Brookline Climate Leaders Blocked Again by State, Fossil Industrial Complex.

Brookline, MA

On May 19, 2021, the Brookline Town Meeting overwhelmingly passed Warrant Articles 25 and 26, two zoning initiatives that would promote building electrification and reduce the expansion of new fossil fuel infrastructure in the town. These zoning bylaws were passed directly as a result of the Attorney General’s previous denial of WA 21, the town’s gas ban from 2019 that would have prohibited new fossil fuel gas infrastructure - with certain waivers and exemptions - in new and/or substantially renovated buildings. Today, the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Municipal Law Unit (MLU) issued a further blow to the town’s ability to meet its climate goals, in declaring that the new bylaws – just as the original gas prohibition – were contrary to State law. 

In the wake of the MLU decision, Brookline climate leaders called for state action on building electrification, and offered the following statements:

“It’s deeply unfortunate that one of the bluest states is actively preventing its towns and cities from taking the most basic and necessary steps to address our climate crisis. After the denial of our original gas ban, the Attorney General signaled a willingness to work on this vital issue, but here we are, with yet another disapproval. We stand ready to work in partnership with any and all state leaders who want to move forward aggressively with building electrification. Communities across the state are looking for leadership on this issue. We call on our state leaders to act now.” - Jesse Gray, Brookline Town Meeting member and co-petitioner of the Brookline by-laws

“In spite of today’s ruling, Brookline has proven that building electrification is practical and affordable. We know that this decade is critical for decisive action and large carbon emission reductions.  Our climate crisis disproportionately affects at-risk communities, which suffer at the expense of our wasteful policies. We need to act boldly and urgently to create a livable future for our children. It is imperative to stop using fossil fuels and transition as quickly as possible to a clean energy economy, creating jobs and cleaning up our communities in the process. While the timeframe that we have to reduce emissions is rapidly closing, our State agencies continue to debate and delay. We hope the State legislature and the DOER will continue this forward progress, stop enabling special interests, and get to work passing legislation and regulations that will actually prevent catastrophic climate failure. If not, future generations will judge us harshly - and rightly so.”  Lisa Cunningham, Architect, Brookline Town Meeting Member and Co-petitioner of the bylaws.

“The technological progress our society has made over the past one hundred years has helped to create tremendous prosperity, but has also created an energy system that is emitting more carbon than our atmosphere can safely handle. Although our electric grid is polluting less CO2, the carbon emissions from our buildings and vehicles continue to grow. When you’re in a hole, the first thing to do is stop digging. With respect to carbon pollution caused by heating buildings in Brookline, Warrant Article 21 would have taken away the shovel, and 25 and 26 would have significantly slowed the digging. We must find other policy mechanisms to prevent us from digging ourselves a climate change hole from which we can’t escape.” - State Representative Tommy Vitolo (D-Brookline)