SOURCE:
https://www.wshu.org/long-island-news/2024-10-25/long-island-congressional-candidates-climate-change
By Maya Duclay, Jenna Zaza, Kevin Yu - October 25, 2024
Candidates from the first, second and third districts discussed their views and policies on climate and the environment.
Candidates from the fourth district were not present.
District 1: Nick LaLota (incumbent, R), and John Avlon (D)
Nick LaLota is the incumbent representative for New York’s first district. He currently co-chairs the bipartisan Congressional Offshore Wind Caucus, which aims to create policies that will improve offshore wind technology and workforce.
LaLota said Congress should explore how to be more energy independent, like Long Island’s coastal wind farms and investing in flood-preventative infrastructures. LaLota said increasing wind farms will increase job opportunities.
“There's a lot of winds that could happen when we endeavor to make ourselves more energy independent. That's important. And in parallel, specifically here on Long Island, it's our infrastructure that, if we invest in it, will help us be more resilient from the storms that have been hitting us,” LaLota said.
While in Congress, LaLota has voted in favor of environmentally conscious legislation like the Fix Our Forests Act. The bipartisan bill encourages active forest management while supporting community resilience to wildfires, and increases the pace of forest restoration projects.
He also said that regardless of who wins the presidency this November, there must be bipartisan policy on the environment.
“I'm one of 18 U.S. House Republicans who recently signed a letter that said there are things in the Inflation Reduction Act with respect to environmental tax credits and energy tax credits that are good and that regardless of who has control of moving forward, let's not throw the whole baby out with the bathwater,” he said.
LaLota’s challenger for the first congressional seat is John Avlon, a long-time journalist and political analyst who recently turned to politics as a Democrat.
Avlon said Long Island’s economy depends on its environment due to farms, fishing, tourism and vast coastlines. He emphasized the importance of combating climate change as storms worsen, putting Long Island’s local businesses at risk of flooding.
He proposes tackling climate change on two fronts: mitigation and innovation.
“On the mitigation front, we need to make sure we are following through on the investments we made in the Inflation Reduction Act and the infrastructure bill, to make sure that we're making sure these communities aren't flooding on a regular basis,” Avlon said. “The second side is climate change innovation, and that's the energy future.”
He said he wants to make family- and business-owned properties more climate resilient through tax deductions and investment in local renewable energy research, innovation and laboratories.
District 2: Andrew Garbarino (incumbent, R) and Rob Lubin (D)
Andrew Garbarino is the incumbent representative for the second district. He said one of the most important issues Long Island faces is access to clean and affordable energy. Currently, he is co-chair of the bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, a committee dedicated to fostering constructive dialogue with Congress members and key stakeholders about climate change, economics, energy and conservation.
Garbarino said he is working on providing clean and reliable energy to constituents. However, bureaucracy can slow down projects due to obtaining the necessary permits. He also played a role in moving Long Island’s Sunrise Wind Project forward. This program aims to construct up to 84 wind turbines and could generate power for at least 320,000 homes a year.
“We got about $4.5 million to set up [training facilities in Brentwood] to make sure the workers are trained here on Long Island. They're Long Island workers, and that they can continue to keep these projects, not just get them up and running, but keep them running,” Garbarino said.
He also said he believed in reforming the contentious Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) rather than repealing it entirely. “I voted against [the IRA], but there are some good things, like some of these tax credits, which have shown that they are really focusing on investment. They're creating many jobs and the innovation that has come from these tax credits is amazing,” he said. “Let's keep investment in clean energy going. We need to reduce our carbon emissions, and we need to do it in a bipartisan way.”
Political newcomer Rob Lubin is a small business owner running against Garbarino as the Democratic candidate. He said the contamination in Long Island’s drinking water and rising housing prices drove him to politics. Rubin proposes investing in drainage and sewage infrastructure and shoreline restoration.
“I think a congressional committee to really study the advanced flood protection system, because we have so much flooding on Long Island, can make a huge difference,” he said. “Creating that defensive moat gives us a little bit more space between what could potentially happen.”
He also wants to explore ways to decrease carbon emissions by investing in public transportation and clean energy.
“It would be incredible for New York to be a hub of offshore wind, and it is a possibility. We need to continue to invest in it, especially at the federal level,” Lubin said. “The only way we're going to make progress is through legitimate bipartisanship, working together to strengthen our shorelines across the country and exploring new ways to prevent flooding, supporting trade schools, to get people into the sector.”
District 3: Tom Suozzi (incumbent, D) and Mike LiPetri (R)
Tom Suozzi is the incumbent representative for New York’s third district. He represented the district from 2017 to 2022 and again since February 2024, when he won a special election to replace disgraced Republican Congressman George Santos.
Suozzi said the environment and climate have been important elements of his political career since his time as mayor of Glen Cove. He called climate change an existential threat that affects everyone.
Suozzi said the most important climate issue affecting the third congressional district affects the whole country: the increase in storms, heat waves and droughts.
The increase of storms and flooding is a particular concern, as Suozzi said he wants to raise awareness on how different weather conditions impact Long Islanders to get residents to change their stances on climate change.
If reelected, Suozzi plans to use funds from the Inflation Reduction Act and the Infrastructure Act to implement environmental safeguards such as resilience and stormwater projects to support the third congressional district.
“We have all this money that we’ve put in place, and now that I’m back in Congress, my focus is on trying to access that money so it actually does come back to my district, back to Long Island, back to Queens, back to New York,” Suozzi said. “My biggest focus is not necessarily passing more laws as it is making sure we get our fair share.”
Suozzi is supportive of the state’s transition to renewable energy sources but is concerned with the economic factor of transitioning from fossil fuel to renewable energy, such as the displacement of jobs. Suozzi believes it is just as important to train those already in the oil industry so they can remain earning a good living.
While in office, Suozzi announced federal funding for the Offshore Wind Workforce Development at SUNY Maritime College, which aims to provide entry-level training to college students in the offshore wind industry.
Suozzi stressed the balance of maintaining the economic and environmental goals when transitioning to renewable energy.
“There’s a real sense of urgency that we have to feel regarding climate, but there are other folks not as jazzed up as we are, and they’re concerned about the effects of utility prices,” Suozzi said. “We have to figure out how can we move forward in a way that both accomplishes our goals as far as the environment, while also accomplishing our goals as far as the economy and while also accomplishing our goals as far as working people.”
Suozzi said that bipartisan cooperation is key to creating a long-term environmental agenda.
Mike LiPetri is an attorney and former New York State Assemblyman who represented District 9 from 2019 to 2021. The Republican is challenging Suozzi for the third district congressional seat. LiPetri said he is a former canvasser for Citizen Campaign For The Environment.
LiPetri said that transitioning to renewable energy sources in the next 15 to 20 years is simply not realistic. His priority is to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to consistent, affordable and dependable energy. As a result, LiPetri believes in the importance and use of gas as an energy source.
LiPetri said that if New York state does use renewable energy, then it will coexist alongside fossil fuels as opposed to a replacement to keep costs low for New Yorkers.
“So by having this expansive diversity of energy, it will allow us to transition in a way that’s pragmatic and logistical,” LePetri says. “The people need this predictable energy cost.”
Elaborating on the state’s transition to renewable energy alongside a well-trained workforce to meet the needs, LiPetri said that the government must work with the communities where renewable energy plants are being built to ensure physical and financial safety. He said that if the government wants to make the transition to renewable energy, then there must be educational incentives for the local residents to move away from fossil fuels.
Training skilled workers in the renewable energy industry is necessary for a streamlined transition to renewable energy away from fossil fuels.
LiPetri said building codes should be upgraded to ensure the safety of homes and residents during storms. The codes could act as an incentive for homeowners to create storm-resilient housing for themselves and their families. LiPetri said he values using new technologies, such as 3D model printing, to provide long-term sustainability.
LiPetri said that climate change affects everyone and that if elected, he would make the best decisions for the third congressional district. He said a bipartisan partnership is necessary to address the ongoing climate crisis for current and future generations.
“If it helps the people of the third congressional district, I’m in,” LiPetri said. “If it hurts the people of the third congressional district, then I’m out. I am asking to go to Washington because I want to develop solutions and to get things done.”