Schwarzenegger’s pale green report card

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Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to be known as the greenest governor in America. But his eco-record this year was at best ‘mixed,’ according to report cards from several of the state’s major environmental groups.

Not only did he terminate the most significant air pollution bill to reach his desk--a measure to assess ship container fees that would be used to alleviate port traffic emissions--but he deep-sixed other green bills strongly promoted by eco-groups.

FIRE SAFETY

The governor vetoed AB 2447, sponsored by Assemblyman Dave Jones (D-Sacramento), which would have required a city or county to certify that new subdivisions have adequate fire protection before approving projects. It would also have required new homes to have fire safety features such as defensible space, emergency water systems and at least two escape routes.

In its report card, the Planning and Conservation League called the bill ‘the most meaningful measure on the governor’s desk related to wildfire danger.’ But Schwarzenegger contended that it would be too ‘costly and time-consuming’ for the state to verify whether fire standards were being met.

GREEN BUILDING

The governor vetoed AB 2939, sponsored by Assemblywoman Loni Hancock (D-Berkeley), which would have authorized cities and counties to adopt green building standards that exceed those adopted by the state. Schwarzenegger said localities already could adopt stricter standards, and the bill was ‘unnecessary and overly far-reaching.’

Environmentalists also criticized the governor’s signing of a bill that gives exclusive authority over green building rules to the Building Standards Commission, instead of sharing authority, as is the current practice, with bodies such as the Califoria Energy Commission and Air Resources Board that have an environmental portfolio. ‘The commission is a body where industry has more influence,’ said Matt Petersen, executive director of Global Green, an environmental group that served on the building commission’s technical advisory board.

TOXIC CHEMICALS

The governor vetoed SB 775, sponsored by Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-Los Angeles) to increase screening and tracking of childhood lead poisoning. The bill would also have required that information about lead, which can cause retardation, be given to pregnant women.

Schwarzenegger also vetoed SB 1313, sponsored by Sen. Ellen Corbett (D-San Leandro), which would have banned two chemicals, perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluoroctanic acid (PFOA), from being used in food packaging. The chemicals have been linked to cancer and developmental problems in children. But the chemical industry says the science is not definitive.

Despite his vetoes, the governor won praise for signing the nation’s most comprehensive bills to require future regulation of toxics, an effort to get away from a chemical-by-chemical approach. And he also reinforced his record as an advocate for action on global warming with a bill to control sprawling development that leads to more driving, and thus to more planet-heating greenhouse gases.

--Margot Roosevelt