No more natural gas in new San Francisco buildings starting next year - San Francisco Chronicle

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The San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to ban natural gas in new buildings, legislation that will apply to more than 54,000 homes and 32 million square feet of commercial space in the city’s development pipeline.

The measure, designed to help the city cut greenhouse gas emissions and improve safety, will apply to buildings that apply for a building permit after June 30.

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, sponsor of the legislation, called it “an incremental but important move to help save our planet.”

San Francisco has already banned natural gas for any new city-owned building. Berkeley banned gas in new buildings last year.

Natural gas accounts for roughly 40% of San Francisco’s overall emissions of greenhouse gases and 80% of building emissions. Requiring cleaner, all-electric buildings in new construction will increase building safety, reduce emissions citywide, and improve indoor air quality, Mandelman said.

The supervisor made several last-minute changes to the legislation, including delaying its implementation by six months and allowing developers to apply for a waiver that would allow a mixed-fuel building where a restaurant could have gas stove in an otherwise all-electric building. That permit waiver would expire at the end of 2022.