Poverty considerations must be the central focus of any meaningful climate action, not a last-minute box to be checked if Maine wants to ensure its vulnerable populations aren’t left behind as the state strives to achieve its climate goals.
“Offering financial incentives to purchase an electric vehicle is a challenging way to address the climate change challenge,” one vulnerable population member told Associate Professor Sharon Klein, one author of a report by the Mitchell Center for Sustainability Solutions at the University of Maine.
“Poor community members struggle to make ends meet, so taking out a loan for an electric car that costs several thousand dollars isn’t the best option,” Klein continued during her presentation to the Maine Climate Council. “It’s really hard to focus on anything but survival if you don’t have adequate housing,”
That was the take-home message of an equity study delivered to the council Wednesday by the …