Bedford Residents Demand Gov. Baker Take Action to End Construction of New Fossil Fuel Infrastructure

Submitted by UU Mass Action

Bedford residents Janet Powers, Dorothy Anderson- Perales and Chris Gittins traveled to the State House on October 31st to demand that Governor Baker use his executive authority to stop the construction of dangerous new fossil fuel infrastructure in Massachusetts. The residents joined 25 other people in occupying the hallway outside the Governor’s office in a silent protest.

This “stand in” is part of a larger campaign organized by the Mass Power Forward Coalition, a group comprised of 200 environmental and community groups demanding the state take a leadership role in taking action on climate justice. The campaign began on September 13, and has grown since then as waves of Massachusetts residents have traveled from around the commonwealth to the doors of Baker’s office to urge action.

Local resident Dorothy Anderson-Perales said “ I am concerned about our environment and the impact climate change will have on the world my three girls will inherit. The Governor is not listening to the people. Gov. Baker says he’s taking action on climate change, but when you look at his policies he’s actually in favor of building new fracked gas pipelines and power plants that we don’t need and will hurt our communities. He’s supporting a Trump policy of more fossil fuel infrastructure at the expense of the people.”

In the wake of President Trump’s recent withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker joined the U.S. Climate Alliance, acknowledging that climate change impacts “threaten the people of [Massachusetts] and put an intense burden on [its economy].”

Yet concerned residents say Governor Baker’s actions on energy and climate have more in common with Trump’s pro-pipeline stance than a Massachusetts eager to transition to a clean energy future. The Baker administration has continued to side with utilities and fossil fuel companies by promoting the myth that more natural gas is needed to meet Massachusetts’ energy needs, and supporting a natural gas infrastructure tariff known as the “pipeline tax.”

Over the course of seven weeks over 100 residents have joined the lunch hour stand-ins outside the Governor’s office. Said Janet Powers “We’ll keep coming back until the Governor does the right thing. The gas pipelines and power plants he supports are not needed, hurt our communities and cost us billions.”

At the stand-in, residents delivered a letter to the Governor asking him to issue an executive order instructing state-level agencies to do everything legally in their power to deny permits for new large fossil fuel infrastructure projects such as gas pipelines, compressor stations, and gas power plants. The letter asks that Gov. Baker take action by the beginning of the UN Climate Negotiations in Bonn Germany, which start on Monday, November 6th.

More information about the campaign can be found at www.betterfutureaction.org/standupcharlie.