One year ago in April, the Trump administration abruptly announced its intent to shut down the bipartisan Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) program, a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) initiative that has allocated billions of dollars in federal grants to pre-disaster mitigation efforts in communities across the country since 2020.
climate
Posted inTransportation
Where the rubber meets the road: MBTA questions if electric bus mandate is worth the tradeoffs
State law requires the MBTA to purchase only zero-emissions buses starting in 2031 and to have the entire fleet transitioned by 2041. Now, to the ire of a key lawmaker, agency leaders want to kickstart a public discussion about whether that hard-to-accomplish change is still in the state’s best interest.
Posted inEnvironment
Tepper stands by Mass. climate goals, ramps up outreach on Canadian wind power
Tepper shared in an interview with CommonWealth Beacon that she took a previously-unreported trip up to Nova Scotia last month to meet with officials to discuss how Massachusetts can potentially tap into Canadian offshore wind, much in the way the state will soon have access to 1,200 megawatts of hydropower from Quebec.
Posted inEnvironment
Flooding in Massachusetts drains money, energy, and resources
Studies show that extreme precipitation and flooding are increasing in the Northeast and that coastlines are becoming more vulnerable due to changing frequency and intensity of storms and severe rain.
Posted inEnvironment
Greater Boston municipal leaders recommit to climate goals
“While this federal administration trades the truth for profits, we will continue showing the nationthat we are still fighting for a better, brighter future,” said Boston Mayor Michelle Wu on Monday at the Museum of Science where 17 municipal leaders signed a commitment to climategoals.
Posted inEnvironment
Massachusetts postpones rule requiring truck makers to sell electric vehicles
After pressure from industry groups, Massachusetts has delayed the enforcement of a truck emissions rule that Trump administration is trying to eliminate.
Posted inEnvironment
Massport hires first climate chief
The Massachusetts Port Authority, which owns and operates high emissions-producing Logan International Airport, has hired its first chief climate and resilience officer.
Posted inEnvironment
Attorney General Andrea Campbell’s big question on climate
“It’s a transition, but we all have to be more thoughtful,” she said recently.
Posted inEnvironment
‘We have time to reverse this. We have time to step up’
The Trump administration has begun to pull back on key environmental protections designed to transition the country off of fossil fuels.
Posted inEnvironment
‘Water doesn’t know property lines’: Where Massachusetts’s climate and housing crises meet
“The state rules have to catch up with the reality of climate change,” said Matthew Fee, a Nantucket select board member. “A town road can’t be abandoned if someone’s [living] on it, but what happens when the road goes into the ocean?”
Posted inEnergy
The $500 million cut to Mass Save budget is ‘short-sighted,’ climate activists say
“Like a lot of stuff in the climate world, this decision is going to save people money in the short term but cost us more money in the long term.” – Vickash Mohanka, head of the Massachusetts Sierra Club.
Posted inEnvironment
Spring in Massachusetts has warmed by approximately two and a half degrees Fahrenheit over the past 55 years
Spring in Massachusetts counties has warmed by approximately two and a half degrees Fahrenheit over the past 55 years leading to earlier fire seasons and increased risks of drought, according to a new Climate Matters analysis.
Posted inEnvironment
Trump administration seeks review of California emissions waivers adopted by Massachusetts
Massachusetts’s climate goals could take a hit from the Trump administration’s decision to go after vehicle emissions waivers granted to California by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Posted inEnergy
Three federal grants targeting diesel fuel emissions are now unavailable to Massachusetts
“Even today as we speak we have not had funding turned back on for a number of areas,” said Gov. Maura Healey. “And that is very disruptive. It’s harmful to our state, our residents, to our businesses, and to our economy.”
Posted inEnvironment
Cracking the climate code
AN ARCANE STATE BOARD, known to few outside the world of design and construction, is the setting of a furious clash the outcome of which could influence the amount of […]