LA Weekly exposes more that’s wrong
with Measure B by reporting it came about in back room deals intended to further Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and IBEW union boss Brian D’Arcy’s bottomless thirst for power and monet,
“Despite its sunny title “Green
Energy and Good Jobs for Los Angeles Solar Initiative” is dogged by the
fact that the plan to generate 400 megawatts from acres of glistening
photo-voltaic panels creates city-government jobs while cutting the
area’s hungry private solar firms out of a six-year bonanza,” according to the article by former Daily News reporter Beth Barrett whose article is illustrated by former Daily News cartoonist Patrick O’Connor.
“Measure B landed on the March ballot after less public input than any
billion-dollar government scheme in Southern California in recent
memory. Criticism has grown intense even as a slick campaign embraced
by many leading politicians to win over voters gets under way.’”
PARTING SHOT: DWP at work wasting water in a drought
Sue Doyle in the Daily News reports DWP officials have allowed thousands of gallons of water to gush from a hydrant at Mason Avenue and the Orange Line at Victory Boulevard for 10 days and expect the flood to last another week.
The reason: “The gushing hydrant is relieving pressure on an old, damaged water line and two leaky valves below nearby Victory Boulevard and De Soto Avenue. Work to fix it began Feb. 2, but repairs have been delayed by recent rains.”
“We certainly appreciate the value of the water and the concern that we have to conserve all the water supplied to us,” said Martin Adams, DWP director of water operations. “The fact of life is, we have an aging infrastructure.”
Maybe Laura Chick and the PA Consulting report got it right about the DWP..
Parting Shot DWP at work wasting water in drought
DWP has let three quarters of a million gallons go down the drain in Winnetka. That’s nothing compared to the billions of dollars DWP is allowing to go for high paid union salaries to employees who can’t get the job done in a timely fashion, wasted employee programs that has nothing to do with supplying electric and water service, and high paid sub contractors who do the jobs DWP employees can not do. Last July rate payers were hit with 6% water and 6% electric rate increases specifically for rebuilding the infrastructure of our electric and water systems. DWP GM H. David Nahai agreed to show transparency to city council,stake holders and rate payers to encourage them to pass the increased rates. This was just a lie to get the increases passed. January 2009 he added insult on injury and allowed another pass through increased water rate. Winnetka is a good example of mismanagement from a dysfunctional agency that is breaking the backs of the rate payers. Where is the electric and water infrastructure rate increase revenue going? It’s going down the drain.