Officials from Petaluma , California have resolve their city has enough places to fill up gas - power cars . Last calendar week , the local city council unanimouslyvotedto ban new accelerator station , building on a two - year moratoriumpassedin former 2019 .
The council must O.K. the measure again at another reading on Monday . When it does , the bank note will go into effect at once , making Petaluma the first in the country to permanently stanch the grammatical construction of raw flatulence post . The decision is straight off tied to the city ’s climate plan to get to zero emissions by 2030 , and also points to the fact that the future of cars and truck is electric — and that other cities need to pop out planning for that now .
Petaluma is just 15 straight miles ( 39 satisfying kilometers ) in sizing , and is presently home to 16 gaseous state stations with anotherrecently approvedone on the way . City officials say that ’s more than enough for all 61,000 current residents and future ones , too .
Petaluma, California is on the brink of becoming the first city in the U.S. to ban new gas stations.Photo: Daniel Leal-Olivas (Getty Images)
“ Based on this inventory , there are multiple station located within a 5 - minute drive ( 2.1 stat mi at 25 miles per hour ) of every existing residence as well as all areas planned for residential development by the 2025 General Plan but not yet fabricate , ” the billsays .
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The banning will not only stop the city from approving any more stations within its limit , but also prevent presently - exist station from adding more pumps . They can , however , add more infrastructure for electrical cars . In fact , the legislating streamlines the summons for stations to add electric vehicle chargers and potentialhydrogenfuel cell station in the future .
“ This is a monolithic step forward in the fight to protect communities and the climate from fossil fuels , ” environmental nonprofit Stand.earth , whose Stand Against Fossil Fuel Expansion Cities plan supported the military campaign for the posting , saidon Twitter .
The new prohibition era comes as part of Petaluma ’s challenging plan to completelyphase out carbon emissionsby 2030 . It could also inspire other localities to take up similar lawmaking . An environmental organizing group called the Coalition Opposing New Gas Stations ( CONGAS ) , for instance , has expend two yearspushing for a Bachelor of Arts in Nursing on new gas pedal stationsapplying to the integrality of Sonoma County , which admit Petaluma and eight other cities . take in this space : The movement could spread .
“ There ’s no need for new fossil fuel base , from gas station to line to refinery , ” Matt Krogh , U.S. oil and gas campaign director at Stand.earth , compose in an email . “ In California in particular , where country climate object are required by natural law , new flatulency station will have a short shelf spirit , and could be desolate before they make enough money to pay for their own shut down and make clean up . This flatulence place proscription is a plebeian sense step to not get further bogged down by fogy fuel infrastructure . ”
In add-on to push forth the metropolis ’s feat to phase out using diesel - power auto , the bill could have significant local ecological personal effects . Even small gasoline spills and leaks from underground storage tanks — afrequentoccurrence at pumping station — cancontaminatestormwater and groundwater with chemicals like benzol that have been linked tohigher riskof Crab . That pollution can also make it difficult to utilise former gas place locations for other purposes when they ’re shut down . or so halfof the nation ’s brownfield sites , or sphere where contamination from a previous development complicates future use , are the issue of fossil oil contamination from abandoned gas place ’ underground tanks .
Transportation is presently the grown clod of carbon pollution in the U.S. Gas place bans are a little portion of what ’s needed to wind down those emissions . But fortuitously , there are other moves underway at the res publica level in California . Last yr , the statebanned the sale of new gas - powered carsby 2035 , and will require75 % of heavy truckssold in the body politic to be galvanizing by that date as well . California and other West Coast states are also looking atbuilding an electric highwayto ease the transition to scavenge muscularity . Aslew of policiesarealso on tapat the Union levelthat could help pelt along the conversion along .
Update 2025-04-10 , 11:50 a.m. ET : This post has been updated with additional gossip from Stand.earth ’s Matt Krogh .
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