WGBH Commentary by Sen. Marc Pacheco
March 26, 2018
On the morning of [Governor Baker’s] bond bill’s public release, I was finally able to read and analyze the administration’s language. What I found was a watered-down version of the Senate’s bill for a comprehensive climate adaptation management plan. This legislation is being misconstrued as a comprehensive piece of climate adaptation management planning when it is only one step of many. A climate adaptation management plan, even in its best form, is only our foundation.
… this bond bill involves the administration’s language on energy resources. As it stands now, the bill’s new “clean peak standard” would allow the administration to define natural gas or dirty fuel as a “clean peak energy resource.” This is an alarming development, one that flies in the face of true proaction, protection and transparency. Fossil fuels are what got us into this mess in the first place, and we should not use them as a pillar of our climate strategy. If we leave this language on the table, it is a clear win for the fossil fuel industry.