As the saying goes, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. President Trump revoked the National Ocean Policy last summer, but here in New England, ocean planning – the idea that we can be smarter and more coordinated about how we collectively use and manage our ocean – lives on.
As National Ocean Month ended last week, I’m reflecting on the past month. Things may seem bleak, with the Trump administration pushing an agenda that disregards the health of the ocean we were celebrating, but I found hope in my colleagues and comrades. These incredible people and their work holding Trump accountable for his determinantal actions are what I celebrated this month.
In an executive order, Trump revoked the nearly decade old National Ocean Policy established by President Obama in 2010, stripping our nation of its policy of ocean stewardship and replacing it with one of maximum ocean exploitation..
When the Northeast Regional Ocean Plan was approved for New England’s federal waters last year, it capped off a journey for CLF that began nearly two decades ago.
“This weekend, we saw thousands of homes destroyed, streets flooded and families displaced by Hurricane Harvey,” said CLF president Bradley Campbell. “We can’t wait around for the next natural disaster to inundate our communities. Shell’s facility sits on the banks of the Providence River, poised to spew toxic chemicals into our waters and our neighborhoods with no adequate safeguards in place. If the loss of life and damage from storms like Hurricane Harvey aren’t enough of a wake-up call, then legal action is needed to protect the public.”
This week, ocean advocates convened at the Blue Vision Summit in Washington, D.C., to rally support in defense of our blue movement and to discuss solutions to some of the ocean’s toughest challenges. This three-day meeting brought together some 500 participants from across the country, first to meet with members of Congress and, second, to… Continue reading Blue Vision Summit: A Time to Come Together to Advocate for Our Oceans
“CLF has been at the forefront of some of Rhode Island’s seminal environmental triumphs, and it is an honor to be leading such an impressive and accomplished team in the fights ahead,” said Moses. “In the past year alone, CLF has held polluters accountable for endangering our waters, protected the people of Johnston from a toxic landfill, and helped bring offshore wind to our state. We are certain to face countless uphill battles in the years to come, and I know CLF is ready to tackle them.”
On one of those perfect, blue-sky-and-sunshine summer days that New Englanders dream of all winter long, Peter Baute emerges from a shaded trail into a small clearing overlooking Block Island Sound. At least half a dozen people mill about the clearing, cameras in hand, jockeying for the best angle of the scene before them. They’re… Continue reading Community Voices: The Clean Energy Landscape
Rhode Island is a destination for people from around the world, who travel here to explore our history, sail our waters, and enjoy our beaches. But for us, it’s home – a place CLF has pledged to protect with all the passion and skill we have.
Developing clean energy resources is a vital part of our response to climate change. In summer 2015, after years of smart and effective advocacy, CLF marked a watershed moment in U.S. history when Deepwater Wind began construction on the nation’s first offshore wind farm in Rhode Island’s Block Island Sound.
