Across the country, local leaders are trying to transition their communities away from fossil fuels by ensuring that new buildings utilize clean electricity for heating and cooking. But time after time they’ve seen their efforts slowed by “natural” (aka methane) gas utilities that profit off the continued use of fossil fuels in furnaces, water heaters, and stoves.
Electrifying Eugene, a new short film documentary from the Gas Leaks Project, tells the story of one city’s effort to transition to clean electricity, and the fossil fuel industry’s all-out campaign to keep the community dependent on methane gas.
This first-hand look at how cities can navigate pushback from the gas industry to pursue viable pathways to decarbonization follows the work of local leaders from Fossil Free Eugene, Beyond Toxics, Earthjustice, Breach Collective, and Eugene’s Mayor Lucy Vinis.
In 2023, Eugene became the first city in Oregon to pass an all-electric new building ordinance, following the lead of Berkeley, California and dozens of other cities across the country. But the fossil fuel industry — led by local gas utility NW Natural — wouldn’t go down without a fight.
From bankrolling “grassroots” front groups, to circulating childrens’ books promoting methane gas, to hiring industry-friendly scientists to mislead the public about the health harms of gas stoves, NW Natural worked overtime to thwart local climate action.
Despite the industry’s opposition and lawsuits, cities like Eugene aren’t backing down from the fight and still have multiple pathways to help transition their communities off fossil fuels like methane gas.
Eugene’s story holds lessons for communities across the country:
- the future is buildings that run on cleaner, safer electric appliances, not polluting methane gas;
- elected officials and community leaders shouldn’t be intimidated by the fossil fuel industry’s shady tactics;
- local leaders have plenty of pathways available to make the switch to clean electricity.
