A Look to the Future

The passage by the legislature of the $2.4 billion bond bill spearheaded by Speaker of the House Bob DeLeo, with the enthusiastic support of Revere State Rep. Roselee Vincent and State Senator Joseph Boncore, that will prepare our state’s coastal and inland areas for the anticipated effects of climate change marks a milestone in forward-thinking on Beacon Hill.

Regardless of whether 99% of scientists are correct that climate change is occurring because of man-made pollution, everyone (including the other one percent) is in agreement that climate change is a reality, whether man-made or natural.

Moreover, it is becoming clear that the consequences of climate change are occurring sooner than anyone had anticipated. The unprecedented flooding that took place throughout the Greater Boston area last winter, with no discernible cause other than an abnormally high-tide, proved conclusively that the effects of rising sea levels caused by the melting of the polar ice caps will be devastating to our coastal areas.

Speaker DeLeo and his colleagues have shown extraordinary foresight with their approval of a bond bill that will prepare us for what is to come in the years ahead. The money we spend today will reap enormous benefits, even in the best-case scenario for the coming climate change crisis.