Senator Katherine Clark is a mother, Senator Sal DiDomenico is a father, Senator Ken Donnelly is a former firefighter, Senator Sonia Chang-Diaz is concerned about the damaging effects that toxic chemicals can have on low-income communities in her district.  These senators have very personal reasons to support the Safer Alternatives Bill. They all want to vote for it.

The problem is they may never get that chance because many bills never get voted on.  This week, Senators have the opportunity to make it known that they want to vote for the Safer Alternatives Bill.

The Safer Alternatives Bill is currently before the Senate Ways and Means Committee (W&M). Senator Mark Pacheco has written a letter to W&M Chairman, Senator Stephen Brewer, to ask him to give the bill a "favorable report," and is inviting other senators to sign the letter with him.  Your can help by urging your senator to sign this letter.

Taxpayers in Massachusetts currently fund statewide energy efficiency programs, but policymakers lack the tools to track who is being served by the programs and how they have impacted local communities. A new piece of Green Justice legislation, approved by the Joint Committee on Telecommunications, Utilities, and Energy (TUE) on January 24, would change that.

“We applaud the Committee for its role in advancing transparency and increasing access for previously underserved communities,” said Staci Rubin of Alternatives for Community & Environment, a member of the Green Justice Coalition (GJC). The GJC has, since 2008, worked with utility companies and state agencies to address inequities in state efficiency programs and address job quality standards. “We are encouraged that the bill aims to provide equitable access to efficiency programs for hard to reach communities, including low-to-moderate- income homeowners and renters, residents whose primary language is not English, and small businesses.”

The bill, “An Act Further Promoting Energy Efficiency and Green Jobs,” mandates public accountability in Massachusetts’ energy efficiency programs and would establish a new Oil Heat Energy Efficiency Fund.

Lack Of Federal Reform Makes State Laws More Urgent

(Boston, MA) - In 2012, Massachusetts and 27 other state legislatures will consider bills that address concerns over toxic chemicals in consumer products, according to a new analysis by Safer States, a national coalition of state-based environmental organizations which Clean Water Action participates in. Bills to be introduced this year will cover a broad list of topics, including safer alternatives to toxic chemicals to bans on toxic chlorinated Tris flame retardants and cadmium, and requirements that makers of consumer products publicly disclose chemicals in products. 

Environmental Health Internship

Did you know that there are toxic chemicals in many shampoos, makeup, shower curtains, baby bottles, furniture, cleaning products and all sorts of other products in our daily lives?  These chemicals, which are linked to health effects including cancer, learning disabilities, asthma, and reproductive harm, are getting into people’s bodies, sometimes even before birth.  

Toxic Flame Retardants Found In 85% of Baby Products Tested, Including Nursing Pillows and Car Seats

Boston, MA –Popular baby products, including nursing pillows and car seats purchased in Massachusetts, contain toxic flame retardants linked to cancer, hormone disruption, and other health effects, according to a new report released today by the Alliance for a Healthy Tomorrow, Washington Toxics Coalition and Safer States. Children and families are exposed to the compounds, called Tris chemicals, when they escape from household items and contaminate house dust and indoor air.  In Massachusetts, legislation that would replace toxic chemicals like toxic flame retardants with safer alternatives was recently reported from the Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture Committee and is pending for consideration in the State Senate.

From all of us at Clean Water Action, Happy New Year!

The Massachusetts legislative session resumed this week, and protection from toxic chemicals should be a top priority for senators in 2012.

Please write your state senator and ask him or her to make a New Year's resolution to pass the Safer Alternatives Bill.

Senators will have thousands of bills to choose from this year. Let's make the Safer Alternatives Bill one of the first to grab their attention as they return to the State House.

The dark halo of soot that often hangs over construction projects around Boston could go the way of smoking in bars and unfiltered smokestacks if city officials take action on a proposed measure.

For years, environmental groups have blamed the diesel fumes belched by bulldozers, cranes, and other construction equipment for contributing to the area’s high asthma rates and other airborne ailments. They cite data from the Environmental Protection Agency showing Suffolk County has more diesel pollution - 300 times the amount considered acceptable by the federal government - than 99 percent of the nation’s counties, more than one-third of it spewed by construction equipment.

massachusetts
Global Warming Pollution Fight Goes Local
Massachusetts’ landmark 2008 Global Warming Solutions Act requires climate-changing emissions in the state to be reduced in two stages. By 2020, the mandate is for 25 per-cent below 1990 pollution levels. Progress toward that goal is on track.

making manufacturers take out the trash!

Americans generate a lot of trash — some would say, much more than their “fair share.” Many people feel that each individ-ual should be responsible for reducing their own waste, perhaps along with the local community recycling program.