Ceres CEO Mindy Lubber testified in support of legislation to create a climate bank in Massachusetts, which would leverage public and private investments to provide low-interest loans and financial products for climate mitigation and clean energy projects. The proposed bank follows a model used by 40 other state and local climate banks in the US, collectively investing $10.6 billion in clean energy projects in 2023. Lubber recommended prioritizing environmental justice communities for lending, in addition to rural and coastal communities, in order to combat climate change effectively.
Tag: Massachusetts
-
How Will Boston And Other Coastal Cities Fight Sea Level Rise?
The Seaport District in Boston is facing increasing threats from sea level rise and flooding, with nearly all built structures at risk by 2050. Boston is collaborating with communities, nonprofits, government, scientists, and philanthropists through the Climate Ready Boston initiative to invest in coastal resilience projects. The city's Office of Climate Resilience is designing infrastructure to protect vulnerable areas like the Mario Umana Academy in East Boston. A proposed "Make Polluters Pay" bill in Massachusetts aims to hold major emitters accountable for climate damage costs, with bipartisan support for the idea of oil and gas companies paying into a superfund for climate adaptation projects. The increasing frequency of disasters is driving up costs for average people, leading to a belief that oil and gas companies should pay their fair share.
https://cleantechnica.com/2025/11/09/how-will-boston-and-other-coastal-cities-fight-sea-level-rise/
-
One Brownfield Down, One Clean Solar Power Plant Up
Solar power plants are being established as a quick and economical way to add kilowatts to the grid while also preserving farmland and transforming contaminated sites into community assets. The US Environmental Agency's Re-Powering America's Land program aims to harvest clean energy from contaminated sites, with brownfield-to-solar development becoming a mature sector of the solar industry. The Acton project in Massachusetts, utilizing ground screws for secure racking systems, showcases the industry's ability to transform contaminated sites into clean power stations. Terrasmart, a US racking firm, is manufacturing ground screws in-house to support the growth of the solar industry. The Acton project repurposes a contaminated Superfund site for solar energy production, creating local jobs and boosting grid resilience, with energy storage included to optimize the value of solar power for ratepayers. Community solar projects like Acton enable all ratepayers to save money as solar costs have dropped, driving significant growth in the community solar market and integrating with the agrivoltaic market. Despite challenges from the federal government, the demand for solar energy remains strong among ratepayers, with a new solar power plant in Acton, Massachusetts transforming a contaminated site into a community asset.