Results tagged “solar”

Actor and environmentalist Ed Begley, Jr. will help unveil 28 new solar-powered light poles at North Hollywood Park tonight. It is being touted as a green energy and safety improvement for the park, which abuts the east side of the 170 Freeway. At night, portions of the park are extremely dark as very little light bleeds in from the surrounding neighborhood.

When we go vote on March 3rd, the most contested and fought-over choice we make will be whether to vote yes or no on Measure B (Yes | No). So much has happened with Measure B in the last few months, and this week, both the LA Times and Daily News urged voters to say NO.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is going on a quick trip tonight to Washington D.C. to lobby the Obama administration to make sure Los Angeles gets a good slice of the federal stimulus package that's making its way through the Senate today, according to the LA Times. He hopes to get funding for the Subway to the Sea and the solar energy plan, which the controversial Measure B on the March 3rd ballot is part of. Also, he wants the money to go directly to cities and not the state, who still hasn't come up with a budget solution forcing them to give IOUs to residents on their tax refunds.

The most controversial initiative on the March 3rd ballot is Measure B, "which calls for unionized DWP workers to install solar panels on rooftops and parking lots across the city," as the LA Times once put it. Solar power, a definite good thing, is not all that it's cracked up to be, at least in this plan say opponents. At last night's packed Sherman Oaks Neighborhood Council meeting of around 200 people, proponents from both sides of the issue were scheduled to speak. But the Yes on B side represented by James Unger, which is for all purposes is Mayor Villaraigosa and friends, did not show. The opposition, officially represented by City Attorney candidate Noel Weiss, gave their spiel and easily won over the crowd who booed and hissed at the mere mention of the yes side. Who knew the do gooding nature of solar power would turn into such a contemptuous subject?

LAist had a chance to talk with LA-resident and "green-shopping" expert Laura Meyer, founder and CEO of the recently launched TheUltimateGreenStore.com. Meyer took the time to share her green gift picks and shopping tips and fill us in on what to expect for green products in 2009.

The No on Prop 7 ads have been airing for awhile now (you know, the ones that say "stop another costly flawed energy scheme"?) and this week, the Yes on Prop 7 side launched their own (one of them is above).

At today's City Council meeting, the members unanimously voted to oppose Proposition 7, an environmental initiative on this November's ballot that would require "all utilities, including government-owned utilities, to generate 20% of their power from renewable energy by 2010, a standard currently applicable only to private electrical corporations. Raises requirement for all utilities to 40% by 2020 and 50% by 2025."

Green initiatives and measures are going to dot ballots across the state this November and while "it's the thing to do" these days, they may not be the best choices. At the very least, as LAist commenter jrb said, "this election season some the initiatives are not exactly a quick study.

The basic premise for voting against "Big Solar" Prop 7 on November's ballot is that it has good environmental intentions for the state's renewable energy goals but was written so poorly, it would jack up consumer energy bills and have other unintended consequences. Hundreds of thousands of dollars been put into the No on Prop 7 side from energy companies including Southern California Edison and PG&E in Northern California.

Slowly we've seen man replaced by the machine, but at 3 parking lots in Long Beach they're powering the machines with a force even more powerful: the sun! According to the Long Beach Press-Telegram, the LBC's "Redevelopment Agency has replaced the honor boxes at three downtown lots with solar-powered pay stations." These units run on the energy generated by "a solar panel that's placed on top of the pay station." Even better yet, these machines (which cost the Agency $51,000) allow parking lot patrons to pay via cash, coin, or debit card in exchange for the little ticket you leave on your dashboard.