Richmonders will get rebates for backup power during shutoffs

Richmond residents who lost power during the Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) to prevent wildfires earlier this fall may soon be eligible for rebates for backup power equipment they buy to keep the lights on in future shutoffs. The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) approved a $100 million budget last month for a program to…

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PG&E to incorporate safety initiatives, remove obstructing trees

After the deadly San Bruno pipeline explosion five years ago, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. launched a statewide upgrade to its gas safety program. Richmond will receive its PG&E pipeline safety makeover in the upcoming weeks. PG&E said it was introducing its Community Pipeline Safety Initiative to improve access to transmission lines for first responders…

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Source of gas smell still unknown

An employee at the Social Security Office in Richmond was hospitalized after she complained about inhaling the gas fumes that hundreds of residents reported smelling this afternoon. Starting at 2:30 p.m. the Richmond Fire Department received a large number of calls reporting the strong odor in Point Richmond. The wind carried the smell, pushing the…

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‘Green’ electricity program coming to Richmond

As the non-profit Marin Energy Authority prepares to take over as Richmond’s main electricity provider, residents face an important choice: whether to get their energy from the more eco-friendly MCE or opt to stick with their current provider, PG&E. Starting in July, PG&E customers in Richmond will be automatically switched over to MCE (formerly known…

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Wading with the oyster catchers

volunteers on shore at point pinole

Point Pinole is perfectly silent except for the squawks of birds flying overhead and the occasional cringe-inducing crunch under foot. The low tide exposes a muddy stretch of shoreline, the rocks red and Martian-like under the setting sun. Despite its fleeting resemblance to the Red Planet, the question here isn’t whether there’s life, but whether…

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Marin Clean Energy program to launch in Richmond

Councilmember Booze

This past June, Richmond’s City Council voted to join the Marin Energy Authority, a nonprofit energy provider that derives its electricity from a minimum of 50% renewable sources.

This means that in July 2013, all Richmond residents will be automatically enrolled in the Marin Clean Energy Community Choice Aggregation program’s Light Green package.

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Restoring Richmond’s Tree Canopy

Planting duo

W hat is the solution to Richmond’s environmental woes? Trees, some say. More than one hundred trees have been planted in Richmond soil in the last month and last weekend nearly 60 volunteers transplanted 30 trees to Roosevelt Avenue and surrounding streets. Richmond Trees and Groundwork Richmond hosted Saturday’s harvest festival, complete with art and…

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Small gas leak creeps into Richmond over weekend

Ghilotti Bros. at work

First, they heard the hissing. Then, they smelled the stench; gas escaping from a pipeline inside the hole carved out of the street on South 47th Street and Wall Avenue on Saturday morning. A laborer with Ghilotti Bros.—a San Rafael-based contracting company—called his supervisor, who was a few blocks away. They had backed into a…

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