HYANNIS – Governor Charlie Baker is being urged by environmental-justice and climate-change advocates including The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts to sign a recently-passed environmental protection bill.
“An Act Creating a Next-Generation Roadmap for Massachusetts Climate policy” sets a target net-zero emissions date of 2050 or earlier as well as defines environmental justice communities as those where the median household income is 65 percent below the state average, where minority residents make up 40 percent or more of the population, or where a quarter of residents do not speak English.
The bill also regulates possible pollution near these environmental justice communities.
The use of energy-efficient appliances, including refrigerators and dishwasher, would also be incentivized by the bill.
The bill would also require that all vehicles sold in Massachusetts after 2035 be electric, and requires the state to make plans for carbon sequestration and storage.
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