In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, authorities are not doing enough to protect public transit workers or their passengers. Stronger safety measures, including providing personal protective equipment and more frequent service on busy routes, must be implemented immediately – especially with stay-at-home directives beginning to ease.
Right now, our regional fishery managers have the opportunity to collect more accurate data by improving the at-sea monitoring program in New England’s groundfish fishery. This management action, called Amendment 23, can help put Atlantic cod on a path to recovery.
“The 2021+ Board will need the flexibility to issue its own debt, independent of the secretary or the governor at the time,” the groups wrote. “There may be times when the priorities of the public transportation authority and the administration differ. At these times, an independent governing body must be allowed to do what is right for the MBTA and its riders, despite the political ramifications for an administration.”
ExxonMobil’s climate neglect puts local communities in danger.
“It’s an historic moment in which we’ve seen the decline and impending demise of coal, as renewables nationally and within this region have surpassed it, both in the numbers of generating plants, but also, more importantly, how much power they’re generating on a daily basis,” said Greg Cunningham, vice president and director of the Clean Energy and Climate Change Program at the Conservation Law Foundation.
Even as we mourn the lives lost to COVID-19 and absorb the heavy toll it has taken on our economy, we must recognize that the old “normal” left too many communities unhealthy and especially vulnerable to the pandemic. Replicating that old “normal” will squander an opportunity to reduce climate danger while building healthier and more just communities for all.
Here in New England, only Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Maine have binding laws that set enforceable limits on the emissions that cause climate change – the same emissions scientists say must drop to net zero before 2050 to avoid the worst effects of climate catastrophe.
“Building new ways to deliver low-carbon energy to our region is a critical piece of tackling the climate crisis,” said Phelps Turner, Senior Attorney at CLF. “DEP was absolutely right to impose significant environmental conditions on this project and ensure that it does not harm critical wildlife areas. NECEC will allow New England to retire dirty fossil fuel plants in the coming years, which is a win for our health and our climate.”
In anticipation of World Asthma Day, I connected with María Belén Power from GreenRoots, Andrea Nyamekye of Neighbor to Neighbor, and my CLF colleague Staci Rubin. The four of us spoke about air quality, public health, and what it means to live in an environmental justice community during a pandemic.
In 2019, Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Programs presented the Healthy Whale, Healthy Ocean Challenge, in partnership with CLF. Students of all ages from across New England created art, poetry, and film to raise awareness of the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale. We sat down with Senior Vice President Alyssa Irizarry to learn more about… Continue reading 5 Questions for Alyssa Irizarry of Bow Seat Ocean Awareness Programs
