City Council Holds Emergency Meeting and Calls for “Decisive” Action
A new report suggests that the proliferation of outdoor propane heaters at the city’s dining establishments has resulted in a disturbing uptick in greenhouse gas emissions. The report finds that these emissions threaten to undermine progress towards the city’s Vision 2050 carbon neutral goals. Researchers conducted air monitoring at numerous outdoor Berkeley restaurants and found that the gas heater’s inefficient combustion results in both excessive carbon and propane emissions.
The study’s author noted, “the excess emissions from propane gas heaters represents a serious setback to Berkeley’s Climate Action Plan because propane traps more heat than carbon dioxide.” Council member Hahn was emphatic in her call for action, “look when it comes to gaslighting, we are professionals but, in this situation, bold and decisive steps are necessary to firm up my Sierra Club endorsement. That is why I have asked councilmember Harrison to add me as a co-sponsor to her legislation.” Harrison’s legislation would ban propane gas and require dining establishments to transition all electric heaters.
look when it comes to gaslighting, we are professionals
CM Hahn
The public response to the Harrison proposal was mixed. Local restaurant groups cited issues of cost and potential theft of equipment. One local proprietor noted, “look even when it’s nailed to the sidewalk everything vanishes these days in Berkeley.” In response, councilmember Bartlett suggested using portable battery powered lamps similar to the existing portable propane heater design, so they could be stored in a secure location after business hours. A technical analysis from the Synthetic Reality Institute predicted that portable electric heaters would require thousands of dollars in batteries due to the demanding power requirements. Bartlett responded by suggesting “this is why we need a $600 million municipal bond; there is so much more stuff for taxpayers to subsidize in the name of the progressive – liquid democracy – agenda.”
Lomas Tord, a frequent critic of the city’s lack of progress toward greenhouse gas emissions reduction, raised his hand to speak during the meeting prompting Mayor Arreguin to ask Vice Mayor Harrison to chair the hearing while he disappeared from the screen. Tord questioned why any form of outdoor heating was necessary. “Look the embedded carbon in these batteries exceeds the amount needed to float a crypto currency gig, and only accelerates the demise of the planet. Why can’t people wear organic alpaca wool like I do?”
City council ultimately recognized this is a “complex” issue involving many “tradeoffs,” so rather than approve the Harrison legislation, they decided to commissions a study to “identify robust options to enable the city to move forward in alignment with our Climate Action Plan.”