He said what? Mayor calls for going green

Yes ladies and gentleman, Mayor Hardberger said green collar jobs five times yesterday at the unveiling of his new "Mission Verde" sustainability plan for San Antonio. If city leaders walk the talk, the plan will convene taskforces to address the huge challenges facing San Antonio in the areas of energy efficiency and transportation.

Calling San Antonio a "low rate, high waste" energy economy, a report prepared by consultant CNT called on the City and CPS to prioritize energy efficiency. $10,000 per home could be saved a year in energy costs, according to the report.

While Councilwoman Diane Cibrian touted all the big businesses itching to cash in on the City's new interest in solar, including The Rim luxury shopping complex in her district, SWU continues to call on City Leaders to prioritize the homes of low-income families. We have to harness the opportunities of the green energy boom to lift working families out of poverty.

Among the suggestions the Mayor promised to champion were many initiatives SWU has long been fighting for, including:

- Rerouting of toxic train tracks
- A light rail
- Green collar job retraining and curriculum development
- The development of renewable energy sources including solar and wind
- Retrofitting programs for homes
- Efficiency programs for schools and government buildings
- Mandatory green building codes

Solar arrays on the Convention Center and San Antonio Airport were recommended, along with advanced metering, car sharing, and, importantly, the involvement of community organizations in the development of the sustainability programs.

Aurora Geis, CPS Board Chair, had some stern words for Council, who recently denied CPS the full 5% rate increase they wanted. While committing to fully fund CPS's newly doubled efficiency goals, she alluded that other green programs might get axed, and, cryptically, said CPS would need to move in the next 120 days on some critical "capital imporvement projects" (a.k.a. we want those nukes and we want them now).

Too bad the Mayor saved the most important and ambitious of his projects for his last year in office, after voting to invest billions into nuclear reactors as Boardmember of CPS. Time to get crackin 'berger.

Read about it in the SA Current and SA Express-News.