For Immediate Release
Contact: Jeff Tittel, Director, NJ Sierra Club, 609-558-9100
Today the Sierra Club is joining hundreds of others to March for Science in Trenton. Participating groups will speak out on why we are holding the march and what it means for the people of New Jersey. Dozens of groups, scientists, elected officials, and citizens from around the state are participating in this nation-wide event here in the state capitol. Jeff Tittel, Director of the New Jersey Sierra Club, released the following statement:
“We are standing up for the environment and standing up for science. President Trump is not only being irresponsible by denying science, but he’s putting people at risk. Communities want to make sure their kids are drinking clean water at school and they are not suffering from asthma attacks because of power plants. Homeowners want to be able to protect themselves from sea level rise and storm surges. You can’t have alternative facts and you definitely cannot have alternative science. That is why we are coming together against Trump’s attack on science!
“By denying science, we’re denying our future. By denying climate change, we’re putting our future at risk. We are here to stand up for science and move our country, and our planet, forward. Climate change is real, is happening every day, and people are being impacted. By denying it, Trump is siding with polluters over public health. He is using science fantasy to further his own goals while the people are left with the consequences. We knew about the important of climate change since the first Earth Day. You don’t need to be an Einstein to believe in science or the important of it. Together we are standing up for science and standing up for protecting our environment our public health and safety.
“The war on science is part of the war on the environment. This is coming from corporate polluters, Big Oil and Gas and coal companies. They want to keep the public in the dark about the impacts they have on our environment and public health. President Trump has cut the EPA in half. He the ones left not to use the term ‘climate change’ because he doesn’t want to do anything about it. He doesn’t care if homes are flooded, communities are destroyed, and people put in peril. They want to deny science so the public doesn’t have a way to challenge these important rollbacks.
“Trump is dismantling all of the progress that has been made by ending half a dozen programs to help stop climate change and reduce air pollution. He has gone after the Obama’s Clean Power Plan, while gutting rules to reduce methane emissions, and stopping environmental reviews from considering climate change. Trump’s rollbacks to clean water will mean our water will be poisoned and there will be more flooding. Eliminated programs for clean energy not only increases air pollution but cuts thousands of green jobs as well.
“By cutting the EPA budget and rolling back protections, Trump lives in a fantasy world. This will have terrible consequences because when you cut enforcement, chemical plants will blow up. When you cut lead funding, children will be poisoned. When you roll back protections for clean air our air will be
polluted. When you don’t clean up Superfund sites, communities will be poisoned. When you eliminate climate change protections, homes and people will be flooded. This is not a reality show, this is real.
“Not only are there people denying climate change, they also deny evolution and probably gravity too. They want to move us backwards into the Dark Ages while persecuting scientists, educators and those who want to learn. These deniers clearly haven’t evolved. Today we are marching for going forward. We’re marching for Galileo, Copernicus, and Isaac Newton. We’re marching for Albert Einstein, Jonas Salk and Madame Curie and all those who have used science to move us forward. We are marching for science and for moving our society and our planet forward!”
The March for Science is being held from 10:00 am to 1:00 pm on April 22nd, beginning at the Trenton War Memorial.