A feel-good event meant to galvanize
environmentalists and the General Assembly had a few unwelcome side issues.
One of the guest speakers, House Majority Leader K. Joseph
Shekarchi, D-Warwick, mentioned his support for a medical waste-to-energy
facility, an operation aggressively opposed in the past by environmentalists
and the Environment Council of Rhode Island (ECRI),
the host of the Jan. 15 legislative coffee hour held at the Statehouse.
The advocacy group comprised of environmentalists and more than 60
local organizations has unified against past waste-incinerator proposals, or,
in this case, use of a process called pyrolysis or gasification to convert
plastics and other material into a burnable fuel.
The chemical procedure is often lumped in with waste incinerators
because of the release of toxic emissions and greenhouse gases. In 2019, bills
seeking to legalize pyrolysis died in committee. ECRI
and other groups held a rally outside the Statehouse
in 2018 to fight a bill that tried, and failed, to legalize biomass
incineration.
There are few details known about the latest proposal, expect that the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) is reportedly reviewing permit requests for a pyrolysis facility in Johnston. ECRI and other environmental groups only recently learned about the proposal and are expected to oppose it.
The emcee of the coffee hour, Kai Salem, policy coordinator for
the Green Energy Consumers Alliance, noted that the General Assembly hasn’t
passed significant environmental legislation during the past two years.
“We need to take action in 2020,” Salem said.
In February, ECRI plans to launch a climate crisis campaign, Act
on Climate, that brings together several organizations to convince the General
Assembly to act on climate-related bills that have languished in committees for
several years.
This legislation includes making greenhouse-gas reduction goals
enforceable, as most other New England states have done.
Missing, however, from ECRI’s list of priority legislation is a carbon-fee program. ECRI, instead, will support a similar plan called the Transportation & Climate Initiative, the regional fee on wholesale gasoline and diesel sales that would fund cleaner modes of transportation.
Missing, however, from ECRI’s list of priority legislation is a carbon-fee program. ECRI, instead, will support a similar plan called the Transportation & Climate Initiative, the regional fee on wholesale gasoline and diesel sales that would fund cleaner modes of transportation.
Other bills ECRI plans to endorse include improvements to energy-efficiency programs and energy-efficiency standards for appliances. ECRI will also support a statewide bag ban and restrictions on other single-use plastics, such as straws and balloons.
In the budget, ECRI will advocate for the $65 million green
economy bond, and maintaining funding for DEM and the Coastal Resources
Management Council.
Standards for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) will once
again be backed by ECRI and local health groups.
Guest speakers at the event referred to the urgency to tackle the
climate crisis.
Kim Anderson, owner of the new plant-based restaurant Plant City, described her investment-based
approach to mitigating the climate crisis. Her private financing supports wind
and solar projects, but also food.
She spoke of the harmful health and environmental impacts of
animal agriculture and how a plant-based diet reduces climate emissions. Global
greenhouse gases from animal agriculture is greater than global transportation
emissions, she noted.
“We can all make a decision three times a day to eat whole foods
and plant-based and move away from animal agriculture,” Anderson said. “It is
the one thing that we can all make a difference on right away.”
Anderson also made a pitch for statewide composting, noting the
her restaurant has diverted 90 tons of organics from the landfill in seven
months, or about 1,000 pounds daily.
Local artist and WaterFire creator Barnaby Evans explained how
Providence can learn from the success of the hurricane barrier to guard against
sea-level rise and flooding. But he said this and other solutions can only
happen if three things are addressed.
“The problem here is leadership, motivation, and an understanding
that these solutions can be resolved,” Evans said.