I am a cast iron pan fanatic. There are a few downsides, but most are radically overblow (don’t use soap! uneven heat!). The upsides are incredible, holds heat well, low to non-stick, easy cleanup, nearly indestructible, cheap and lasts several lifetimes.
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…larger than 15,000 square feet that use natural gas…The measure, known as the Large Buildings Fossil Fuel Emissions Tax, would apply to approximately 609 buildings across Berkeley…
Some such stakeholders worry that adding this tax would “compound the problem that existing taxes are already considerably higher in Berkeley than other Bay Area locations,” according to the measure report…
One such business is Berkeley’s local Boichik Bagels, whose owner Emily Winston expressed concerns with gas cooking equipment should their buildings qualify under the measure. “The gas equipment I purchased is intended to last decades. My intention in growing my business in Berkeley is to be here for decades,” Winston said in a letter to City Council. “But if I am going to be socked with a nearly half million dollar penalty every year, I will have to look seriously at moving out.”
Nonprofit centers in Berkeley — such as the David Brower Center and the Berkeley Repertory Theater — echoed these concerns.
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All they have to do is to exempt nonprofits … exempt theaters … exempt homeless shelters … exempt anything with more than 10% serving the “poor” … exempt all government … exempt businesses serving local community or providing local jobs … and then they can apply the tax to the remaining 9 buildings. And the politicians can say they “did something”.
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It failed with 68% of voters moving to reject the measure, according to Alameda County election data.
Environmentalists and labor unions advocated for “Measure GG” on the grounds that reducing emissions from buildings is imperative to fight climate change, while opponents derided it in part because they view the proposal as a new and costly tax that will chase away restaurants and small businesses, according to Bloomberg News.
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Lawmakers passed the All-Electric Buildings Act, which requires most new buildings to have only electric appliances, in 2023 as a step toward reducing pollution from the state’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions and advancing New York’s legally mandated emissions targets. It was set to take effect in January… But the law is now on hold—with the state’s signoff. After Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration agreed, a federal judge finalized a deal last week that will likely suspend New York’s gas ban for at least a year and potentially two or more.
New York’s sudden retreat came after a series of actions from Hochul this year walking back the state’s climate commitments: shelving a promised carbon pricing program and vowing to fight a court ruling to revive it; signing off on a thrice-rejected underwater gas pipeline after talks with President Donald Trump; and granting permits to a gas-powered cryptocurrency mining facility that regulators had long said violated the state’s climate law.
In late October, Hochul made it clear that she was having second thoughts about the building mandate, too.
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And we know in UK heat pumps are strongly recommended to reduce use of fossil fuels for home heating.
If climate change goals survive, heat pumps are inevitable. The only question is when. Gas ranges, ovens, and clothes driers are an endangered species.