President Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord marked an extremely sad day for our country, but we still have a chance to make this a blip in history. Governor Cuomo, Mayor de Blasio and many other state and city leaders have already pledged to fight back. Now we need you to stand with them, while helping us hold New York’s leaders in congress accountable for boldly acting on the greatest threat to our planet and all of humanity.
President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Paris Climate Accord puts our country–the largest contributor of climate changing greenhouse gases–in a lonely group that includes just Nicaragua (which wanted the agreement to do more) and Syria. Climate change affects us all, from sea level rise that will lead to coastal flooding in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester, to ocean acidification that will deeply damage marine life and our coastal economies, to more extreme precipitation and more deadly heat waves across the state. We must act now to confront climate change.
New York’s leaders have already announced their intentions to move ahead with our ambitious greenhouse gas emissions goals, as have cities and states across the country. Together, we can still make progress in the fight against climate change. But we will need to keep a watchful eye on our elected officials and candidates for office, and keep pushing them to take bold action to protect our environment.
Now is the time to channel your disappointment and frustration into action. Here are four things you can do RIGHT NOW on the state and federal level to help achieve environmental protection and climate action:
Call Your Representatives in Congress: Climate action won’t happen at the Presidential level, but our representatives in Congress can still work to make environmental progress. Call your representatives today and let them know that you still support US leadership and climate action. It will only take a few minutes. You can also tweet in support of the Paris Climate Agreement here, and click here to find your representative’s twitter handle.
Take Action against proposals to add more oil barge parking in the Hudson: The US Coast Guard wants to add up to 43 new oil barge anchorages along the Lower Hudson, which would encourage more oil tankers to use the historic waterway to transport gasoline, crude oil, and other fossil fuels. A bill is moving through the New York State legislature to take back permitting power of oil barges, but it needs your support.
Write to Congress in support of a fully funded EPA: Administrator Scott Pruitt had the President’s ear on Paris, and as long as he is leading the EPA, Congress is the only thing standing in the way of huge cuts when the latest budget deal expires this fall. Clean air and water should never be threatened, and we need New York’s federal representatives to fight for our environment and vote against efforts to cut the EPA. Write to your representatives today!
Donate $5 to NYLCV: We’re working every day to protect New Yorkers from the worst promises of both the Trump administration and Congress by working with every single member of New York’s Congressional delegation to push them every day to work for our conservation values, not against them. We need to ensure we have the resources to keep up this critical effort. Make sure we don’t fall behind with your contribution and a generous donor will TRIPLE MATCH your gift!
This is just the beginning. We’ll continue fighting to make sure New York leads the way in environmental conservation, the battle against climate change, and in protecting New Yorkers from toxic chemicals and pollution.
We hope you’ll stand with us every step of the way.