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By Miriam Raftery
July 9, 2020 (San Diego) – San Diego County Supervisors today voted unanimously not to appeal an appellate court ruling which found the County’s Climate Action Plan to be inadequate.
Supervisor Dianne Jacob, who represents East County, said the county has “fought this issue for too long,” a reference to multiple court losses sustained by the county over its Climate Action Plan. She added that the County needs to “stop wasting time and money arguing” and instead “fix the plan.” The County’s losing actions have cost taxpayers over $1 million to date.
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, a member of the California Air Resources Board, agreed. He stated Wednesday that it is “past time that our county accept the court’s repeated guidance on the law and take seriously our obligation to meaningfully address environmental concerns.”
That means rethinking the approach to housing to focus more on infill projects near transit to cut greenhouse gas emissions and miles driven, which will also improve air quality and reduce risks of building in fire zones, he said.
The latest legal loss was handed down by the 4th District Court of Appeal in San Diego, which found that the county’s reliance on letting developers pay for carbon offsets here with carbon offsets elsewhere was not legal, blocking the method as a means of moving forward general plan amendments to allow large sprawling developments.
The suit was filed by the Sierra Club, Climate Action Campaign, Center for Biological Diversity and other environmental groups.
John Buse, senior counsel at the Center for Biological Diversity, called Supervisors’ decision “prudent, adding, “The goal is not to halt the Climate Action Plan but to get a better one,” Times of San Diego reports.
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