FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 23, 2020
CONTACT: Milena Paez, 916-290-8604
September 23, 2020 | SACRAMENTO, CA — NextGen California Senior Policy Advisor, David Weiskopf responds to the Governor’s Executive Order to address the climate emergency in California:
“Burning gasoline and diesel for transportation is by far the biggest source of air pollution and is what drives California’s contributions to the climate crisis. This order lays down an important marker that we need to tackle this problem in a just and systematic way – from the wellhead where oil is produced to the vehicles we drive. NextGen California has been advocating for years pushing California to adopt stronger clean transportation policies, so we are pleased to see Governor Newsom set these ambitious, achievable, and scientifically necessary goals.
We can achieve carbon neutrality by 2045, but it will take ambitious actions like these across the whole economy – including burning gas in buildings, heavy industry, agriculture, and improving how we manage lands and waters in the state. We will also need to create more and better clean housing and transportation options across the state, and start making smart infrastructure decisions that begin to undo the toxic legacy of environmental racism that continues to harm low-income and communities of color. This order takes important steps in that direction by including transit, walking, biking, and other clean transportation infrastructure components.
This Order puts us on the right track for addressing a crucial part of the climate crisis in California, but there is more work to do. While eliminating greenhouse gases in California will not be enough to solve the climate crisis, if we do this well, our state can be the pivot point that turns both the national and global economies towards a more just and sustainable model.
We look forward to working with the Governor and the legislature to achieve these goals and expand upon them to build a just, equitable, and resilient California.”
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NextGen California is a non-profit organization dedicated to working on California legislative, budgetary, regulatory, and programmatic issues. Originally founded in 2014 to focus on climate and environmental policy, in recent years, NextGen California has broadened its scope to advance solutions to various economic and social justice issues. Specifically, our policy portfolio now encompasses topics such as: criminal justice and immigration; healthcare and food insecurity; mental health and voting rights; student loan debt and the Census; veterans issues and consumer protections; and affordable housing and environmental justice.