(NEW YORK CITY) - Whether it’s the flooding of basement apartments in the outer Boroughs of New York City, deadly blizzards in Buffalo, heat waves on Long Island or wildfire smoke blanketing skies across the State, New Yorkers have increasingly felt the effects of a changing climate over the last two years. 

And the effects are pushing Environmental Advocates to demand more ambitious legislation from Lawmakers that reduce the State’s greenhouse gas emissions and encourage a transition to renewable energy sources. 

But while they push for a transition to a Green Economy, community groups and Labor Unions have been warning that a shift from fossil-fuel dependent industries to Green Energy jobs in wind, solar and other categories of renewable power could leave behind New Yorkers who’ve worked in high-paying industrial jobs for years. 

As a measure of protection for those Workers, New York City Lawmakers have authored legislation that would preserve the areas where these New Yorkers work, and a coalition that includes State Legislators are urging Governor Kathy Hochul to pass several climate-related Bills and allocate $1 billion in next year’s State Budget for climate projects built mainly by Union Labor.  

“We have thousands and thousands of residents who every single year deal with flooding and poor air (quality) and the effects of our worsening climate crisis,” State Senator Kristen Gonzalez said earlier this month during a rally with several other Lawmakers and the NY Renews Coalition. “We deserve climate justice as working New Yorkers.” 

The coalition, made up of more than 370 Labor, Community, Environmental and Business Organizations, organized the rally to launch the Climate, Jobs and Justice Package Campaign that includes the $1 billion budget ask and a call for the State Legislature to pass and the Governor to sign three climate and jobs related Bills.  

The legislation would create a plan to redevelop New York’s oldest fossil fuel facilities, regulate gas facilities in line with emissions reduction targets and require the State’s Department of Environmental Conservation to collect a yearly fee from oil companies to pay for climate resiliency and repair projects.

The projects present an opportunity for Unionized Construction Laborers and to Unionized Workforces when they’re completed. 

Brandon Mancilla, who serves as the Director of United Auto Workers (UAW) Region 9A - which represents Workers in New York City, Long Island, New England and Puerto Rico, told The Chief Leader following the rally that it’s crucial Workers are not left out of the Green Energy movement.  

“We're fighting for a just transition, especially in the manufacturing sectors because that work needs to be good Union work,” Mancilla said. “We have to make sure that environmental demands are also Worker demands that are community-centric rather than pumping millions of dollars into companies without any checks or regulations."  

To Continue Reading This Labor News Report, Go To: In green transition, workers fight not to be left behind - The Chief (thechiefleader.com)