Commentary: Fresno County voters should mark ‘no’ on Measure C as it threatens the climate

The Fresno Interfaith Climate Alliance (FICA) is a group of about 20 representatives from various religious traditions that meets regularly around concern for the environment (with a focus on climate change) and for the environmental impact of regional political decisions on historically marginalized communities. We have decided that it is consistent with our environmental and societal concerns to oppose Measure C.

Many faith traditions acknowledge that the Earth and her inhabitants reveal and reflect a divine presence, and that Earth’s ecosystems are gifts to cherish and not to exploit. Earth is our common home, and humans have a responsibility to care for this home and help ensure its ongoing health as inextricably linked with our own health.

We draw a straight line of connection between this sense of obligation to our world and the issue of climate change, which is a major moral issue that has to do with love for our common home and love for our neighbor. We take it as our responsibility to speak out when we perceive that political decisions will adversely impact the Earth and the local areas where we and our neighbors reside.

Measure C, which is on the Nov. 8 ballot, is the countywide sales tax measure originally approved in 1986, and which has been placed on the ballot for extension even though the measure does not expire until 2027. The measure is designed to use sales taxes to pay for transportation projects in Fresno County for the next 30 years.

We understand the need for funding for local transportation projects and the need to pay for these projects with taxpayer money. However, we believe that Measure C, as it has been implemented since origination, has not resulted in transportation projects that adequately protect the environment or benefit all Fresno County residents in the near or long-term future. Measure C, as proposed, lacks environmental analysis, which is critical when thinking 30 years into the future, particularly in a region with dwindling aquifers, more frequent heat waves, and severe air quality challenges due in large part to fossil fuel emissions. As proposed, Measure C will continue spending patterns by the county that have led to current inequities by prioritizing highway expansion and new real estate developments that benefit a few over the health of all who depend upon our common home.

Our objections arise from seeing the impact on our cities and agricultural areas of unchecked suburban sprawl, and from the lack of adequate transportation services provided to urban and rural commuters from low-income demographics. Local transportation officials have underwritten sprawl using our tax dollars in the past, and approving Measure C will only continue to prioritize funding roadways for new developments that spread without limit. Regional transportation projects in the past have disproportionately favored expanding roadways for vehicles and real estate developers. This has also meant less funding for projects that would minimize harm to the environment by encouraging housing closer to urban centers so as to discourage automobile use and accompanying fossil fuel pollution.

Measure C, if done well, would offer an opportunity for visionary, long-term, climate resilient planning. It could support the greater expansion of sidewalks and bike lanes for urban residents, more spending on electric vehicle charging networks, and better public transportation for both urban and rural residents who may not have easy access to automobiles, but who must seek services or jobs in cities in Fresno County. A truly visionary Measure C could ultimately help improve air quality and quality of life.

If Measure C is defeated this time, there is still ample time for politicians representing the county and its cities to try again to advance a more visionary Measure C for voter approval before the current measure expires in about five years. Hopefully, in that time, politicians will listen to community groups and adopt a compelling vision for a livable Fresno County for all residents.

We hope that the current Measure C will be defeated at the upcoming election, and any more renewal efforts will more effectively address the obvious environmental and social concerns, rather than the business-as-usual approach embodied in what is now on the ballot.