State assistance to help coastal communities combat the effects of climate change is a key tenet of his re-election platform in November, Gov. Charlie Baker said on a swing through Martha’s Vineyard last weekend.
“A little over a year ago, we put out an executive order on climate change, and the first part of it was a process where communities could work with us, and we would fund their projects through municipal vulnerability planning,” Mr. Baker told the Gazette while attending a ribbon cutting at the Lake street boat landing on Lake Tashmoo.
The governor said he believes projects like the newly-constructed hurricane barrier in New Bedford are examples of how a municipal vulnerability plan can lead to on-the-ground results for coastal towns.
“There’s a bill that’s currently pending before the legislature that has about $400 to 500 million for resiliency and adaptation issues,” Governor Baker said. If the bill passes, he said it will codify the executive order, meaning every town in Massachusetts will be required to put together a vulnerability plan.
“At this point, I’m pretty bullish that the bill is going to pass,” Mr. Baker said. “We’re going to be completely agnostic about what the right answer is. Let’s do the plans for communities, get some experts to figure out what their vulnerabilities are, and help them figure out what the right answers are. They’re going to be different from place to place.”
He expanded briefly on the notion of focusing on individual communities to Martha’s Vineyard.
“I’ve come here since I was a kid, so for me, the thing I like most about the Vineyard is that it is a collection of enclaves and communities, all of which have their own identity and their own vibes,” Governor Baker said. “I stayed with friends in Chilmark, I’ve stayed with friends in Vineyard Haven, I’ve stayed with friends in Oak Bluffs . . . I think that’s one of the best parts of this Island.”
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