Another legislative week has flown by, with many important conversations happening about our climate and energy priorities.

On today’s Climate Dispatch we talk with Senator Anne Watson, Vice Chair of the Senate Natural Resources & Energy committee about the Climate Superfund legislation, as well as climate resilience policies that her committee is working on.

Today’s Episode

Make Big Oil Pay

On Tuesday, legislators and advocates came together to launch the introduction of Climate Change Superfund bills (S.259 and H.809). An impressive 20 Senators and 87 House members signed on in support of these bills. This legislation would hold the largest fossil fuel companies accountable for helping pay for the damage their products have caused in Vermont. You can read more about the campaign here.  You can also check out some great media coverage of Tuesday’s press conference from VTDigger and WCAX.

Climate Resilience

As we continue to recover and rebuild in communities impacted by recent flooding, we were once again reminded that our state needs to take proactive action to enhance our resilience. We must reduce flood risks with nature-based solutions, invest in more climate-resilient infrastructure, improve government response and capacity, and implement a suite of funding solutions to make critical investments possible for households and communities. Learn more about our must-haves for climate resilience policy this legislative session here! 

Call to Action

Call or email your Senators and Representatives and thank them for sponsoring the Climate Superfund Act. The 20 Senators and 87 Representatives who signed on in support showed that this bill is hugely popular and gives us momentum to get the bill passed this year.  Find your Senators and Representatives, see if they signed on (S.259 or H.809), and then please thank them for signing onto the Climate Superfund bill if they’re a co-sponsor, or urge them to support it.