Democratic Hopefuls Speak on Environment

Massachusetts Democratic gubernatorial candidates debated key environmental issues yesterday in front of a charged audience that spilled out of the ARCO Forum at the Kennedy School of Government.

Environmental activists filled the room as Thomas F. Birmingham ’72, Steve Grossman, Shannon P. O’Brien, Robert B. Reich, and Warren E. Tolman spoke out about their views on urban environmental policies and the failures of the current administration.

Disagreements among individual candidates proved minor, as each candidate emphasized the strength of their environmental record.

O’Brien, currently state treasurer, labeled herself “the environmental treasurer.” And Birmingham, president of the state senate, said, “I’m not going to take a backseat to anybody.”

All candidates spoke out in favor of continuing to fund environmental programs despite the recession.

And Reich, a professor at Brandeis University and former labor secretary for the Clinton administration, said support for environmental programs as a prerequisite for economic growth.

Birmingham called for balancing the needs of economic growth with environmental safeguards.

Development strategies should focus on “growth that is regional, rational, and deliberate,” he said.

Reich and Grossman, former chair of the Democratic National Committee, also offered solutions to urban pollution. Reich advocated mixed-use zoning, while Grossman supported expanded rail service and other public transportation.

Tolman, a former state senator and a nominee for lieutenant governor in 1998, called for “environmental justice committees” to give local interests—especially in densely populated and low income communities—a stronger voice in developing local environmental policy.

O’Brien and Reich called for the state to assume a more aggressive role in enforcing existing pollution standards and said they support increased penalties for businesses that fail to comply.

Candidates unanimously denounced the Republican administrations of A. Paul Celluci and Jane M. Swift , as well as the environmental policies of President George W. Bush. Reich called Bush’s rejection of the Kyoto Treaty “wrong-headed” and “off-base.”

One member originally slated to participate, Green Party candidate Jill E. Stein ’73, was notably absent from the debate.

Stein’s invitation was withdrawn when Republican incumbent Swift pulled out of the debate.

The Green Party was recently recognized as an official political party in Massachusetts.

Director of the Forum William H. White said that after Swift dropped out, the event’s sponsors decided to change the format of the debate to include only the Democratic candidates because that race is the only primary currently being openly contested.

White indicated that Stein had been invited to speak at a later date and that the Forum is planning a general debate following the primaries.

“It’s regrettable,” Stein said. “We’re in an environmental crisis, and it’s critical that these issues be debated now. They should not wait until a few weeks before the election.”

The state primary election will be held on Tuesday, September 17, followed by the state election on November 5.