Butte Environmental Council aims to keep Butte County residents aware of current environmental issues and provide opportunities for involvement. BEC monitors policies and plans within Butte County to ensure that environmental concerns are brought to life and addressed!
Current Issues in Butte County
1. PG&E Infrastructure
The catastrophic landslide and sedimentation of Butte Creek caused by the failure of a PG&E canal on Aug. 10th, 2023 has devastated the creek health and wildlife, especially the spring-run Chinook Salmon. The District Attorney and California Department of Fish and Wildlife are investigating the incident and potential legal actions are possible. The full meeting was recorded and linked below.
The ABC10 Youtube series Fire-Power-Money gives a closer look at what loopholes PG&E is able to utilize when found responsible for environmental crises… and yes, the taxpayer takes their burden.
Additionally, the devastating Camp Fire that displaced about 50,000 Butte County residents was the result of PG&E’s failure to maintain transmission towers as found by the Safety and Enforcement Division of the CA Public Utilities Commission in this report. The company violated at least 12 state utility safety regulations. Inspection time had been cut periodically through the years to save time (and money), eventually giving inspectors about 13 seconds to visually inspect each tower. No tower climbing inspections had been done in 17 years, and the C-hook that fell and started the fire had not been replaced in 97 years. The Camp Fire lawsuit ultimately ended in PG&E pleading guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter. No executives were charged, and $522 million was allotted to Paradise and Butte County. Communities of lower socioeconomic status, such as Concow, were largely left uncompensated. Despite spending over $10 million on lobbying efforts in 2018, PG&E filed for bankruptcy after the Camp Fire lawsuit and were promptly given free access to a $21 billion insurance fund with the help of AB-1054. In short: California taxpayers are now responsible for financing the payouts to victims of fires that PG&E caused, not the guilty party of PG&E.
2. Downtown Chico Complete Streets
The City of Chico Department of Engineering has proposed a Downtown Complete Streets plan that will improve connectivity for all modes of transit, making it easier for cyclists and pedestrians to get around Chico’s urban core. It will close bicycle infrastructure gaps between Park Avenue and the upcoming Esplanade Class I facility, while connecting the South Campus neighborhood to Bidwell Park. With the guidance of the Chico City Council, Engineering staff will submit a grant proposal in June of 2024 to the Active Transportation Program (ATP) through Caltrans Local Assistance and the California Transportation Commission. The ATP grant prioritizes Complete streets, or streets that are safe and comfortable for people biking, walking, driving, and taking transit. Bike lanes with physical protection have been shown to significantly reduce injury and fatalities for people using all modes of transportation.
Pictured to the left is the proposed Downtown complete Streets project limit.
On March 5th 2024, the Chico City Council rejected the recommendations of the Internal Affairs Committee, insisting that the Engineering Department return with a proposal that continued to prioritize motorist convenience. Despite numerous studies that point towards increases in business profits when alternate modes of transit are considered (Portland State Study, CBC article, VTPI Report, etc.), the council cited concerns of decreasing downtown business profits as rational.
Decreasing reliance on motor vehicle transportation and increasing accessibility of public transit, walking, and biking would significantly reduce the amount of greenhouse gasses released into the atmosphere as intended by the Chico 2030 General Plan. Complete Streets projects also reduce pollution for residents close to heavily trafficked roads, which disproportionately harms the health of residents in low socioeconomic neighborhoods and minority communities. With increased car traffic comes increased runoff of 6PPD-q, the chemical found in car tires that decimate local fish populations, such as the threatened Chinook Salmon. The Downtown Complete Streets project would be a step forward for the Butte County environment, and appear on the Chico City Council Agenda periodically until the grant is due in June of 2024. The more car-dependent the Downtown reconstruction becomes (by pressure of council members on the Engineering Department), the less likely the City is to receive ATP grant funds AND the less environmentally-friendly the future of Chico will be.
Local artist Katie Cordy (www.KatieCordy.com) reimagines Downtown Chico as a safe route for people using ALL modes of transportation by creating the illustration to the left.
BEC’s Current Advocacy Issues (listed above) are led by the Advocacy Committee. If you are a community member and have questions or concerns to bring to the Advocacy Committee, please submit the form below.
Advocacy Committee Meetings may be attended by current BEC Members, Board Members and Staff. If you would like to participate, please email staff@becnet.org.