Dear Council Members,
I’m writing in support of the proposed council resolution supporting the Air District’s new standards on gas appliances.
The frightening news is that for all the talk about climate action, things are actually getting worse. Last year was a record year for Greenhouse Gas Emissions, as were the previous several years, and 2025 is likely to surpass all of those. We are still doing far too little, and we are heading to a world not just with massive sea level rise but with mega famines, large portions of the world being unlivable, and credible predictions of over 100 million deaths, for sure the worst calamity in human history. The decisions we make in the next 5 years will be key to staving off the worst of this catastrophe.
We clearly have to do more, but what can we do? Well, amazingly, there is one very bright spot in the bay area, where the air district proposes to stop sale of new gas-powered water heaters in 2027. You might not think much of your humble water heater, but by moving all of them from gas to electric, we can eliminate almost 10% of our total greenhouse gas emissions in the Bay Area. Even better, these standards will probably lead to a similar state-wide action, and many other states will likely follow our lead, creating a colossal drop in emissions. There is almost no other single climate action that has a better chance of massively dropping our CO2 emissions.
Unfortunately, a powerful industry-funded campaign has recently started, full of massive misinformation and exaggeration, trying to build a fake grassroots movement against these standards. Millions of dollars are being poured into this campaign. A similar campaign at the south coast air district used AI and massive social media advertising to make that air district reverse its water heater rule. They are attempting to do the same here.
These standards are critically important to the people of Menlo Park. In a narrow sense, they are absolutely key to the success of our climate action plan. More broadly, all of us in Menlo Park want to see a livable world for our children and grandchildren. You are our most local, most representative leaders, and so Im asking you to speak out on our behalf, by passing a resolution in support of these new standards. The opportunity of great progress stands in the balance, you have the opportunity to help tilt that balance.
Sincerely,
-Gerard Manning.
