Massachusetts Sierra Club Response to Boston Mayor Walsh’s 2019 State of the City Address

BOSTON, MA --  At his State of the City address earlier this evening, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh highlighted the city’s accomplishments over the course of his five-year tenure -- including his commitments to taking action on climate change. In his address, Mayor Walsh mentioned the long-awaited Carbon Free Boston study being released later this month, which will help inform the next version of the city’s Climate Action Plan.  

In response to the Mayor’s announcement, Sierra Club Massachusetts Chapter Director Deb Pasternak issued the following statement: 

“We’re excited that Mayor Walsh is committed to reaching 100 percent carbon neutrality by 2050 and look forward to the release of the Carbon Free Boston report. The timing could not be more critical: the City of Boston is in the midst of its third biggest building boom, with some 70 to 90 million new square footage of development going up across the city, and nearly all of this development is projected to be serviced with natural gas. If we're serious about reaching carbon neutrality, we cannot continue to build out more dirty fuel infrastructure, like the new gas pipeline in Back Bay. We should be mandating all new development to meet the standards laid out in the city’s climate resiliency checklist. The Sierra Club looks forward to working with the Walsh Administration on making swift progress to achieve the city’s climate goals.”