March 15, 2023
SF Bay PSR and other members of the Bay Area Clean Air coalition sponsored this important resolution!
BIG NEWS! On March 15, after six hours of public comments and nail biting….the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) passed the nation’s first zero-emissions appliance standard to gradually transition Bay Area homes to clean, healthy, electric furnaces and water heaters, beginning later this decade. This is historic! These new rules are now a model for the rest of the country.
In the Bay Area, gas appliances in homes produce more toxic NOx pollution than all of the region’s passenger cars.
The new standards will have major implications for climate, air quality, and public health, particularly for communities of color and lower-income communities. Transitioning to electric furnaces and water heaters is expected to prevent 15,000 asthma symptom incidents and avoid up to 85 premature deaths every year. These new rules will save lives!
Our health voices and white coat brigade were front and center! Our staff spent months writing communication materials, strategizing, and organizing to make it easy for us to take action.
We want to express our heartfelt gratitude to all the organizations in the Bay Area Clean Air coalition for their committed leadership and dedicated work on these rules, to Sunstone Strategies for their phenomenal strategizing and media outreach, and to the BAAQMD board for their 20 YES votes (0 no votes, 1 abstain, and 3 absent).
MANY THANKS to ALL of YOU who signed, wrote, attended the meeting, and gave testimony online and in person, including: Drs. Janice Kirsch, Margie Chen, Marjaneh Moini, Bret Andrews, Mary Williams, Amanda Millstein, Cynthia Mahoney, Bob Gould, and SF Bay PSR Intern Sienna Marley.
We look forward to supporting the Air District staff and implementation working group members to ensure that this standard is implemented with strong equity guardrails to protect lower-income communities.
To keep WINNING, we need your support! Wins like this require staff time and organizational support. Please give generously today!
PRESS and MORE INFO:
Dr. Janice Kirsch is quoted in the Washington Post article below!
Dr. Margie Chen was interviewed by ABC News!
Answers to frequently asked questions: Bay Area Clean Air coalition’s website
Washington Post: Analysis | The Bay Area is going electric for furnaces and water heaters
San Francisco Examiner: No more NOx: Bay Area bans harmful gases lurking in your home
KQED: Bay Area Regulators Approve Rules to Phase Out Gas Furnaces and Water Heaters
Bloomberg: San Francisco Region Set to Ban Gas Appliances — But Not Stoves
The Hill: San Francisco Bay Area to phase out natural gas furnaces and water heaters
SPUR’s blog on subsidies to make the switch affordable for all, especially lower-income families
SF Bay PSR Resources: health benefits of electric appliances in homes
