Whether it’s just a calculated bid to pull any available lever in the NIMBY arsenal or the legitimate invocation of a serious environmental threat, or perhaps both, the review petition is now in the hands of the Healey administration.
environmental justice
Posted inOpinion
The real danger facing the T
There is a clear threat to our public transit system here in Boston, and it is not crime or “vagrancy.” It is the systematic clawing back of federal funding and the withdrawal of environmental justice and equity guidelines that seriously imperil how residents move.
Posted inEnvironment
Western Mass. cities working to prevent sewer overflows amid funding challenges and intensifying rain
All three cities have made multi-million-dollar efforts in recent years to prevent sewer overflows, but as climate change continues to worsen heavy rain events, inevitable overflow events are working against their progress.
Posted inEnvironment
Lynn, Swampscott team up to clean Greater Boston’s dirtiest beach
A three-month pilot program is working to tackle the century-old problem of pollution at King’s Beach using ultraviolet light. The initial results have been promising, but between the high cost projected for a long-term fix and cuts to federal funding, whether the system could be permanently implemented remains to be seen.
Posted inEnvironment
‘The ultimate underdog’: Chelsea named 2025 All-America city for sustainability projects
The city of Chelsea was named a 2025 “All-America” city by the National Civic League. The low-income, majority Hispanic city has faced a disproportionate share of environmental hazards and was recognized for three of its community-led environmental projects.
Posted inEnvironment
A new project is helping Chelsea residents better understand their air quality
With protections for clean air and environmental justice communities being rolled back by the Trump administration, a project in Chelsea has put up over 80 air monitors around the city to help its residents make informed decision about their health.
Posted inEnergy
National Grid pulls plug on a geothermal pilot program in Lowell
One of three geothermal pilot programs in Massachusetts to displace fossil fuels for heating and cooling has been quietly scrapped. National Grid has cited high costs for pulling the plug on its project in Lowell.
Posted inOpinion
The dark side of AI: Climate chaos, pollution, and injustice
Unless we have a seat at the table to set regulations, the AI data center boom will hurt Black and brown frontline communities like mine in Roxbury first and worst.
Posted inOpinion
Healey needs to keep score on energy transition benefits
Massachusetts can lead by example, demonstrating how a state can effectively integrate equity goals into its environmental justice policies.
Posted inEnvironment
Advocates press for more emphasis on environmental justice populations
Environmental justice populations, broadly speaking, tend to be low-income communities and communities of color hit hard by the impacts of climate change. Getting to a clear definition in Massachusetts, let alone its policy implications, has been a long road through several climate bills.
Posted inCourts
SJC ponders environmental justice, East Boston substation
A clarification has been added to this story. A PROPOSED ELECTRICITY substation in East Boston has become a test case for how much energy infrastructure an environmental justice community should […]
Posted inOpinion
EJ communities finally get a say
FOR DECADES, low-income, immigrant, Indigenous, and communities of color across Massachusetts have been overburdened by air pollution from power plants, congested highways, and industrial facilities. Known as environmental justice populations, […]
Posted inEnvironment, Race/Racism
Proposed biomass limits restrict new plants in 90 percent of state
MONTHS AFTER THE Baker administration pulled the plug on plans for a controversial new biomass plant in Springfield, state environmental officials proposed new regulations that would drastically limit where biomass […]
Posted inEnvironment
Chelsea and East Boston deserve true transit equity
REMEMBER FOR A moment what life was like before COVID-19 upended our sense of normalcy. For Chelsea residents, that meant waiting much longer than the scheduled 8-12 minutes for the […]