Posted on 06/03/2015 5:02:38 AM PDT by bestintxas
An unusual schism has opened up on California’s politically dominant left flank, where Gov. Jerry Brown, a longtime favorite of the state’s environmentalists, has refused to give in to the climate change movement’s demand for a statewide ban on hydraulic fracturing.
His stance comes despite the growing clamor in the aftermath of fellow Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s decision in December to allow a similar statewide ban of the revolutionary oil and gas drilling technique in New York. Hollywood stars and environmental activists badly want California to be next.
The irony, of course, is that there may be no greener governor than Mr. Brown, an early and aggressive leader on clean and renewable energy. But touting the benefits of the lower carbon emissions from natural gas is an increasingly unacceptable position in the climate change movement, a key coalition of the Democratic Party.
Mr. Brown’s refusal to budge on a fracking ban is “frustrating,” admits Dan Jacobson, legislative director for Environment California, part of the Californians Against Fracking coalition.
“But he is also one of the godfathers of the environmental movement,” said Mr. Jacobson. “He’s got three more years in office, and if he wants to be a climate leader, he’s going to have to complete the other side of the equation, which is dealing with oil and making sure we leave it in the ground.”
Mr. Jacobson is more polite than some activists, who have heckled the governor at public appearances with chants of “Climate leaders don’t frack
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...
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