Plugging Into the Process
Senate Bill 868 (SB868) passed through the California Assembly and been signed by the Governor, allowing us to purchase and install plug-in solar panels for use in our own apartments, condos, or houses without the need to apply and pay for an “interconnection agreement” with SDGE. For most of us in UH, a larger solar panel array installation is not feasible or is prohibitively expensive, but plug-in solar panels on balconies or in backyards would fit in quite nicely. Utility companies are trying every trick in the political book to derail this bill, though, so there are no guarantees. But if the measure is enacted, many of us in UH will want to acquire and install some plug-in panels ASAP. We can review our “electricity delivery” fees from our latest SDGE bills if we need a reminder as to why.
Political support for the changes needed to protect our environment doesn’t come easily or cheaply, especially these days. For example, groups fighting Prop 45, which aims to undo key environmental protections in California, have only a small fraction of the funding to work with that their opponents possess, which makes sense given the real goals of Prop 45 and who is actually going to “win” if the proposition passes. Sadly, using “affordable housing” as bait to get voters to sign onto ruining their own environment has succeeded before and may well do so again, but it doesn’t have to.
Ongoing hard work by groups of dedicated people is part of every successful campaign for change. Luckily, there are local organizations, like SanDiego350, who are training anyone who wants to help make policy impacts locally and in Sacramento. Getting involved has really never been easier, and in this era of rapid-fire assaults on our environment, one could argue that getting involved has never been so important.
Lots of good people are out there ready to help us fight for cleaner, safer air, water, and food supplies. They can’t do it alone, though. Engagement in civic life is time-consuming and can be aggravating and depressing as well, but things won’t get better without enough of us regular citizens pushing hard to keep the environmental protections we’ve already implemented and to adopt better systems for a resilient, sustainable future.