Mass Audubon’s priority legislation preparing Massachusetts for the impacts of climate change was attached as an amendment to the comprehensive energy bill passed last week in the state Senate. An Act providing for the establishment of a Comprehensive Adaptation Management Plan in response to climate change (CAMP) would identify where Massachusetts is most vulnerable to these impacts and take measures to protect public health, public safety, and the economy.
CAMP includes language to assess areas vulnerable to climate change impacts like Massachusetts coasts. Photo credit: US Fish & Wildlife Service
Now that the energy bill is in conference committee, we are working to make sure CAMP remains a part of it. You can help! Send a quick email to your legislators asking them to let the conference committee members know they support CAMP. Here’s a sample message (and see our Massachusetts Climate Adaption Coalition letter to committee members for more details):
Dear Representative/Senator X,
As your constituent, I am writing to request that you urge members of the Joint House-Senate Conference Committee on An act to promote energy diversity to retain climate change adaptation language in the final bill. The provision included for An Act Providing for the Establishment of a Comprehensive Adaptation Management Plan in Response to Climate Change (CAMP) complements the energy bill with a proactive approach to protecting our economic assets, ensuring resilient infrastructure for communities and businesses, and reducing risks to public safety and health. CAMP would connect adaptation efforts at the local, regional and state levels to create an integrated approach to resiliency.
I hope you will urge the Committee to include the provisions for CAMP in its final energy bill. Thank you for your consideration.
For more on this issue and related topics, check out this Op Ed by Mass Audubon and The Nature Conservancy in last week’s Boston Globe, the recent UMass study written on the increased risks Boston faces from sea level rise, and the latest news on drought advisories this summer in Massachusetts.