[Scpg] a green Long Beach/Santa Barbara

[Tony Moss]

Hey All, a friend of mine in Long Beach just had this letter appear in 
the paper there - I was really struck by his vision and personal 
responsibility. And I thought it could easily have been referring to 
Santa Barbar...  Tony



A green future for Long Beach
Daniel Brezenoff
Long Beach Press Telegram

Here in the midst of our municipal elections, the time is perfect to 
talk about the future of Long Beach. On behalf of the thousands of Long 
Beach citizens concerned about economic and environmental issues, from 
tourism to pollution to gasoline prices, I am proposing a 10-year plan 
to transform this city into an international model of sustainable urban 
living for the 21st Century.

Imagine every city vehicle and building powered by clean, renewable 
resources. Imagine if, instead of faceless shopping malls identical to 
those in every major American city, developers were encouraged to 
create sustainable shopping and living centers that added energy to the 
power grid rather than depleting it. Imagine a public transportation so 
reliable and extensive, and a bicycling and walking infrastructure that 
so ably met the needs of cyclists and pedestrians that owning a car 
would be a luxury, rather than a near necessity. Imagine tourists 
flocking to Long Beach to see a solar-powered city, clean beaches, 
public gardens rivaling any in the world, and a healthy citizenry 
breathing clean air, eating locally grown produce and smiling with 
pride at our historic achievements.

All this and more is not only possible, but within reach. All it takes 
is imaginative, committed leadership and a slight shift in priorities. 
It is time to think past quarterly and annual financial reports and 
instead make the needs of future generations paramount. It is time to 
make Long Beach the world's greenest city, an example for all the 
world's urban centers to emulate.

Why Long Beach? Why not? We have access to sunshine and open space 
needed to utilize solar and windpower. We have a generally flat 
landscape, which makes bicycling and other forms of alternative 
transportation feasible. And we have an often struggling economy and, 
with the departure or downsizing of many local industries, an identity 
gap that needs to be filled. Sustainable economics would mean increased 
revenue for local businesses and for the city. Residents would save 
money on energy costs at every level, and that money would be diverted 
to the local economy. Tourism would increase. Green planning, which 
increases community cohesion through better use of space and an 
improved quality of life, could lead to a significant decrease in 
crime.

The oil economy is ultimately doomed. Increasing populations combined 
with rising economic expectations and consumption are a disastrous 
recipe. Leadership at the federal and state levels is unreliable at 
best, reactionary at worst. Long Beach is big enough to tap the 
resources needed for a conversion to sustainable energy and 
transportation, and to gain international notoriety in doing so, but 
small enough to make such a conversion logistically realistic and 
meaningful citywide.

Just what does it mean to green a city this size? In addition to 
improved public transportation using clean energy, it means public and 
private gardens, including food-producing ones. It means commercial 
centers powered by renewable resources, and manufacturing and selling 
green technology from organic food and locally produced clothing to 
energy-saving light bulbs and hybrid cars, and everything in between. 
It means conservation of water and electricity in every school and 
every home, without having to sacrifice quality of life. It means 
offering tax breaks to home and business owners who stop using the 
electrical grid and start contributing to it through solar energy. It 
means more parks and fewer cars. It means setting an example as Seattle 
and Portland, for example, have done of what is possible with vision, 
planning, and commitment.

Eventually, every city in the world will have to go green or perish. 
Long Beach can wait until gas prices are at seven bucks a gallon and 
our water is so dirty no one can swim or fish in it (if we havent 
passed that point already), or we can lead the way. I call upon our 
city council, and particularly the newly elected or reelected members, 
to begin a serious study of the myriad ways Long Beach can become the 
greenest, cleanest, healthiest and most economically sustainable city 
in the world.

Daniel Brezenoff is a social worker and teacher in Long Beach, and a 
member of the California Green Party and the Long Beach Greens.

"El revolucionario verdadero esta guiado por grandes sentimientos de 
amor" ECGdaniel brezenoff 340 Newport Av Long Beach CA 90814 
(310)422-2211