Actor Leonardo DiCaprio is one of the great climate messengers of the day. The hugely popular celebrity has chosen to make the cause of climate change his own, famously devoting his Academy Award speech this year to the subject and funding climate activism through his somewhat troubled personal foundation.

And now he’s set to release what looks to be a pretty epic documentary on climate change, entitled “Before the Flood,” with a trailer that feels like an action movie:

So it’s too bad he’s also one of the celebrity endorsers of an anti-housing ballot initiative in Los Angeles.  Infill housing represents one of the most important ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.  Residents in infill neighborhoods drive less and live in more compact homes that use less energy and water.  They also help reduce demand for sprawl housing that eats up open space and farmland.

This ballot initiative will make it harder to build such housing.  DiCaprio’s position on this issue is squarely at odds with his important climate advocacy and undermines his credibility on this issue.

I’ll still look forward to watching the documentary and appreciate his advocacy, but I hope he reconsiders his support for the ballot measure.