Letter: How Medford Can Benefit From The Green Future Act

MEDFORD, MA — The following letter was submitted by City Councilor Nicole Morell.

The City of Medford, like the rest of Massachusetts, faces major challenges caused by the worsening effects of climate change. In Medford more intense storms, consistently higher summer temperatures, and more frequent flooding threaten our community. However, within this crisis, there are many opportunities for progress.

While climate change is a global issue, taking action at all levels, including the municipal level, is essential. Many of the same municipal initiatives that will help reduce our carbon emissions can also improve the lives of the residents of Medford. Protecting and planting more trees in the city will not only help take carbon out of the air but will also provide shade, reduce heat islands, and increase curb appeal. Making the city more bike and pedestrian-friendly will cut down on vehicle pollution and improve public health and safety. Promoting the installation of solar panels and non-fossil fuel heating in municipal and private buildings can bring down utility bills—something we’ve seen the benefits of already in two new city buildings.

However, so many of these important efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change require significant funding—a challenge for cities and towns across the state. That’s why I’m asking Beacon Hill to take these local steps seriously and pass the Green Future Act (H.3292).

One goal of the bill is to make sure municipalities across the Commonwealth have a steady stream of funding for the green infrastructure they so desperately need. The Green Future Act sets up a new system of dedicated local aid for communities, with money going directly to municipalities to spend on climate mitigation and resilience. For example, according to an analysis from Climate XChange Education & Research, Medford would receive an estimated $21.3 million dollars in local funding by 2030. This money could help fund projects like increasing the amount of rooftop solar and much-needed flooding mitigation infrastructure.

Known formally as An Act achieving a green future with infrastructure and workforce investments (H.3292), it is a bill currently being considered by the Massachusetts state legislature. Right now it has 75 cosponsors in the House—including Representatives Garballey and Barber—and significant support in the Senate, which has previously passed similar equitable carbon pricing legislation by overwhelmingly margins in June 2018 and January 2020.

In a report from May 2021 from Climate XChange, the Green Future Act would do more than reduce carbon emissions through investments in things like renewable energy and clean transportation. It will also create an estimated 83,700 jobs across the state by 2030, raise billions for environmental justice communities across the state, and provide dedicated funding to support workers displaced by the global shift away from fossil fuels.

So how does the Green Future Act raise the funds it spends on environmental justice, local green aid, and climate infrastructure? It starts by holding more big corporate polluters accountable for the damage they have done to our air and environment by placing a pollution fee that fossil fuel importers would pay. We already have this system for fossil fuels used in electricity, and this bill would expand this into transportation and heating fuels. This, combined with direct rebates to low-income households and dedicated investments in environmental justice communities, would make the Green Future Act one of the most progressive pieces of climate legislation in the country. Further, the bill would raise additional funds through state green bonding, a tried-and-true method for responsibly raising funds for infrastructure projects in the state.

These two methods would raise $9.6 billion by 2030, while emissions from transportation and heating would drop significantly, making our air cleaner for everyone.

The longer we wait to join the fight against climate change or to prepare for the challenges we know are coming the more drastic the changes we will have to make later will be. The sooner we act the better. It’s urgent Beacon Hill pass the Green Future Act this session.