Green asphyxiation: California bans gas stations in the midst of price hikes

Several cities in California are banning the installation of new gas stations with the excuse of fighting climate change. Despite suffering from 9.1% inflation and in the midst of an energy crisis, progressives insist on implementing policies that will make fuel supply more expensive.

It is the law of supply and demand: fewer gas stations - (even) more expensive prices. But anything goes if we add the surname 'climate change' or dress it up as green. The automotive industry has already warned that the consumer will suffer. However, the promoters of this initiative are proud of it. Los Angeles Times reports that the leaders of Petaluma, a small city in Sonoma County, point out that they were the first when they agreed last year to ban new gas stations in this city of 60,000 people. "We didn't know we were the first in the world when we banned gas stations," Councilwoman D'Lynda Fischer notes with satisfaction.

Predictably, the measure has spread to progressive areas of the state. Four other Bay Area cities have followed an example that could now reach Los Angeles. The city is already preparing its own ban on gas stations. The authorities' justification for this measure is as follows: "If you have lung cancer, you stop smoking; if your planet is on fire, you stop pumping gas into it," says Andy Shrader, director of environmental affairs for Los Angeles Councilman Paul Koretz. What he does not explain is how this measure is to be implemented in a city of 4 million inhabitants who depend on private vehicles for their commute.

As Breitbart recalls, in 2020, just weeks after the state suffered blackouts due to a lack of wind and solar power, Californian Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state would ban the sale of gasoline vehicles by 2035 in favor of electric vehicles only.

Radical environmentalism and economic ruin

The ban on opening new gas stations adds to the interest in closing existing ones. It is part of the 'Safe Cities' campaign, a movement backed by the environmental group Stand.Earth that supports local efforts to phase out fossil fuels.

A move that overlooks the economic and social impact of these measures. There are more than 100,000 public service stations in the country. Most of them are part of small companies and their elimination would mean the loss of thousands of jobs. Something similar happens with the electric car and global jobs in the automotive sector. Not to mention that recent research has revealed that one in four electric vehicle charging stations in the San Francisco Bay Area is out of service or that the country's infrastructure is not ready for a road trip in an electric vehicle.

While climate change prophets vote to eliminate gas stations, fuel prices continue on an unprecedented escalation. Cities like Los Angeles are opting not to open new gas stations while countries like Mexico are bragging about prices and inviting Americans to cross the border to fill up.