After the passage of AB32, the historic Global Warming Solutions Act to limit greenhouse gas emissions in California, the Air Resources Board (ARB) quickly adopted the business friendly "Cap and Trade" as the method to achieve the goals.

Environmental justice advocates opposed this procedure as seriously flawed and brought a suit against the ARB stating that the board had not, as required by AB32, given serious attention to far better ways of reducing greenhouse gases (GHG) in California. As a result of their objection and legal action, the ARB is preparing to review the viability of alternatives before deciding on how best to reduce GHG in California.

The ARB will be holding hearings on August 24 to get expert and community input on the best ways to limit and reduce GHG in California. A coalition of community organizations led by Communities for a Better and Environment and the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment will be taking buses to Sacramento to testify, rally, and let politicians know that Cap-and Trade is not the way to go!! Richmonders must be in Sacramento on the 24^th! As home to the Chevron refinery, one of the biggest GHG emitters in California we must be there to STOP Cap-and-Trade and insist on real ways to reduce GHG.

What is "Cap-and-Trade?" Cap and Trade is a pro-business scheme to limit carbon emissions. Using this scheme a "Cap" is placed on the overall emissions that can be spewed into the air. We support the cap as a starting point.

The big problem is with the "Trade". Under cap-and-trade a total amount of emissions is determined and then is divided among the corporations with each one receiving an allotment of "polluting rights". Using the"trade"provisions corporations that want to pollute over their limit have two options. They can turn to the pollution market and buy "rights" from corporations that haven't used all their "polluting rights." Ultimately corporations have found yet another way to make profits-through the buying and selling of pollution!

Alternatively, corporations can earn more polluting rights through "offsets"-by taking actions such as planting trees that supposedly "offset" the extra pollution they emit. As environmental justice advocates we strongly oppose allowing corporations to claim "offsets" (often in locations far from their pollution emitting businesses), while they continue to pollute the primarily lower income, communities of color that surround the refineries.

Real Solutions: We will be in Sacramento on the 24^th to speak out to the Air Resources Board and to rally in the streets against Cap-and-Trade and in support of alternatives that will LOWER (not just cap) emissions, and benefit all communities, in particular those around the refineries. Some of these alternatives are:

¨  Clean up oil refineries, BAN Tar Sands and Dirty Crude

¨  Clean up big agriculture

¨  Clean up ports and rails (Electrify the ports and trains)

¨  Create Green Energy and Green Energy Jobs

Buses will be leaving from the Richmond BART Station at 7:30 am Wednesday --light breakfast on bus-- and will leave Sacramento at 5 pm to return to Richmond. To reserve a seat on the bus or to get details about the timing of the day's events contact Ana Orozco by phone at CBE (510-302-0430 Ext 12), on her cell (718-710-8591) or by e-mail (aorozco@cbecal.org).  

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TELL GOVERNOR BROWN YOU OPPOSE CAP-AND-TRADE!!

Whether or not you can get to Sacramento on the 24^th, it is very important to let Governor Brown know that you OPPOSE CAP-AND-TRADE and support real alternatives to lower Greenhouse Gases.

¨  CALL 916-445-2841 Extension 6 to voice your opposition. Call between 9 and 5 and call again if line is busy.

¨  E-MAIL: http://gov.ca.gov/m_contact.php

¨  FAX: 916-558-3160