Recent action

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Critical funding still needed for open space

Heeding calls from Environment Rhode Island’s members, local land trusts and the state’s agricultural community, Gov. Don Carcieri included a $5 million open space bond question in his budget proposal that was submitted to the General Assembly in January.

Unfortunately, the $5 million proposal is much less than the $15 million needed to renew funding for the programs that would help save working farms from being consumed by sprawling development and expand our state’s parks and management areas.

Environment Rhode Island will be working during the spring and summer to make sure the General Assembly asks voters to approve state-budget funding for critical open space programs on the November 2008 ballot.

More natural treasures, like this lake in South County, need permanent protection from development.

New global warming legislation introduced

Environment Rhode Island’s “GO BIG, little rhody” campaign to reduce global warming emissions 80 percent by 2050 in the Ocean State is continuing to build momentum.

At the start of February, the city of Providence passed a resolution, introduced by Councilmembers Cliff Wood and Seth Yurdin, calling on the state of Rhode Island to implement a mandatory program to reduce global warming pollution 80 percent by 2050. A week later, the town of Warren followed suit, passing a similar resolution introduced by Councilmember Joseph DePasquale. Environment Rhode Island is urging other cities and towns to follow the lead of Providence and Warren.

At the end of February, Rep. Art Handy (Cranston) and Sen. Susan Sosnowski (South Kingstown, New Shoreham) introduced legislation in the General Assembly that—if successful—would achieve the goals of the “GO BIG, little rhody” campaign.

Mission statement

We all want clean air, clean water and open space. But it takes independent research and tough-minded advocacy to win concrete results for our environment, especially when powerful interests stand in the way of environmental progress. That’s the idea behind Environment Rhode Island. We focus exclusively on protecting Rhode Island’s air, water and open space. We speak out and take action at the local, state and national levels to improve the quality of our environment and our lives.

Credits

Wind and solar story: Bruce Macqueen*. Recent action: Staff, Vivian Stockman. Clean cars story: GE Long**. Green energy story: Peter Gudella*. Grand Canyon story: Adam Gryko*.
*: under license from Shutterstock.
**: under creative commons license.

Editor: Matt Auten. Contributors: Cecily Anderson, Justin Boyles, Zach Cullimore, Matthew Curtis, Sara Landis, Ethan Lavine, Jenna Perry Leschuk, Ryan Moeckly, Leana Nordstrom, Dan Platt, Nathan Proctor, Drew Stephan, Jenne Turner, Chris Wand. Publications Director: Richard J. Hannigan. Design: Public Interest GRFX (215) 985-1113.

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