Bill Moving Through House Would Help Cyclists, Make MA Amazing!

If you ride a bike, and you are sick of huffing down fumes, call up your rep and tell them to vote for this bill.  Not only would it reduce significantly the amount of pollution you would be breathing in while you ride to work, it would be trans formative and amazing for the state.

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State Representative Sean Garballey (D-Arlington), State Representative Marjorie Decker (D-Cambridge), and State Senator Jamie Eldridge (D-Acton) filed a bill today that would commit Massachusetts to obtain 100 percent of its energy from clean, renewable sources like solar and wind.

“As President Donald Trump takes office, this bill sends a clear message to officials in DC: Massachusetts is determined to keep moving forward on clean energy,” said Ben Hellerstein, State Director for Environment Massachusetts. “We’re proud to work with Representative Garballey, Representative Decker, and Senator Eldridge to move Massachusetts towards 100 percent renewable energy.”

The bill, An Act to transition Massachusetts to 100 per cent renewable energy (HD.3357), would require the state to achieve 100 percent renewable electricity generation by 2035, and phase out the use of fossil fuels across all sectors, including heating and transportation, by 2050.

“This legislation provides a bold step by placing the Commonwealth on a path to a cleaner and more sustainable future,” said Representative Garballey. “It encourages job creation, protects and sustains our natural resources, reduces our carbon footprint and would benefit the health and well-being of our citizens in immeasurable ways. More importantly, it signals to the country our commitment to long-term solutions in meeting the very real challenges of climate change, and lights the way for similar efforts across the nation. I am honored to have a staunch ally in Representative Decker.”

“I am energized by the goals and ideas laid out in this bill,” said Representative Decker. “This signifies a tremendous opportunity to put the environment at the forefront of our public policy discussion. Representative Garballey and I proudly represent constituents who strongly advocate for renewable energy and I am pleased to provide legislative support to their work.”

In recent months, major businesses, institutions, and cities across the country have committed to achieve 100 percent renewable energy. San Diego, the eight largest city in the United States by population, has pledged to source 100 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2035.

This summer, the Environment Massachusetts Research & Policy Center profiled 17 cities and towns in Massachusetts that are leading the way towards 100 percent renewable energy.

The legislation filed today would require the Department of Energy Resources to set binding targets for renewable energy growth in all major sectors of the economy, and issue regulations to ensure that Massachusetts stays on track towards 100 percent renewable energy by 2050. The bill is designed to complement and strengthen the Global Warming Solutions Act, passed in 2008, which requires the state to reduce its carbon emissions by at least 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050.

Additionally, the bill would increase the renewable portfolio standard (RPS), a state policy that requires utilities to purchase a minimum amount of their electricity from renewable sources like solar and wind, bringing it up to 100 percent renewable electricity by 2035.

The bill also directs the Department of Transportation and the Department of Energy Resources to conduct studies identifying pathways towards 100 percent renewable energy in transportation and the building sector, with particular attention to policies that can expand access to renewable energy and energy efficiency options for low-income communities.

In order to increase access to employment opportunities in solar, offshore wind, energy efficiency, and other clean energy technologies, the bill creates a Clean Energy Workforce Development Fund. At least half of the money from the fund must be spent to benefit residents of Gateway Cities, transitioning fossil fuel workers, and residents of environmental justice communities.

President Trump has stated that dismantling the federal Climate Action Plan is among his top priorities.

Massachusetts has often been among the top states in the country for clean energy policies, and was the first state to limit carbon pollution from power plants.

“Now is the time for Massachusetts to go big on clean energy,” said Hellerstein. “We’re excited to work with Representative Garballey, Representative Decker, and Senator Eldridge to advocate for the solutions we need.”

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The Invisible Danger

Cars are pretty bad. Its probably not very hard to come up with a dozen bad things our use of cars has done for the planet, for cities, and for people. You might be thinking you can escape thous bad effects by riding a bicycle instead. And for the most part this is true.

But there is one danger posed by cars that still holds true when you ride your bicycle. Pollution, specifically cancer and asthma causing pollution.

A fascinating study from the Harvard school of public health shows that car drivers are not just hurting themselves, but are also hurting everyone who chooses not to drive cars.  For most things in this country your right to do whatever you want, extends right up until they hurt someone else,  however it seems that when it comes to environmental damage we still have the idea that the sky is a public dumping ground and anyone can inflict damage on anyone else.

Luckily it seems that bike paths and use of proper planning can greatly reduce the exposure to these pollutants.  Combined with the added health benefits of cycling, and the reduction of single car occupants on the road, cycling is still one of the single greatest ways to make yourself healthier, and make everyone else healthier at the same time.

From the Harvard School of Public Health:

Boston has installed more than 50 miles of bike lanes since 2007, and the number of pedal-powered commuters in the city, while only 2.1%, is more than three times the national average. To help urban planners continue to improve bike friendliness, researchers at Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) set out to determine the types of lanes that expose cyclists to the smallest amount of vehicle pollution.

The researchers attached a mobile monitoring unit to the back of a bicycle and hit the road to sample two types of pollutants from vehicular exhaust—black carbon and nitrogen dioxide—known to increase the risk of asthma, heart disorders, and other health problems. They traveled five common bicycling routes in the city during both morning and evening commutes, to compare bike paths, which are separated from the road, and bike lanes, which run adjacent to traffic.

Bike paths had the best air quality, with concentrations of both pollutants about a third lower than on bike lanes. This was true even when bike paths near crowded streets were compared with bike lanes on quieter streets, suggesting that separation from the road and a protective barrier of vegetation, such as trees and bushes, makes a difference. Bike paths also allow cyclists to bypass intersections, where idling cars make the air quality particularly bad.

Piers MacNaughton, SM ’14, led the data analysis, which was published online May 16, 2014 in Science of the Total Environment. He earned his degree in the Exposure, Epidemiology and Risk Program in the Department of Environmental Health and will start a PhD in the program this fall.

A bike commuter himself, MacNaughton said the aim of the study is not to scare off city bicyclists but rather to provide evidence to shape future urban planning—particularly now that Boston is on the short list of host cities for the 2024 Olympics. “They are really pushing to be a biking capital. I wanted to get this research out so that when they start developing more bike lanes, they can do so in a smart way,” MacNaughton said.

Read abstract: Impact of bicycle route type on exposure to traffic-related air pollution

Read Boston Globe coverage: Cyclists, don your gas masks

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