Charles McGlashan, Marin County Supervisor for the 3rd District, is also chairman of the new Marin Energy Authority, which in May began buying renewable power to supply about 6,000 residents and businesses in
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Marin County Supervisor Charles McGlashan, an environmental visionary whose efforts brought solar, wind and biomass power into countless homes and businesses, died suddenly on Sunday while vacationing in Lake Tahoe. He was 49.
The supervisor's death, caused by an apparent heart attack while wrapping up a ski trip, has shocked county leaders and environmentalists.
"He leaves us a legacy that is a beacon to other counties in our state and across the country," said
Susan Adams, president of the Board of Supervisors.
Last May, Marin became the first couny to take advantage of a 2002 law allowing communities to buy electricity on behalf of residents. Despite strong opposition from Pacific Gas & Electric Co., more than 27 percent of the county's energy today comes from clean and renewable sources, exceeding state targets.
"Supervisor McGlashan pretty much single-handedly wrestled this over the finish line," Adams said, noting that the system has already repaid taxpayers' $950,000 investment.
Dawn Weisz, executive officer of the
Marin Energy Authority that runs the program, credited Mr. McGlashan with helping clear the county of 68 tons of carbon dioxide a year.
"He was very passionate and enthusiastic about getting things going, and making the vision into a practical reality," Weisz said. "It's a great loss."
Green energy isn't the supervisor's only environmental legacy. An advocate of alternative transportation, Mr. McGlashan served on the board of the 8-year-old Sonoma Marin Area Rail Transit, and pushed for bike lanes along the rail line.
He also backed a successful effort to outlaw plastic bags in the county as of January.
"Charles wasn't just a Marin County environmental leader. He was an environmental leader for all of us in the Bay Area, and really showed what can be done at the local level when you have passionate commitment," said
Joel Makower, chairman and executive editor of
GreenBiz Group in Oakland. "This is devastating news."
Despite living outside of Marin, Makower hosted a political fundraiser for the future supervisor.
Mr. McGlashan won, and joined the board in 2005, representing southern Marin, which includes his town of Mill Valley, from which he often rode his bicycle to work in San Rafael.
Born in Hillsborough in 1961, Mr. McGlashan graduated with honors from
Yale University in 1983. He earned an MBA from
Stanford University in 1991, then worked as a consultant in environmental management and business planning.
He served on the Municipal Water District Board of Directors from 2003 to 2005, and on the
Marin Economic Commission from 2001 to 2005. He advised a number of environmental groups including the
Marin Conservation League and Sustainable Mill Valley.
The two-term supervisor was second vice president of the Board of Supervisors.
He went to Lake Tahoe with friends the other day "for a much-needed ski weekend," said aide
Maureen Parton. As the group packed up to leave on Sunday, Mr. McGlashan stayed in the car as the others took a last-minute sweep of their cabin. Minutes later, they returned to find the supervisor slumped in the back seat.
"His passion and joy for the work of public service was without bounds," Parton said. "He changed the face of Marin."
Mr. McGlashan is survived by his wife, environmentalist
Carol Misseldine.
The
Marin County Board of Supervisors will remember Mr. McGlashan during today's meeting beginning at 10 a.m. in Room 330 of the
Marin Civic Center in San Rafael.
A live video broadcast will be at
links.sfgate.com/ZKXS.A public memorial is being planned.
E-mail
Nanette Asimov at
nasimov@sfchronicle.com.
