Social and Racial Injustice, the Green New Deal, and Our Work on Clean Energy
By Anne Reynolds and Joe Martens
Recent events have left our nation reeling. On top of a pandemic that has taken more than 100,000 lives and left millions jobless, the senseless killing of George Floyd and the subsequent protests and demonstrations have left us all searching for answers. Both tragedies have disproportionately impacted people of color and have put a spotlight on our country’s racism. We believe Black Lives Matter and policing and a host of other institutions in America need fundamental reforms. No matter where we live or work, we should all be asking ourselves what we are doing, as individuals, as communities, as businesses, and as organizations to address longstanding social and racial injustices.
The environmental arena is our case in point. For decades, the most polluting industries and projects were located in communities with the least amount of political influence. Factories, power generating facilities, wastewater treatment plants, busy highway interchanges and other noxious facilities and infrastructure are far more frequently located in or adjacent to poor neighborhoods. We have known this at least since 1987, when the landmark United Church of Christ report, Toxic Wastes and Race in the United States, showed race to be the most potent variable in predicting where commercial hazardous waste facilities were located in the country. And, until the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, asthma – often triggered by toxic exposures -- was the largest single cause of school absenteeism in New York City, disproportionately impacting hundreds of thousands of black, brown and poor children.
To add insult to injury, fossil fuels, which have been the backbone of worldwide economic growth for several centuries, are the main culprit in global warming, climate change and rising sea levels. Once again, it is well established that the poorest among us are the most directly and adversely impacted.
This is where the green new deal comes in and the work of ACE NY and NYOWA. Our mission, working with a host of environmental, business and labor organizations, is to promote the use of clean, renewable energy and reduce and ultimately replace the use of fossil fuels. Building land-based and offshore wind generating facilities, community and large-scale solar installations and maximizing energy efficiency and electric vehicles provides good paying jobs, reduces pollution and greenhouse gases and improves the health of our most vulnerable communities.
We’re proud to be working in a state that takes environmental justice issues seriously. Just last year, the legislature and Governor worked together to enact the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, which sets the most ambitious clean energy targets in the country. Importantly, it directs that at least 35% of the benefits of the state’s clean energy investments accrue to disadvantaged communities, in recognition of the historical and ongoing injustice inflicted on inner city and other neighborhoods by legacy electricity generating facilities.
This is a good start and we intend to build on it. Rest assured that ACE NY and NYOWA will redouble our efforts to accelerate the transition to clean energy and help ensure that the benefits accrue to all New Yorkers.
