Governor Kathy Hochul clearly understands that we are in uncharted territory. Heat deaths are surging above the 30-year average (Study: 61,000 heat-related deaths in EU in 2022, 11 July), and severe flooding is destroying critical infrastructure. A 100-year flood is likely to occur every 19 years, according to the First Street Foundation. But Congress Speaker Carl Heastie failed to pass the New York Heat Act (Household Energy Fair Price Transition Act) that would prevent gas companies from building more unsustainable methane-leaking pipelines. Senator Joe Manchin is still trying to cut through the Mountain Valley pipeline. Texas Governor Greg Abbott is fighting the business world for accelerating wind power.
We need to move away from our dangerous and dangerous dependence on fossil fuels. President Biden enacted groundbreaking climate change legislation. Hochul must focus on providing New York with the renewable power it needs from both wind farms and solar farms in western New York, as well as offshore wind farms. Yes, clean power generation in the upstate is contributing to the downstate, but we know he shares one climate and his one future, and the situation is certain to only get darker if political leaders don’t take immediate action.
