The presidential election result is a welcome relief – especially amid the ongoing stresses of an unrelenting pandemic, hobbling economic hardship, and an overdue racial reckoning. We all deserve to take a moment and celebrate that. But even as we see the core values of our democracy vindicated after relentless voter suppression efforts, now is not the time to grow complacent.
Nothing the Trump administration does to undermine our climate or the environment surprises me these days. But while the U.S. is dropping out of the Paris Agreement, the rest of the world is clearly committed. So are we here in New England.
These days, the scariest monster I can conjure wears a tailored suit and sits behind the desk of a dirty oil or gas company deliberately blocking climate action. Runner up is another man in a suit – a legislator too scared to stand up to that fossil fuel executive and protect the people who voted him into office.
While superficially a snooze fest, energy efficiency is a powerful tool in the fight against climate change and towards a more equitable future. (It can also save you money, clean up our air, and even improve your health.)
CLF forges partnerships with maritime companies to leverage a creative funding solution for clean air: the EPA’s Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA).
We don’t have time to wait for Shell Oil to get around to fortifying this dangerous facility. The families and businesses that call the Washington Park neighborhood of Providence home are at risk of being inundated with a stew of toxic chemicals, oil and ethanol, which would change their neighborhood and Narragansett Bay forever.
The Green New Deal may be stalled on the federal level, but it’s always been local governments that move the needle on progress and have immediate, concrete impacts on our lives. Boston City Councilor Michelle Wu’s proposal – Planning for a Green New Deal & Just Recovery – is a great example of local action in the face of federal inertia, and offers an ambitious vision for Boston’s future.
New England is extremely vulnerable to climate change. It’s a crisis not only for the environment, but also for the health of our communities. It will take systemic change in the way we do business, the way we govern, and the way we guide people to solve climate change and move into the next century.
“Today’s decision means we will have our day in court on unlawful Shell decisions that left Providence families and all of Narragansett Bay at imminent risk of catastrophic oil and toxic chemical spills,” CLF President Bradley Campbell said in a statement. “The company has for years deceived regulators and the public about the global and local risks of the climate crisis.”
“Today’s decision means we will have our day in court on unlawful Shell decisions that left Providence families and all of Narragansett Bay at imminent risk of catastrophic oil and toxic chemical spills,” said CLF President Bradley Campbell. “The company has for years deceived regulators and the public about the global and local risks of the climate crisis. CLF will now have the opportunity to hold Shell accountable for years of neglect and outright deceit at the expense of this public safety.”
