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Date: 8/10/2021
EASTHAMPTON – Easthampton City Councilors Salem Derby and Owen Zaret have submitted a resolution to the full council declaring a climate emergency.
“In lieu of climate events that have been steadily increasing in severity and frequency it is time to take a stand as a City Council and declare that we must act with our local, regional and national partners to bring awareness and action to the looming crisis of climate change,” read the resolution.
The resolution also stated that it is highly important to recognize the impact the city’s collective actions will have on the future of society, especially since Easthampton specifically sits next to the Manhan River, a major body of water in the valley.
In a statement sent to Reminder Publishing, Derby said he felt that it was time that leaders within Easthampton come out strongly to acknowledge the climate crisis on our planet.
“Wildfires, floods, crazy temperatures, and more frequent and severe storms are the tip of the iceberg, and it is time that we start taking real tangible action to mitigate the outcomes that are bound to start hitting us hard at home,” said Derby. “We need leaders that are unafraid to acknowledge the science and start making real plans and taking real action towards not only insulating Easthampton from dire consequences but also ensuring sound policy that will allow us to be sustainable and thrive into the future.”
Zaret believes if more municipalities like Easthampton take necessary climate action steps, that creates more grassroots action that can be identified and eventually applied too at the state level-and then the federal level. “I think that local action turns into global action,” said Zaret. “Local action certainly has its place and its power.”
According to Zaret, Derby has been a local pioneer when it comes to supporting and promoting policy-fostered use of sustainable energy, especially solar. Easthampton, for example, was a very early adopter of looking at ways to use their available parcels for solar fields.
The city specifically produced a solar system on Oliver Street, which became one of the state’s first and largest solar systems. The project was built on a former landfill that stretched 16 acres. The project included the construction of a 2.3-megawatt photovoltaic solar farm, which generates enough power for 20 percent of Easthampton’s municipal buildings. It was also estimated that Easthampton would save $1.4 million from energy costs over the following 10 years.
“We’re continuing to explore ways to make the city more green by reducing our carbon footprint,” said Zaret, who also added that there is a recent Honeywell audit that is discussing opportunities to solarize the city and improve the city’s Amtrak systems. There is also a recent ordinance requiring hybrid vehicles in the city.
City cleanups and a recent plastic restrictions ordinance are other ways in which Easthampton is trying to combat this climate emergency, and Zaret also said that he is trying to work with other departments on a project that protects native environments from pollinators, and to foster those native plants.
“Easthampton has had a history of being a green city, and I think there’s more to do,” said Zaret. “When we look at what’s happening across the country and the world, we need to act now, and we need to act soon.”
The resolution was officially presented during the Aug. 4 City Council meeting and will now make its way to the Rules Committee. While the resolution mainly talks about reducing the city’s carbon footprint, but there are other environmental and ecological issues Zaret wants to uncover in terms of protecting natural environments.
Once the resolution gets discussed within committee meetings, the council will vote on it after.