Global Warming In the News

WARWICK — The City Council last night took a stand on global warming, to the delight of environmental groups working to persuade the state to address the issue by reducing pollutants.

The council unanimously endorsed legislation, dubbed the Global Warming Solutions Act, which is being introduced in both chambers of the General Assembly.

Advocates with Environment Rhode Island said Warwick joins Providence and Warren supporting the measure and they are hopeful that many more municipalities will follow suit.

“Because we don’t have any action on this issue on a federal level, what we can do is build momentum from the local level,” Agatha Wein, of Environment Rhode Island, said after the vote. She hopes these local votes build to a consortium of municipalities asking the state to take action to protect the environment.

Last night’s resolution was submitted jointly by council President Joseph Solomon and Mayor Scott Avedisian.

“Global warming is an issue that needs to be addressed on the local, state and federal levels,” Avedisian said.

“This is a very good thing and we need to do this,” Solomon said in presenting the matter for council consideration.

After the meeting, council members Steve Merolla and Helen Taylor said they consider last night’s vote more than just a message to the State House. They said that the issue of air pollution is a serious one in the city, not only because of its impact on global warming, but because of its threat to public safety.

Both pointed to T.F. Green Airport as a chief source of concern about the quality of local air, which they said is high in pollutants. According to Wein, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has ranked the air quality in Kent County as being in the bottom 25 percentile in the country.

“I think it’s important that we send a message that global warming is of paramount concern to the City of Warwick,” Merolla said. “And locally let people know that we are concerned about air pollution.”

bpoliche@projo.com