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| "When he signed California's long overdue state budget on Tuesday, Schwarzenegger, true to his role as the "Fish Terminator," blue penciled $3.1 million in funding from a key program run by the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) to restore endangered and threatened salmon, steelhead and other species." Dan Bacher |
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A Dan Bacher Editorial
Schwarzenegger: A 'Green Economy' in the Wake of a Dead Delta?
by Dan Bacher, editor of the Fish Sniffer
September 28, 2008 -- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose horrendous environmental policies have resulted in ecological catastrophe for the California Delta and the collapse of Central Valley salmon runs, on Friday again attempted to delude the media and the public about his environmental record by mouthing off about his "commitment to building a green economy."
September 28, 2008 -- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose horrendous environmental policies have resulted in ecological catastrophe for the California Delta and the collapse of Central Valley salmon runs, on Friday again attempted to delude the media and the public about his environmental record by mouthing off about his "commitment to building a green economy."
Schwarzenegger announced his alleged commitment to "green jobs" after he signed AB 3018 by Speaker Emeritus Fabian Nunez that creates a Green Collar Jobs Council to develop a "comprehensive approach" to address California�s emerging workforce needs associated with its budding "green economy."
"The green-friendly business climate we are building in California continues to attract more clean-tech and green-tech companies to the state and is ensuring that the job growth in this booming industry will happen in California," Governor Schwarzenegger claimed. "The Green Collar Jobs Council established by this legislation will capitalize on our state's clean-tech boom and help transform of California's workforce to meet the demands of an emerging green economy."
Unfortunately, anybody who has studied the governor's actual environmental record knows that the only "green" that Schwarzenegger knows is the money of the powerful, heavily subsidized agribusiness corporations and water developers that he serves.
When he signed California's long overdue state budget on Tuesday, Schwarzenegger, true to his role as the "Fish Terminator," blue penciled $3.1 million in funding from a key program run by the Department of Fish and Game (DFG) to restore endangered and threatened salmon, steelhead and other species.
The Schwarzenegger administration has been an unparalleled disaster for fish, wildlife and the environment. This is the same Governor who has persistently slashed funding for DFG wardens, campaigned for a peripheral canal and more dams, and presided over the unprecedented collapse of Central Valley fall chinook salmon, delta smelt, longfin smelt, threadfin shad, striped bass, green sturgeon and other fish species. If the Governor is not stopped in his war against fish and the environment, the largest and most significant estuary on the Pacific Coast, the California Delta, will be lost to corporate greed.
The Governor's vacuous proclamations about "green jobs, low carbon fuel standards, global warming," and his "million solar roofs plan" are meaningless when you actually examine his record. For more information, go to my previous article:�http://www.fishsniffer.com/dbachere/080924waronfish.html
Here is the latest release from the Governor's Office, a blatant attempt at green washing:
Gov. Schwarzenegger Continues Commitment to Building a Green Economy.
September 25, 2009 -- State Capital Building -- Continuing his pledge to grow a green economy, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced today that he has signed AB 3018 by Speaker Emeritus Fabian Nunez which creates a Green Collar Jobs Council to develop a comprehensive approach to address California's emerging workforce needs associated with its budding green economy.
"The green-friendly business climate we are building in California continues to attract more clean-tech and green-tech companies to the state and is ensuring that the job growth in this booming industry will happen in California," Governor Schwarzenegger said. "The Green Collar Jobs Council established by this legislation will capitalize on our state's clean-tech boom and help transform of California's workforce to meet the demands of an emerging green economy."
AB 3018 establishes the Green Collar Jobs Council as an intergovernmental partnership to perform specified tasks related to addressing the workforce needs that accompany California's growing green economy in the following ways:
Specifies that pursuant to the Council, the Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development Agency, in consultation with representatives from the Community College Chancellor�s Office, University of California Board of Regents, State Department of Education, Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Department of Public Affairs, the Superintendent of Public Instruction, California Environmental Protection Agency, as well as energy, alternative fuels, consumer, financial, labor, environmental justice and other groups will develop a comprehensive array of programs, strategies and resources to address the workforce needs that accompany California's growing green economy.
Specifies that, among other things, the Council assist in developing and linking green collar job opportunities with workforce development training opportunities; creating public, private and nongovernmental partnerships to expand the state�s workforce development programs, network and infrastructure; and establishing job training programs in the clean and green technology sectors.
California's environmental policies are encouraging clean businesses from around the world to invest in California. According to the California Green Innovation Index by Next10, a non-partisan research organization, California represents almost half of all green-tech investment in the U.S.
Governor Schwarzenegger has led California in establishing laws and policies to protect the environment:
In January 2007, the Governor announced the world's first Low Carbon Fuel Standard for transportation fuels that requires fuel providers to reduce the carbon intensity of transportation fuels sold in California. This first-of-its-kind standard firmly establishes sustainable demand for lower-carbon fuels without favoring one fuel over another. To start, the standard will reduce the carbon intensity of California's passenger vehicle fuels by at least 10 percent by 2020 and more thereafter.
In September 2006, the Governor signed the Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, California's landmark bill that established a first-in-the-world comprehensive program of regulatory and market mechanisms to achieve real, quantifiable, cost-effective reductions of greenhouse gas emissions. The law will reduce carbon emissions in California to 1990 levels by the year 2020. Governor Schwarzenegger has also called for the state to reduce carbon emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by the year 2050. In August 2006, the Governor signed his Million Solar Roofs Plan into law.
Now known as the California Solar Initiative, it will provide 3,000 megawatts of additional clean energy and reduce the output of greenhouse gases by three million tons, equivalent to taking one million cars off the road. The $2.9 billion incentive plan for homeowners and building owners who install solar electric systems will lead to one million solar roofs in California by the year 2018.