The States are Leading the Charge: Connecticut Fights for a Green Future
By Lori Brown, Executive Director, Connecticut League of Conservation Voters
With the Trump Administration undermining longstanding environmental protections, scaling back investments in renewable energy, and suppressing research into climate change, it’s up to states to lead the charge in the fight for a sustainable future. We must adopt legislation to reduce our carbon emissions, invest in clean and efficient energy technologies, and protect our air, earth, and water.
Here in Connecticut, Governor Lamont and the state legislature have taken strong first steps toward protecting our environment and creating a sustainable future. By investing in a 2,000 MW new offshore wind facility, committing to a zero-carbon electric grid, reducing our reliance on single-use plastics, electrifying our state fleet, fighting Trump’s attacks on our auto emissions standards and the Endangered Species Act, and reducing our state’s carbon emissions, Connecticut is building a green future and is setting a national example for environmental policy.
But we can’t stop there. We are already experiencing the impacts of climate change here in Connecticut. We have seen more erratic weather, increased mosquito populations, outbreaks of infectious diseases like EEE and West Nile, and a decline in the health of our critical wetlands and endangered species. We need to fully commit to a green future by investing in green-collar jobs, addressing environmental equality, and divesting from carbon fuels like the newly-approved fracked gas power plant in Killingly.
Protesters at the Youth Climate Strike in Hartford demand action from our leaders.
We need leaders like Governor Lamont to keep moving Connecticut’s environmental agenda forward and fight the destructive policies and rollbacks currently taking place at the federal level. It’s time to fully commit to a green future, and Connecticut has the technology, leadership and knowledge to get there.
MORE INFORMATION
Clean energy is at the heart of our work to lower emissions and roll back the clock on our climate crisis. You can learn more about clean energy in general on our Clean Energy Issue Page. There you can find more information on the types of clean energy at use in our state as well as some of the latest news.
You can also sign our Clean Energy for All Pledge to vote for candidates who support transitioning to 100% clean, renewable energy by 2050 or sooner. In 2018, we collected similar pledges from Connecticut candidates and lawmakers, including Gov. Lamont. This pledge was at the heart of many clean energy commitments and laws passed this year, and with 2020 just around the corner, we're doubling our efforts to make our leaders make fighting climate change their top priority!
Don't forget to watch Gov. Lamont's full remarks at his press conference to announce a zero carbon Connecticut:
