Environmental, faith communities demand bold climate action
Representatives from Delaware Interfaith Power and Light, Sierra Club Delaware Chapter and the Working Families Party delivered letters of support May 10 from 82 environmental organizations and houses of worship to the Office of the Governor and the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control in support of their proposal to declare a climate emergency and enshrine greenhouse gas emission-reduction goals into law.
"We are so far behind our neighboring states and what the climate science is telling us we need to do to avoid the worst impacts of climate change here in Delaware. President Biden has called for 50% emission reductions by 2030 and net zero by 2050,” said Dustyn Thompson, Sierra Club Delaware advocacy and outreach organizer. “We need to support that effort and join the rest of the states in our region in establishing these emission-reduction goals."
Several East Coast states have established ambitious climate goals in their statutes with directives to agencies to work to achieve them. Most recently, Maryland passed a law increasing its goal to 60% emission reductions by 2031. Without clear directives to reduce emissions and combat climate change, many state agencies are being left out of the conversation.
"Faith leaders of various faith traditions believe climate change to be a defining moral and ethical issue of our time, and an existential issue for the creator’s whole creation. As responsible stewards, we advocate for policies that protect God’s creation – with paramount focus on the poorest and most vulnerable, the least responsible for fueling this crisis, who are among the frontline victims,” said Shweta Arya, Delaware Interfaith Power and Light executive director. “Our Delaware faith leaders demand bold and transformative climate action, and urge our elected officials to declare a climate emergency."
Equity needs to be at the center of practical climate solutions, which is why advocates are pointing to specific equity language included in their proposal.
"We know that climate change will impact certain communities faster and more severely than others. While low-income communities tend to contribute fewer emissions to the climate problem, they are often the first hit and the last consulted when developing solutions,” said Reji Gregori of Delaware Working Families Party. “That is why we are making it clear that vulnerable communities have to be at the table when developing our plans to achieve these emission-reduction goals."
