California: San Francisco Bay Area Will Get Rid of Natural Gas Heating Appliances

To better local air quality and public health, California's San Francisco Bay area will begin phasing out natural gas heating appliances and water heaters in 2027.

This is the most recent effort by local governments in the United States to phase out the use of natural gas, a fossil fuel, as a heating source for residential and commercial properties, according to Reuters.

Leading the charge, California has announced plans to mandate that all newly manufactured space and water heaters be emission-free by 2030.

Getting rid of natural gas appliances would need replacing them with electric alternatives like heat pumps.

The directors of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District voted late on Wednesday to establish rules mandating that all newly manufactured water heaters and furnaces have zero emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOx).

Meanwhile, gas stoves and other cooking appliances are exempt from the rules.

NOx from Natural Gas Heating Appliances Causes Various Illnesses

BAAQMD warns that exposure to particulate pollution can lead to various health problems, including respiratory illness, neurological disease, heart attack, lung cancer, stroke, and early death, The Hill noted.

"The 1.8 million water heaters and furnaces in the Bay Area significantly impact our air quality, resulting in dozens of early deaths and a wide range of health impacts, particularly in communities of color," Philip Fine, executive officer of the Air District, said in a statement.

Nine counties in California's San Francisco Bay Area fall under the jurisdiction of the Air District, including Alameda, Marin, Napa, Contra Costa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southwestern Solano, and southern Sonoma.

"To protect the people of the San Francisco Bay Area from the dangerous air pollution that certain appliances produce, this groundbreaking law will remove the most polluting devices in businesses and homes," Fine said.

Moreover, the new regulations will save health costs associated with air pollution by up to $890 million annually and increase overall regional air quality from the outside venting of these appliances, with the greatest savings occurring in communities of color, according to the agency's statement.

Other Democratic-Led Cities Will Also Get Rid of Natural Gas Heating Appliances

Recently, Democratic-led cities have also passed prohibitions on the use of gas appliances, Fox News said.

Over the past two years, cities including California's Los Angeles and San Diego, Seattle, and New York have implemented varied limits on natural gas hookups that affect gas-powered furnaces, ovens, and stoves.

"New York City is proof that it's possible to end the era of fossil fuels, invest in a sustainable future, protect public health, and create good-paying jobs in the process," former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in December 2021, adding that if the largest city in the United States can outlaw gas consumption, then any city may do the same.

After finishing his speech, de Blasio signed a bill into law that will eventually eliminate the use of fossil fuels in buildings.

New York City became the first and largest city in cold weather to phase out fossil fuels in new construction. This law took effect this year and requires all new buildings to be entirely electric by 2027.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Bert Hoover

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