You know that sinking feeling? The one where you think you’ve done a good job, but it turns out you didn’t? That’s the boat Vermont finds itself in when it comes to tackling climate change. We thought we were leading. But in fact, we are falling behind on our climate goals. Vermont’s climate-damaging emissions are…
Aug 15
2018
2018
Aug 13
2018
2018
Dangerous Heat Waves Demand Immediate Climate Action
If someone had told me last spring that the August forecast for Vermont showed seven days above 90 degrees, I wouldn’t have believed them. Yet in Burlington last month my thermometer read, day after day: 91, 94, 99, 97, 95, 97, and 96. Since then, we’ve seen the temperatures soar past 90 degrees again and…
Aug 2
2018
2018
Fighting for Successful Clean Car Standards
Today, the Trump administration moved to unwind critically important rules for combatting climate change, protecting community health, and saving us all money. The Obama-era “clean car standards” were created to make our cars cleaner and more fuel-efficient. And they’re working – EPA itself has said so. Since 2011, the standards have reduced oil consumption in…
Aug 2
2018
2018
EPA Rolls Back Clean Car Standards
“The EPA and NHTSA are prioritizing fossil fuel interests over the health of our communities,” said CLF Staff Attorney Emily K. Green. “Strong vehicle emissions standards are critical to addressing climate change, and weakening them will put the health of millions of Americans at risk. This decision disproportionately harms the most vulnerable among us, while forcing families and businesses to pay more at the pump. We will continue to fight this rollback with every tool available.”
Jul 26
2018
2018
No Reason to Eliminate Protections for National Monuments
For almost as long as he has been in office, President Trump has led an attack on our public lands and waters, trying to reverse protections for our most special places. But the truth is out: New documents show that Trump administration officials agree that the case for rolling back protections for our national monuments…
Jul 23
2018
2018
All Landfills Leak, and Our Health and Environment Pay the Toxic Price
All landfills leak – some over time and some from day one of operation – leaching toxic chemicals into the ground and the water supply. Despite state and federal regulation, landfills are harming the health and environment of communities in New England.
Jul 20
2018
2018
10 Things You Can Do to Help Protect Our Waters
Nutrient pollution impacts waterways across New England, from Lake Champlain to Narragansett Bay. These waters all carry excess levels of nitrogen or phosphorous – a problem caused by fertilizer running off of farms and lawns and animal waste from confined animal feeding operations. Another major cause is human sewage improperly treated by septic systems or overflowed…
Jul 17
2018
2018
How to Modernize Our Electricity Grid
Our electricity grid was designed over 100 years ago. But our technology has evolved since then. Clean, renewable energy from solar panels and wind turbines is available right where we live. But we need a smarter, more modern grid to make the most of it.
Jul 12
2018
2018
Helping Farmers and Food Businesses Navigate New Opportunities
Scott Soares has seen the opportunities and challenges facing New England’s farmers and food businesses firsthand. He served as Massachusetts’s first aquaculture coordinator in 1996 and was later appointed state agriculture commissioner by Deval Patrick. In 2012, he became executive director of the Cranberry Marketing Committee, which gave him inside look at the branding and…
Jul 11
2018
2018
Time to Revamp New England’s Groundfish Monitoring Program
New England’s cod and other groundfish populations have plummeted to historic lows because of decades of overfishing. Our current system of monitoring isn’t bringing back accurate data, and a new amendment is an opportunity to improve it.