Our clean energy transition must not be just for rich people

Since 2019, Bay Area communities have made crucial strides in transitioning their buildings to 100% clean energy sources. Of the 110 cities and counties in our region, more than one-quarter have enacted policies eliminating gas hookups or requiring all-electric systems in new developments, according to statistics tracked by San Franciscobased environmental advocacy group Stand.earth.

More are on the way. As 2022 gets underway, however, we cannot let progress blind us to the risk that our energy transition could fall prey to the same patterns of injustice that have repeatedly afflicted low-income residents, the working class, and Black, indigenous and other communities of color.

With the way ordinances and programs are currently structured, an inequitable energy transition will result. The reason is simple: Renewable energy sources and battery storage are becoming cheaper and more abundant, our electric grid is getting cleaner, and addressing the climate crisis is becoming more urgent. People with financial means will be first to switch their homes and businesses off of fossil fuels like natural gas.

Those who can't will be stuck with aging, outdated infrastructure and increasing volatility in energy costs. Consider the shift occurring for electric vehicles — for example, the Tesla owners zipping along oblivious to the price at the pump — and it's clear the Bay Area's energy transition is a privilege for those who can afford it.

The current ordinances and programs primarily address new construction. Most of these allelectric developments will cater to higher-income earners as tenants and clients. The buildings for everyone else cannot be ignored. This winter, the cost of gas heating has surged around the world. Locally, December's price hit a 10-year high, according to federal data. Fossil fuel infrastructure is a roller coaster, but only some can afford to exit. This is unacceptable; it is also not inevitable.

In my hometown of Richmond, our City Council voted in November to ban gas hookups in new construction citywide. The work of residents, groups such as Richmond Our Power Coalition and must be required to create desired community outcomes, and we must build cooperative neighborhood microgrids connected to local renewable energy projects. We need utility justice and communityled stewardship of energy — not PG&E and the Public Utilities Commission.

We must obtain funding sources and low- to no-interest financing that will weatherize and retrofit existing homes, community spaces and businesses while providing jobs for local workers and unions. We need community oversight of retrofitting, so residents stay in their homes and aren't subject to rent increases. We need community-centered redevelopment that protects against displacement and gentrification.

We're sharing ideas and incorporating lessons across jurisdictions, including what cities such as Berkeley, Sacramento and San Jose are doing to achieve equitable electrification. Inequity is not created by one community nor is it confined to one city's boundaries. Solving it requires collaboration and must be a priority at a regional, state and federal level.

Buildings in neighborhoods, shopping centers and business districts throughout the Bay Area bear scars from decades of redlining, disinvestment and neglect. While we've made progress in reversing discriminatory practices, many of these same buildings are now the first line of defense against the cascading effects of a climate crisis — including heat waves, power outages and thick blankets of wildfire smoke — that seemed unimaginable just a few years ago.

Local governments have a duty to repair harm and protect their residents. An equitable energy transition for all people will be a major step toward meeting these aims.