SINCE global warming is..

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

SINCE global warming is...

A Boston Globe editorial:
"Since global warming is the most serious environmental threat facing the planet, it makes sense that Massachusetts' principal law governing the environmental impact of big development projects should start requiring builders to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions… It is past time for government to start using all its regulatory muscle to curb the emissions that are radically changing the planet's climate."

How quickly global warming has gone from a theory to a fact to a justification for adding 10,000 pages of new building regulations.

The demands for a new regulatory regime, include a "review process" governing insulation, window treatments, "selecting high-quality equipment for lighting, heating, and cooling." Furthermore, the state will:

"expect the developer to consider the "carbon footprint" of residents, shoppers, or workers traveling to and from the development in private cars. Mitigation measures to reduce such inefficient transportation could be to provide shuttle bus service from the development to a public-transit station or to subsidize the public transit fares of workers."

However, none of these new reporting requirements will impose any burden on developers--in fact "they will not interfere with [Governor Patrick's] mission of speeding up the permitting process"! We're so lucky to have a magician as governor.