“You don’t often get to see concrete examples of the changes that we’ve been working on for decades,” Mahoney said. “You’re blowing up the towers that made it barely acceptable for that facility to burn coal.”
“We need to get lines out of the water if we are going to protect the North Atlantic right whale,” says Emily Green, a lawyer at the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), one of several groups suing the federal government for better protections of the whales, protections that they say are mandated by the Endangered Species Act.
“We’re committed because we see that farmers and food entrepreneurs play a critical role in our community, so by supporting them we’re able to promote a sustainable and just food system,” Turner said. “For CLF, that’s really important because that means it helps create a healthy climate and a healthy environment, but also a strong economy in Maine.”
And in the event of a catastrophic spill, yes, Exxon will bear some costs. But the public will also be bearing a heavy cost. The families and businesses that will have oil and toxics flowing through their basements and into their homes, they will be bearing a cost. The taxpayers of the region, who paid billions to clean up Boston harbor, which is now a jewel of economic and urban rebirth here in Boston, they will suffer a terrible cost.
“Based on the experience in other locations in Maine where dams have been removed, the increase in these fish populations will bring eagles, osprey and heron back to the Presumpscot as well as other wildlife,” the statement says. “Opportunities for sport fishing, as well as recreational canoeing, kayaking and boarding will open up as well.”
If Connecticut wants to cut disposal and recycling costs, and if the state wants to increase redemption rates, and improve the quality of recyclables to avoid prices tanking in the future, the Bottle Bill is one of the best tools we have.
Clean water belongs to all of us, but we simply won’t have clean water without long-term investment in this shared resource. We are halfway through this legislative session and there is still no clear path for clean water funding. The governor’s proposal falls short on the amount needed to clean up our waters because it relies on existing revenues that are needed for other important state programs. The Legislature has yet to put forth a serious plan to raise the necessary revenue.
The Pease Development Authority has a Sept. 20 deadline to complete some terms of a settlement agreement with the Conservation Law Foundation that, if completed, will dismiss a federal lawsuit alleging stormwater from Pease international Tradeport pollutes area waterways.
Kirstie Pecci of the Conservation Law Foundation said the movement to ban plastic bags is “really rolling right now.” She said advocates are not asking people to give up all plastic products but that most plastic is unnecessary and plastic bags are “one of the most replaceable items and should be the most low-hanging fruit.”
CLF’s lawsuit, among other things, accuses Exxon of failing to adequately protect the property from potential floods caused by storms and rising sea waters that could sweep pollutants off the site. The closely-watched lawsuit could have ripple effects that influence the broader oil industry and how it prepares for future storms.
