Newsom's next steps in fighting climate change

For Californians, struggles with the impacts of climate change and pollution have been seemingly constant, and 2024 is expected to be no exception. 

2023 was confirmed to be the warmest year in global temperature records dating back to 1850, and climate experts predict that 2024 will top the record of the year prior, according to CNN. In 2024, Los Angeles had already had over 75 percent of its yearly average rainfall, according to the Los Angeles Times. Historically, California has suffered from many storms and floods that significantly impacted underprivileged areas; pollution, wildfires, rising sea levels, and droughts have long-lasting impacts throughout the state. However, the current flooding has caused over 300 mudslides and 3 deaths as of Feb 6. California has taken many steps toward creating a healthier planet, including introducing programs for electric cars, preparing for wildfires, and constructing wind and solar projects.

Gage Skidmore / Contributor

Many cities in California, including Los Angeles, have high amounts of smog and a shallow air quality index (AQI) according to iqair.com. Since the 2000s, LA’s annual weighted average number of high ozone days has been from 100-150, about 95-145 more days than a passing amount. Although a portion of the shifts occur naturally, most climate change is caused by various human activities, mainly through the emission of greenhouse gasses, which is the leading cause of rising global temperatures. According to Our World In Data, between 1850 and 2021, greenhouse gas emissions have increased from four billion tons to about 54.6 billion tons. The use of cars, planes, and other forms of transportation as well as manufacturing and wildfires contributes largely to this issue. 

Since the end of the pandemic, California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has set aside a large portion of funds in an attempt to combat climate change. This year, Newsom proposed that he will decrease this budget by 7 percent, from $52.3 billion to $48.3 billion. In 2023, this budget was cut by 3 percent to a total of a 10 percent decrease in the past two years. The funding for 2024 will also be spread out over seven years instead of six, as was done in the past.

More specifically, this budget cut will reduce investment in programs such as Equitable Building Decarbonization, which focuses on reducing greenhouse gas emissions in homes, as well as Extreme Heat and Community Resilience, which provides funding towards reducing the impacts of higher temperatures locally and regionally. Additionally, over $700 million will be cut regarding water-related investments such as water resilience funding, recycling, and groundwater cleanup. There will also be a three-year delay in transportation improvements like the funding for California’s electric rebate program, Clean Cars 4 All, and the creation of EV charging systems.

Samo’s AP Environmental Science teacher, Ingo Gaida is interested in Newsom's thought process behind his proposal. “I’d like to know the motivation why, it’s a bad idea and I don’t know if there’s a reason behind it or not. California is supposed to be the leader in combating climate change, we’re always the innovators,” Gaida said. “I always tell my students the West Coast is the best, we’re the smart people and we get things done so it’s kind of disappointing that he’s going back on that a little bit, I mean seven percent isn’t a huge amount but it’s going to make a difference.”

Team Marine’s club president Maya Williams (’24) knows that the effects of the climate crisis have become severe enough to cause everyday struggles for many California citizens, including herself.

“I think it’s a little discouraging just knowing that we're in a time where we need to be really focusing on climate efforts,” Williams said. “I think it has a lot of effects, a lot of people suffer from respiratory illnesses, I know I have asthma. I think wildfires also affect everyday activities. Driving, for example, releases a lot of air pollution and can have a lot of health effects on people.”

There are many different opinions surrounding Newsom’s proposal. Despite the 7 percent budget cut on California’s climate budget, substantial funding remains to combat climate change. Nonetheless, it will still slow the process down and reduce investments in various projects and programs. 

“It starts with good leaders, making sure that everybody gets out and votes, that we have the right people in charge and then just seeing climate being prioritized and not just seen as an issue that's separate from everyone else,” Williams said.

thesamohinews@gmail.com