For Immediate Release                                                     Contact: Jackie Wright
May 22, 2008                                                                     W. E., 415 824-3990






Fairfax, CA-Fairfax Mayor Mary Ann Maggiore, Vice Mayor David Weinsoff and council members: Larry Bragman, Susan Brandborg, and Lew Tremaine went on record before an enthusiastic crowd at Wednesday night's Fairfax Town Council Meeting, May 21 in favor of passing the county ordinance for the Marin Clean Energy Plan.

The council also honored Rebekah Collins, founder of Sustainable Fairfax, for introducing the Community Choice concept to Marin County years ago. Collins said she resolved to take action when she witnessed the effects of global warming in Alaska, where she grew up. “Powerful tools like Community Choice are what I want to leave to my children,” she declared.

As a result of the Council's vote Fairfax will review the Marin County draft ordinance at its next meeting June 4.  The ordinance calls for a Joint Powers Authority to work with the County's new Community Choice agency, Marin Clean Energy (MCE), which would greatly expand solar, wind, geothermal and other clean energy resources rather than increasing the use of nuclear, natural gas or coal power. Several council members emphasized their commitment to having Marin Clean Energy maximize locally based renewables and energy efficiency. "With this vote we are showing our commitment to do our part in ending global warming as fast as we can," said Mayor Maggiore. “We said in our Strategic Plan that our intention was to move as swiftly as we could to a 20% decrease in polluting emissions."

Women's Energy Matters (WEM) videotaped the town council meeting and is making it available to interested media.  Barbara George, Executive Director of WEM, said,  “Following a thorough discussion, Council members enthusiastically agreed to set the pace for Marin city councils by approving the ordinance as soon as possible, and their ringing endorsements electrified the room. This is environmental history in the making, and will give our children hope.”

As with previous meetings, the County's Sustainability Team, Dawn Weisz and Omar Pena presented a PowerPoint presentation about Marin Clean Energy, the opportunity Marin residents will have to create a Joint Powers Authority that would obtain 50% or more renewable forms of energy to serve Marin citizens and businesses, instead of letting investor-owned Pacific Gas and Electric buy more fossil fuel and nuclear energy with ratepayer dollars. PG&E has only 13% renewables and admits it will miss the State's deadline for 20% renewables by 2010.

George, a long-time energy efficiency expert and a public interest advocate in cases at the California Public Utilities Commission, spoke at the beginning of the meeting, following Ms. Collins.  Flipping through a PG&E document with page after page of blacked-out data, she described how PG&E makes energy decisions in secret, demands 30% profits on energy efficiency, opposes increasing renewables past 20%, and favors investments in nuclear power. Mayor Maggiore commented afterwards, "We were very glad to have Barbara George advising us.  Barbara has long experience working with every aspect of the Clean Energy debate.  She is extremely knowledgeable and at the same time able to communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively.  Her insights and solutions to challenges inherent in the struggle for energy independence are invaluable."

The Fairfax vote marks the beginning of what could be a new environmental era for Marin County.

About Women's Energy Matters -Women's Energy Matters (WEM) is a network of women and men who approach energy issues from a woman's point of view. WEM works for a rapid transition to an efficient, renewable energy system, in order to promote healthy communities and ecosystems and improve international relations. WEM also celebrates the ways women have used their own energy through the ages to work for the public good.  Current areas of focus include: Community Choice, Energy Efficiency, and Environmental Justice. See: www.womensenergymatters.org.


Elected officials in Marin will be deciding by Fall 2008 whether each municipality will participate in the Joint Powers Authority which will implement the County's Community Choice plan, also known as Marin Clean Energy.  If a city decides not to participate, its citizens will lose the Community Choice opportunity.

The County's Sustainability Team and a number of community based organizations including Women's Energy Matters (WEM) are educating the public and elected officials about Community Choice.

In 2002, Assembly Bill 117, authored by Carole Migden, created Community Choice to give California city and county residents the same benefits from market competition that big businesses enjoy.
 
The Marin Clean Energy Business Plan is on-line at www.marincleanenergy.info. It commits to deliver over twice as much renewable energy as PG&E at comparable rates.

Marin Clean Energy will focus on purchasing renewable wind, solar, and geothermal energy from independent energy sources. These power supplies will be delivered on transmission and distribution lines that PG&E will continue to own and maintain.

Presently, PG&E utilizes 13% renewable energy and states it will have difficulty achieving 20% renewables by 2010, the rate mandated by the State of California.

PG&E achieved a small fraction (15-45%) of its energy efficiency targets in its most recent program cycle for which evaluations have been completed (2004-05). Results are posted at www.calmac.org.

PG&E currently purchases about 50 percent of its energy from outside energy providers - including all of its renewables.  Marin Clean Energy will purchase renewables at first, but plans to build and own the bulk of its renewable energy over time.

Women's Energy Matters supports Community Choice statewide, and is actively working to educate the public about Marin Clean Energy.  WEM feels it's important to support change that will impact the present and the future of our children.  The environment is too fragile to depend on a company that promises to do the right thing, but has demonstrated a history of rigidity and recalcitrance and benefits financially from the status quo.  The people of Marin deserve more than empty promises.

Find out more visit www.womensenergymatters.org and www.marincleanenergy.info.