Last month, while visiting Fort Bragg for a Redwood Empire Division meeting, I was struck again by the incredible beauty and diversity of this state’s landscape.

It was sights like the pristine coast and forests that encircle Fort Bragg which compelled some of the nation’s first environmental laws. These early conservationists warned that unregulated development and pollution were degrading our water, air, and land.

Of course, one of the earliest champions for California’s wild landscapes was John Muir. On the eve of a new century — six years before Cal Cities was founded in 1898 — Muir co-founded the Sierra Club. The iconic organization became a cornerstone of California’s environmental movement, protecting wilderness and establishing national parks.

That the Sierra Club and Cal Cities were founded around the same time highlights a fundamental tension that has existed since the Gold Rush: How do we develop cities that are thriving economic hubs while also protecting the natural splendor that drew so many of us here? This question has become one of the defining issues for our state.

By the mid-20th century, the state Legislature was pumping out laws to protect the environment and human health — often many steps ahead of the federal government. In 1964, California issued the world’s first emissions standards for motor vehicle pollutants. A few years later, the 1969 Santa Barbara oil spill galvanized local action on California’s coast and helped catalyze sweeping national and state legislation.

As seen in this month’s issue of Western City magazine, the environment is deeply important for many city officials — both personally and professionally. Whether it’s responding to a federal offshore drilling proposal, building new housing, or preparing for the dangers of extreme heat, environmental concerns underpin much of our work as city officials.

For me, protecting the environment became personal in 2012. That summer, a corroded pipe leaked and exploded in a nearby Chevron oil refinery, sparking one of the area’s worst refinery disasters in memory. Throughout Contra Costa County, including El Cerrito, where I live, the disaster took an immediate toll. I started to have asthma attacks. Soon after, I joined the board of the Sierra Club in the East Bay area.

But it wasn’t until I started working with local government, most recently as mayor, that I appreciated the challenges of balancing a commitment to a green economy and clean environment with my equally strong convictions around equity.

The very communities that are often hardest hit by environmental disasters — like Richmond, where the refinery disaster occurred — are also often low-income. The prevalence of asthma in the majority Black, Latino, and Asian city is nearly twice the state average, and air quality is an ongoing issue.

But closing refineries often leads to bigger problems, such as a risky dependence on foreign oil and the loss of jobs.   

I think about this often, as many families in my community can’t afford to make their homes more energy efficient, transition from gas water heaters to heat pumps, and buy electric cars. They are the ones hit hardest by the surge in gas prices, as many commute long distances to work.

As a city official, my job is to look at the whole picture. 

That’s why I am proud to have served on Cal Cities’ environmental policy committee since 2016, and to engage regionally and statewide in important environmental conversations. My city does not exist in a silo: Working alongside other communities to ensure strong local economies and protect human health and the environment helps me be a better advocate for my city.

I encourage each of you to join me, in whatever way you can, in these efforts. Working together, we can honor the legacy of Muir and other early environmentalists by keeping California beautiful and ensuring all Californians can thrive.