Climate Breakdown Requires Action

Preserve Wild Santee advocates for a transition to clean distributed renewable energy, such as rooftop solar. Our comment letters on Santee development projects have resulted in most new projects in Santee installing solar panels and other energy efficient measures since 2015. Preserve Wild Santee has advocated for the adoption of Community Choice Energy region-wide because (CCE) can speed the transition to clean power generation and provide lower rates through competition. Preserve Wild Santee provides input into climate planning..

The size and destructiveness of wildfires in California is increasing consistent with rising global land and sea temperatures. Cal Fire has compiled records from 1932 of the “Top 20 Largest California Wildfires” and “Top 20 Most Destructive California Wildfires.” Three out of four of California’s largest fires have occurred within the past five years. Seven out of ten of California’s largest fires have occurred within the past 10 years. Seventeen out of 20 have occurred since 1999. There have been five mega-fires exceeding 200,000 acres since 1932. All five of these fires occurred since the 2003 Cedar Fire in San Diego County. Five of the States most destructive fires in terms of structures lost occurred within the past year.

Big Rock Fire
Chaparral ablaze during the Big Rock Fire in MTRP May 22, 2017.

Ocean temperatures have been on a steady uptrend since 1996. Ocean temperature was the hottest recorded in 2017. The energy stored in the ocean supplies the fuel for the extreme weather events worldwide that have become normalized. Climate scientists are now projecting that the 1.5°C target may be exceeded by 2022. We are cooking ourselves within a cauldron of greed. There can be no tolerance for climate plans that provide little more than the appearance of taking climate action.

CO2 Chart
Global temperatures follow rising CO2 levels. The additional energy trapped by human caused emissions powers climate breakdown disasters.