"Step It Up" promotes action on climate

New Canaan Advertiser, Thursday, April 19, 2007 Page 8A
85 people "Step It Up" to call for climate action

At least 85 people walked through downtown New Canaan Saturday afternoon to call for global climate action.

“Step It Up New Canaan” was part of a national “Step It Up” campaign, organized by Bill McKibben. The event coincided with the day in 1964 that Rachel Carson, author of “Silent Spring” and one of the pioneers of the environmental movement, died of breast cancer.

The New Canaan Environmental Group took the discussion of climate change from Internet suites to the steps of Town Hall and New Canaan’s streets on a partly sunny, somewhat mild afternoon a day before a nor’easter swept the Eastern seaboard.

Organizers called the local walk “the largest ever-environmental action to take place in New Canaan.”

Don Strait, executive director of the Connecticut Fund for the Environment joined a number of Town officials — Selectman Johnny Potts, Democratic candidate for first selectman and Board of Education member Sally Hines, Town Council members Kit Deveraux and John Emert, Park & Recreation Commissioner Liz Livingston, Historic District Commissioner Terry Cody Spring, Environmental Commission alternate Marcus Smith and Democratic Registrar of Voters George Cody in the march. Beth Jones, chairman of the Democratic Town Committee, also took part.

The group gathered at Town Hall, then walked past the firehouse to God’s Acre, down to the train station and past the New Canaan Playhouse.

The walk ended at the New Canaan Library, where acoustic guitar singer-songwriter Michael Greenberg, a 20-year-old Berklee student, kicked off post-walk action with a new song, “The Best of Us Die.”

In his speech, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal acknowledged the importance of the 1,400 “Step It Up” events taking place across the United States on Saturday. He said that Saturday’s nationwide action challenged the notion of many public officials that “global warming is just a figment of someone’s imagination” and that “environmentalists don’t know how to get things done politically.”

He also spoke about the precedent that two recent Supreme Court decisions: Massachusetts, et al., v. Environmental Protection Agency, et al., and a New Source Review case — would likely have on future lawsuits, particularly a case called Connecticut v. AET, American Electric Power. Mr. Blumenthal also expressed support for passage of Federal legislation on climate legislation. In particular, he cited a Senate bill known as the Safe Climate Act. (Click here for the complete text of Mr. Blumenthal’s speech.)

Mr. Strait followed Mr. Blumenthal. He spoke about proposing future legislation in Connecticut similar to California’s legislation reducing carbon emissions 80 percent by 2050. He also spoke about how the Connecticut General Assembly Finance Committee recently stripped the tax credit section of the green buildings bill and how we can get the legislature to put it back into the bill.

New Canaan Environmental Group President Richard Stowe, a principal organizer of “Step It Up New Canaan,” read a letter from U.S. Rep. Shays in support of the event.

The walk concluded with a second set by Mr. Greenberg who began his set by praising a “Step It Up” rally sign made by Ben Strait, Mr. Strait’s son.

After the event, Mr. Stowe reflected on “the global challenge that awaits humanity.”
“Our global energy plan going forward needs to sip, not slurp fossil fuels and that will require a new way of looking at everything,” Mr. Stowe said. “A ‘nega-barrel’ and ‘nega-watt’ energy strategy must be at the core of any strategy to effectively meet the climate change challenge. If done so prudently and equitably, addressing climate change presents exciting opportunities for the future health of our economy and our quality of life.”

Mr. Blumenthal said that the Connecticut General Assembly recently raided the Connecticut Light & Power Clean Energy Fund to the tune of $60 million. He has recommended that the Clean Energy Fund be made sacrosanct.