Tag: Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition

Gov. Whitmer’s Michigan Carbon-Neutral Plan a Step Forward, But Bigger Steps Needed Now

Published on October 2nd, 2020 by - Blog Posts, News

A new climate action plan released by Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer is attracting both praise and calls for faster action from environmental organizations.

Announced September 23, the Governor’s plan calls for a carbon-neutral Michigan economy by the year 2050. That makes Michigan the ninth state to commit to a carbon-neutral economy.

“The science on this issue is clear,” Whitmer said. “Climate change is already affecting our state. Extreme weather has led to some of the wettest years in our state’s history, rising lake levels that erode our shorelines, and immense damage to public, private, and agricultural infrastructure. Rising temperatures and air quality changes worsen health problems and heighten COVID-19 co-morbidities. We cannot afford to wait to take action.”

But the urgency expressed by Whitmer is not fully embraced by her plan, which aims for carbon neutrality three decades from today, advocates say.

Jamesa Johnson-Greer, Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition’s climate justice director, called the timeline “conservative” and noted that Consumers Energy and DTE Energy, the state’s two largest utilities, have already committed to carbon neutrality by 2040 and 2050, respectively.

“We’re at a point in the crisis where we know we have the next 10 years to act to stave off the greatest impacts of the climate crisis … so we need to act now.”

According to her executive order, Whitmer’s plan also calls for:

  • An interim goal of a 28-percent reduction below 1990 levels in greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.
  • An Energy Transition Impact Project to assist communities in maintaining critical services and ensuring high quality employment for workers while moving toward a more sustainable future when faced with the closure of energy facilities.
  • A new Council on Climate Solutions to recommend opportunities for emissions-reduction strategies while focusing on targeted solutions for communities disproportionately being affected by the climate crisis. The Council and the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) will work with EGLE’s Office of Environmental Justice Public Advocate to ensure fairness for and representation from underserved communities.

“We applaud Governor Whitmer’s commitment to a carbon-neutral economy by 2050,” said FLOW Executive Director Liz Kirkwood. “By setting this urgently needed goal, Michiganders can tap into their innovative know-how to protect this peninsula we call home. The health of these waters hangs in the balance and depends on our affirmative commitment to addressing the climate crisis head-on.”

Despite limitations, the plan is a big step forward for a state government that failed to take significant action on the climate crisis under the previous governor, said Kate Madigan, director of the Michigan Climate Action Network.

“When we started the climate network five years ago,” Madigan said, “few leaders in our state were even talking about climate change and the rapid and equitable transition off fossil fuels needed to avoid worsening impacts. This silence and inaction were the results of the well-funded campaigns by the fossil fuel industry to create doubt and pressure elected officials to deny the climate crisis. Sadly, those campaigns delayed action for far too long. The action by Governor Whitmer shows that things have changed.”

Clean Water and Public Health are Inseparable

Published on April 9th, 2020 by - Blog Posts, News

Uniting to Stop Water Shutoffs and Meet Water Infrastructure Needs During the Pandemic

“Water is a Human Right” photo courtesy of Common Dreams

Liz Kirkwood, Executive Director

By Liz Kirkwood

In these challenging times, we are always seeking genuine good news to share. And fortunately, Governor Gretchen Whitmer delivered some urgently needed relief in her March 28th Executive Order restoring water service to the thousands of Michigan households shut off from access to safe water and a $2 million fund to help these communities.

What we know is that water and public health are inseparable. Without water, we simply can’t fight this pandemic, let alone meet daily household hydration and sanitation needs. Much more work lies ahead to ensure everyone has access to safe, affordable water. Frontline communities like Detroit continue to be hardest hit by growing coronavirus cases, and we encourage you to support outstanding organizations providing households water, food, and community advocacy, including We the People of Detroit,  People’s Water Board, Gleaners Food Bank, Brightmoor Food Pantry, and Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition. 

While restoring water won’t happen overnight, Michigan’s leadership gives us hope because it is part of a nationwide trend to pause and, increasingly, ban water shutoffs. A 2016 nationwide assessment of water shutoffs for non-payment revealed that an estimated 15 million people in the United States experienced a water shutoff, a shocking 1 out of every 20 households. To date, 12 statewide orders restoring water service, which apply to private and public water providers, have been issued by the governors of California, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, and Wisconsin. Four of these states are in the Great Lakes Basin.

Accessing safe, affordable water is a struggle for too many people in this water-rich region that contains 20 percent of the planet’s fresh surface water. Many urban and rural communities already here are burdened with the highest water rates in the country, compounded by significant job losses, lack of diverse employment opportunities, shrinking populations, and crumbling infrastructure. The current public health crisis will only exacerbate this unacceptable problem where local ratepayers are expected to pay a disproportionate amount of their income for water service.

What we know is that water and public health are inseparable. Without water, we simply can’t fight this pandemic, let alone meet daily household hydration and sanitation needs. Much more work lies ahead to ensure everyone has access to safe, affordable water. Frontline communities like Detroit continue to be hardest hit by growing coronavirus cases, and we encourage you to support incredible organizations providing households water, food, and community advocacy, including We the People of Detroit,  People’s Water Board, Gleaners Food Bank, Brightmoor Food Pantry, and Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition.

Securing Our Water Future and Demanding Justice and Equity in Rebuilding Our Water Systems.

This difficult time gives us a unique opportunity to decide what our water future looks like — a future that makes sure that the federal response to the pandemic and our water infrastructure crisis is both people-centered and rooted in justice. To this end, FLOW continues to work with People’s Water Board, Sierra Club, Clean Water Action, and Michigan Environmental Council on equitable financing solutions to rebuild our crumbling drinking water, sewer, and stormwater infrastructure in Michigan. Every $1 billion in water infrastructure investment creates an estimated range of 20,000 to 26,000 jobs and can have far-reaching economic benefits, tripling in size with total demand for goods and services reaching an estimated $2.87 to $3.46 billion, according to the Clean Water Council.

In addition, FLOW also is partnering with a chorus of leading regional and national organizations and coalitions, including the Healing Our Waters (HOW) Coalition, Food & Water Action, and the U.S. Water Alliance, to demand the next federal coronavirus stimulus package contain robust instructure funding to end water shutoffs, promote job creation, and reinvest in our water systems like we did some 50 years ago.

Let us all work together to not just pause, but permanently ban, water shutoffs and demand equitable and sustainable solutions to fund and rebuild our water infrastructure. Consider signing this citizen petition authored by Food & Water Action urging Congress to stop water shutoffs during the pandemic crisis. Your voice makes a difference.

At the same time this crisis is exposing how fragile many of our societal systems are, it also is forcing us to identify what matters most: our health, our water, our natural and human-built communities, and our future resilience in the face of climate change impacts. At FLOW, we remain more committed than ever before to protecting and upholding these things that matter most to our shared future.