Yonkers Insider: New York League of Conservation Voters: Environmental News for March 28th.

 

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

NY’s Electric School Bus Push: What to Know We’re all familiar with the yellow school buses of our childhood: the rattling sounds of metal, the squeals of our peers, leather seats that had seen better days. Their presence was an integral part to so many childhoods – so what’s being changed?  Transportation is a leading contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in New York, accounting for a third of total overall emissions. Not only are these emissions harming the planet, but research has shown that they are also harming New York’s children, leading to higher levels of asthma.  Read More

Cumulative Impacts Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities are continuously burdened by the cumulative impacts of multiple hazardous environmental facilities being placed in their communities. Historically, minority communities and economically distressed communities have borne a disproportionate and inequitable share of environmental facilities such as landfills, waste transfer stations, and fossil fuel power plants. These industrial facilities cause significant health impacts such as asthma, lung and heart disease, increased birth defects, and learning impairments. The negative health impacts of poor air quality, polluted waters, toxic gasses, and more are exacerbated in these communities as a result of the cumulative burden of multiple sites. Read More

Photo by Adrian Childress Elected officials stood and rallied with open space advocates ahead of the New York City Council on Parks Committee Budget Hearing, to demand that Mayor Adams and the City Council commit 1% of the NYC Fiscal Year 2023 budget to the city Parks Department. If fulfilled, this pledge would amount to roughly $1 billion allocated to the Parks Department for existing park maintenance and the development of new park facilities. “Parks are vital environmental assets to New York City and we must treat them that way by allocating 1 percent funding to the NYC Parks Department,” said Julie Tighe, President of the New York League of Conservation Voters. “Without this proper funding, these vital resources fall into disarray, which negatively impacts all New Yorkers. Our parks and open spaces mitigate climate change, promote resiliency, lower air temperatures by up to 9 degrees, and remove 1,300 tons of pollutants from the atmosphere each year. It is time for Mayor Adams and the City Council to provide historic investment in our parks and open spaces across the five boroughs.”   (amNY)

On International Day of Forests, State Senator Liz Krueger and Assembly Member Kenneth Zebrowski launched a renewed push to pass the New York Deforestation-Free Procurement Act. The bill would ensure New York State government procurement practices do not drive deforestation or intact forest degradation in tropical and boreal forests.  The Deforestation-Free Procurement Act will tighten an existing state ban on the use of tropical hardwoods for government projects and create a new statute requiring state contractors who deal in forest-risk commodities to certify that their products don’t drive deforestation. Key forest-risk commodities covered by the law include soy, beef, palm oil, coffee, and wood products, with cocoa and rubber to be considered subsequently.     (FOE)

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced New York has become the top community solar market in the United States with more than one gigawatt of community solar installed and operational – enough to serve 209,000 homes across the state. New York also has the largest pipeline in the nation with enough community solar under construction to serve an additional 401,000 homes, ensuring continued access to clean affordable solar for all New Yorkers for years to come. Community solar made up 70 percent of total solar installations across the state in 2021. In addition, New York’s distributed solar pipeline is now comprised of more than 708 of these projects totaling 2,300 megawatts, which once completed will help expand access to clean energy for all New Yorkers, including low-to-moderate income (LMI) households and those living in disadvantaged communities (DACs).    (NYS Governor)