Dear Members of the California Air
Resources Board,
Hello. My name is Dr. Amanda Millstein and
I am a primary care pediatrician in Richmond in Northern
California.
The community I
care for is highly impacted by fossil fuels as well as by climate
change. Many of my patients and their families live and go to
school within the shadows of oil and gas refineries. People in
Richmond suffer at rates of asthma twice the national average. From
one of the exam rooms in my clinic I can see the plume from the
Chevron refinery. Over my last 3 years of providing care in
Richmond I have lost count of the number of families I have cared
for who ask me when – not if – their children will
develop asthma.
Climate change -
primarily driven by the combustion of fossil fuels - is an
existential threat to the health of every child alive
today. According to the World Health
Organization, more than 88%
of the existing burden of disease attributable to climate change
occurs in children younger than 5 years of age. In order to limit
warming and avoid the worst impacts of climate change, we must stop
extracting fossil fuels.
CARB is charged with protecting the public
from the harmful effects of air pollution and developing actions to
fight climate change. This draft Scoping Plan does neither of
these.
Instead, the Scoping Plan should include
the following:
-
Plan for a full, coordinated phase out of fossil fuels, with targets for oil refining by 2045 and
oil and gas extraction by 2035 (starting within 3200 foot setback
from homes, schools, hospitals and other sensitive
receptors).
-
Transition to clean, non-polluting zero-emission electric
grid by
2035.
-
Develop an equitable
pathway to building decarbonization retrofits
in addition to mandating building electrification in new
construction. Phase out sales of new gas appliances by 2030 and
ensure a full decommissioning of the gas distribution system by
2045.
-
Accelerate and scale up investments in
clean vehicles
and mass transit. Plan for 100%
zero emission transit buses and drayage trucks by 2030 and 100% zero
emission medium- and heavy-duty truck sales by 2035. Plan for 30%
reduction in
vehicle mile traveled (VMT) by 2035,
and incorporate health cost savings from VMT reduction (increased physical activity) in your
cost analysis.
-
Eliminate reliance on climate policy dead
ends, such as
expensive, risky and unproven carbon capture, storage and
utilization (CCUS) and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)
which introduce a
new set of public health hazards.
-
Prioritize strategies that lead to
urgent direct
emission reductions rather than
relying on ‘carbon neutrality’ based on climate policy
deadends and unrealistic
levels of direct air capture in
2045.
-
Implement a just
transition for every worker,
and community, to ensure a healthy and sustainable future for
all.
The science is
clear. We have a terrifyingly short period of time in which to stop
burning fossil fuels. It is time to meet the urgency of the climate
crisis by prioritizing the frontline communities it impacts the
most. We need to phase out fossil fuels, and we
need to start with sacrifice zones - like where I work - to right
the environmental injustice. Real climate solutions are clean air
and public health solutions. My patients – our children
– are waiting.
Sincerely,
Amanda Millstein, MD
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