Coyote Blog: I Would Love to See This Happen

Coyote Blog: I Would LOve to See This Happen

San Francisco has a ballot initiative this November to seize all PG&E transmission lines and assets in the city such that all city power comes from a new government owned utility. Further, the initiative would require that this new entity get 100% of its power from renewables, particularly wind and solar, by 2040. It is similar to a 2001 initiative.

All due respect to PG&E's private property, but I would love to see this happen. If I were governor, I would be seriously tempted to encourage them to proceed, with the only proviso that no one else in California be allowed to sell electricity to San Francisco on the hugely unlikely possibility that there might be a day without sunshine in San Francisco. (I find it hilarious that San Francisco's solar future is trumpeted in the "fog city journal.") This might actually be a big enough disaster that even the media would have trouble ignoring its spectacular failure. It would also do wonders for the Arizona and Nevada economy, as major industries would move our way.