No doubt it has been an unprecedented and extremely difficult eight months as the global community has dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic. But despite our efforts, the virus persists – in fact, here in Vermont, we are seeing more new cases on a daily basis than ever before. For in…
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In April 2018, Vermont’s Agency of Natural Resources (ANR) sent Chittenden Solid Waste District (CSWD) a Notice of Alleged Violation for dumping glass that Vermont residents and haulers had paid them to recycle. Records indicate that in 2017, huge quantities of glass that citizens put into bins and paid to be recycled were instead…
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Transportation accounts for nearly half of Vermont’s climate pollution. That’s because a lot of Vermonters travel long distances for work, and are often in older, low-MPG vehicles. One of the best strategies to reduce our carbon pollution from the transportation sector is to get Vermonters out of those vehicles, and…
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H. 688, the Global Warming Solutions Act, which was vetoed just last week by Governor Phil Scott, will officially become law after the Governor’s veto was overridden in both the House and the Senate. These votes reaffirmed the legislature’s, and the Vermont peoples’, commitment to climate action, despite efforts to…
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PFAS chemicals pose a danger to human health unlike any other. For the past several years, our state has been focused on how Vermonters might be exposed to PFAS pollution through drinking water – and rightfully so. This concern stemmed from the now well-known 2016 discovery of high levels of PFAS in hundreds of drinking water wells in Bennington County. As of August 2020, nine public water…
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Just two days after Governor Scott vetoed the Global Warming Solutions Act, the House of Representatives has voted to override that veto, surpassing the 100 votes needed to do so in a 103-47 vote. As the House was preparing for its ultimately successful override vote on Thursday, however, the chair…
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VPIRG Joins Broad Coalition of Groups Calling on Legislature to Override Governor’s Veto of the Global Warming Solutions Act Governor Scott has vetoed the Global Warming Solutions Act, which was overwhelmingly passed by both the Vermont House and Senate. The historic climate bill requires Vermont to reduce its climate-damaging emissions…
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On Wednesday, the Vermont House passed the finalized version of the Global Warming Solutions Act, officially sending it the Governor’s desk for final approval. The Solutions Act is the first major piece of climate legislation to pass in the VT legislature in years. It will effectively create a roadmap for…
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The VT legislature reconvenes today for a session aimed at passing a budget for 2021 and working on bills whose progress was interrupted by COVID-19. Elected leaders will be in session for a short time, likely just 4-6 weeks, so VPIRG and our members will be working to ensure no…
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In a huge win for the health of Vermont’s people and environment, the Vermont Senate unanimously passed S.295 today, a bill banning PFAS in certain products including firefighting foam, carpets/rugs, and food packaging. The term ‘PFAS’ refers to a very large (and ever growing, with more research being done all…
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