Breach Testifies in Opposition to New Gas Infrastructure at Eugene City Council

On December 14, 2020, Breach joined representatives of the Eugene chapter of the NAACP, Sunrise Eugene, 350 Eugene, Beyond Toxics, Cascadia Wildlands, and other climate advocates to provide public testimony to Eugene City Council in favor of a justice-based climate policy platform. Devin Kesner provided testimony on behalf of Breach:

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Members of the Eugene City Council,

Thank you for the opportunity to present public comment today. My name is Devin Kesner and I am a Eugene resident and a Climate and Energy Attorney for Breach Collective, an Oregon-based 501(c)(3) non-profit. 

The City of Eugene prides itself as a climate leader and has repeatedly recognized the acute threat of climate change to its citizens in passing the Climate Recovery Ordinance in 2014 and the Climate Action Plan 2.0 this summer. Yet the Climate Action Plan itself points out that the City is not on track to meet its targets and that existing plans will only achieve 40% of Eugene’s emissions goals, necessitating immediate and significant additional strategies from the City to live up to its asserted climate leadership. 

I stand with other members of the community in calling for the City to (1) ban all new fossil fuel infrastructure, including new gas hookups; (2) mandate a transition to 100% renewable energy; and (3) utilize the ongoing franchise agreement negotiations with NW Natural to develop a fund for transitioning the community to renewables. 

With regards to the franchise agreement, the City has already identified these negotiations as a tangible option for achieving emissions reductions and should not agree to a new agreement that does not take advantage of that tool. With natural gas a major source of Eugene’s greenhouse gas emissions, restricting natural gas use is crucial for the City to close the gap between its existing plans and its emissions targets. Beyond bringing the City significantly closer to its emissions goals, restricting natural gas use will also protect the health and safety of Eugene community members. Natural gas disproportionately threatens lower-income communities and communities of color with indoor air pollution, risks of explosions, and other negative health outcomes.  In negotiations, the City must ensure that NW Natural is held accountable for its role in Eugene’s carbon footprint and that the burden of any increased franchise fee does not simply get pushed to consumers who already bear the burden of these risks. The City should incorporate the public into the franchise agreement negotiation process to ensure that the ultimate agreement is in the best interests of the community. 

Eugene City Council has the legal authority to enact strong climate policy to put Eugene on track to meet its emissions targets and to become a true climate leader. 

Thank you for your consideration.
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For more information about this campaign, please contact Nick Caleb at Nick@BreachCollective.org.

For a form to submit online comments, please follow this link.