The Bay Area Water Transit Authority has awarded a $25,000 grant to the Blue and Gold Fleet to test biodiesel use in an operating ferry (see Aug/Sept 2001 issue). Blue and Gold, which is contributing $57,000 to the test funding, began running its "Oski" ferry, a 400-passenger vessel, on 100 percent soybean oil in October. The ferry was selected because it is one of the oldest and most polluting in the five-vessel fleet.
The Water Transit Authority, charged with developing a plan for increased ferry transit in the Bay Area, is concerned about added pollution from diesel-powered ferries. Biodiesel, which can also be derived from other vegetable oils or recycled grease, is an increasingly popular alternative fuel. It does not require expensive changes to engines, although the fuel cost is higher than diesel. While most emissions from biodiesel are cleaner than diesel, Blue and Gold is also testing a system to lower nitrogen oxide emissions, which tend to be higher with biodiesel.
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Although the Bay Area saw substantial participation in recent workshops held by the Smart Growth Strategy Group and the Bay Area Alliance for Sustainable Development, a study just completed by the Public Policy Institute of California reports that 68% of the population is not even familiar with the terms "smart growth" or "sprawl".
The League of Women Voters is providing a framework for forums convened by local Leagues and community organizations that invite everyone to deliberate the issues involved in creating desirable and vital communities.
The League's Choices forums project, founded by the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, is part of a grassroots and collaborative effort to foster ever-higher levels of public engagement in California around fiscal, infrastructure, and land- use reforms: the aim is to link citizens and citizen leaders to the policy makers and policy outcomes critical to achieving sensible, long-term reform.
If not already engaged in political issues, people don't immediately think of reform as the solution to the problems they see. The community forums are a training ground to engage the public in thinking about issues of sustainable communities—land use, governance and fiscal reform necessary to improve the overall quality of life for everyone in a community or region. One goal is for participants to gain a better understanding of the complexity of the problems of growth and equality and a more realistic expectation of solutions.
These forums provide a venue for citizens' voices to be heard and for diverse members of the community to become involved with elected officials and policy makers. Specific outreach efforts seek to include under-represented groups, who would not otherwise participate in policy discussions. The goal is to empower participants, helping them to recognize that they have a role in the process and that their views are needed for equity to occur, while providing a platform for direct exchange with local officials.
The forums can set the stage for grassroots involvement for reform of the many arcane processes within the state. They also propel participants on a learning curve that might otherwise take many years, one that will foster development of mature solutions to entrenched problems.
A community forum can be convened on any topic related to quality of life. The League will provide a no-cost facilitator and moderator of the forum and help with community outreach and bringing together an audience.
For more information: Seena Clark, LWVC Education Fund Forums Project Director, 510-568-2388; seenaforums@earthlink.net.