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Remember to vote next Tuesday November 7, or during early voting – find your polling station today or see the list of all early voting locations.

For Erie County, click here for your polling station, and here for all early polling sites. For Niagara County, click here for your polling station, and here for all early polling sites.

Halloween, tomorrow October 31, is also the extended deadline for comments on the Town of Tonawanda’s draft zoning amendment – click here to send a letter supporting Clean Air’s comments, particularly our call for the creation of an Environmental Justice Overlay zone for communities affected by Cumulative Impacts from pollution! You can also read our submitted comments as well as comments we solicited from national experts at Smart Growth America by clicking here.

While we especially want comments from Town of Tonawanda residents, we believe the successful adoption of this policy in Tonawanda could then lead to adoption in other municipalities throughout our region, so we encourage support from any and all!

Interested in reading more about what an EJ Overlay could look like? Check out this report from the Tishman Environment and Design Center at The New School, or click here to see a model zoning ordinance in Newark New Jersey!

With Bread and Roses,

Bridge, Chris, Cindy, Gia and Phil

Join Clean Air and North Tonawanda Residents this Wednesday November 1 from 6-7:30pm at the Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum at 180 Thompson Street in North Tonawanda to hear about updates about Fortistar/Digihost and organizing in 2024! Be sure to register to help us better plan.

NY is on the road to decarbonization – but what hurdles stand in our way to ensuring that this is done in a just manner that does not leave anyone behind, and how can we get the message out to counter industry propaganda, especially given WNY’s strong connections to the use of methane gas?

Clean Air is convening a mini-retreat the afternoon of Thursday November 2 and Friday November 3 to discuss this topic more in-depth with a mix of labor leaders, environmental justice advocates, and frontline residents. We still have spaces for additional participants, especially Clean Air members and frontline residents – if you are interested in participating, please register by clicking here.

Housing Court Updates

The City of Buffalo’s Housing Court continues to show deference to Peter Battaglia, owner of the former concrete crushing operation on Seneca and Peabody Street.

After more than a decade in housing court, little has been done to address the problematic landowner. Most recently, Battaglia’s attorneys have told the court he intends to sell the property to a company that would clean it up, but after over a year no sale has taken place.

Despite the lengthy case, Clean Air member organizer Diane Lemanski continues to fight.

“Eleven years in housing court,” Diane said. “It saddens me that this property owner gets away with not doing one damn thing to give us a quality of life.”

In addition, Battaglia owes the city $188,000 for the demolition of a building on the Seneca Street property that was ravaged by a mysterious fire in 2021. The demolition happened nearly a year ago and the fee has still not been paid.

State Court Updates

Peter Battaglia, owner of the former concrete crushing operation on Seneca and Peabody Street, is currently the subject of a contempt hearing in State Supreme Court for his failure to complete a court-ordered cleanup of his commercial property. Peabody Street resident Diane Lemanski is a key witness in the state’s case.

Prior to this, the court ordered Battaglia to pay a $1 million fine for failure to comply with the terms of a settlement agreement, which was signed in August 2022.

This is a win for residents who have organized and called for accountability for over a decade. However, the lengthy legal proceedings continue in court, which has been frustrating for many.

Clean Air will continue to monitor the ongoing legal actions.

Grassroots Gardens and the University at Buffalo are conducting a survey on mycelium-based (mushrooms) soil remediation strategies, and participants will receive a $10 giftcard while supplies last.
Click here to fill out the survey!

Explore your emotional responses and reactions to the climate crisis with fellow Clean Air members – click here to learn more!

We are preparing our 2024 course on Emergency Preparedness and Mutual Aid Organizing – click here to help us choose our class offering!

As COVID rates increase, cold and flu viruses circulate, and with the onset of cooler weather that prevents opening windows, the staff at Clean Air would like to emphasize that masks and preventative vaccinations are strongly encouraged.

Many of our members are particularly susceptible to respiratory conditions due to the environmental injustices they have been exposed to, and taking preventative measures helps protect them against further harm – show your love by getting vaccinated!

Also just a reminder that all our public events are planned with childcare and food provided, and that additional accessibility measures, like interpretation, is also available with pre-registration.
Read more at bit.ly/CleanAirEvents.

We hope you can join us at NYS DEC’s next East Side Environmental Forum on Wednesday November 8 from 5:30-7pm at the Merriweather Library, 1324 Jefferson Ave in Buffalo.

This meeting will also be livestreamed – contact Kayla Baker for more information at kayla.baker@dec.ny.gov or 716-541-9631.
Clean Air staff will be in attendance.

Our condolences go out to our friends at NYPIRG, who earlier this month lost their colleague Ryan Carson. Read NYPIRG’s statement here, and contribute to the GoFundMe supporting his immediate family and friends.

Jacob Johns, an Akimel O’otham and Hopi community organizer and a fellow member of the US Climate Action Network (USCAN), is currently recovering from a white supremacist attack on September 28. Read the press release, and here or here to support GoFundMe fundraisers.

The deadline for comments on the Draft Investigative Plan for  9 Lakeview Ave in Buffalo has been extended to November 25.

NYSDEC invites public comments on a Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) application for 743 Main Street in Buffalo, site #C915399 until November 3.

The fight to stop the Dakota Access Pipeline is still ongoing. Between now and November 13th, the Army Corps of Engineers has a comment period. Stand with Standing Rock again and call on the Biden Administration to shut down DAPL by sending a letter today.

Our friends at the Advocacy Institute are offering a training on Thursday, November 16th from 2:00 PM to 3:30 PM on Relationship Building for the Upcoming Session. They will explore effective strategies to connect with elected officials and key players and appreciate the importance of the legislative and budget cycles to inform your approach at different times of the year.

As a Clean Air member or supporter, access to AI trainings are free, and $15 per person for non-members. The deadline to register for this training is Tuesday, November 14th. Once you’ve registered, you’ll receive a calendar invitation, which will be updated with the Zoom link prior to the training, and – if you’re a non-member – a payment link. Payments are due by Wednesday, November 15th for non-members to receive the event log-in details.

Many of our members grapple with asthma and respiratory conditions due to the environmental injustices they have to live with. The American Lung Association offers a free class to help people learn more about asthma. This program is ideal for frontline healthcare professionals, such as school nurses or community health workers, as well as individuals with asthma, parents of children with asthma, and co-workers, friends and family who want to learn more about asthma.

We were disgusted by this story about a sewage discharge by the City of Buffalo directly onto city streets on Buffalo’s East Side that had been ongoing for months due to a slapdash repair effort by the City. We are relieved to see repairs have been accelerated, but are distressed that this was an issue in the first place, and one directly attributable to actions by the city.
This is a clear example of an environmental injustice – it’s also worth noting that in Alabama issues of improper sewage management have led to an EPA Civil Rights probe and the spread of diseases and parasites such as hookworm.

The UAW’s historic strike is ongoing, with everything from fair wages to organizing new sectors of autoworkers on the line. It’s beginning to show signs of success, with a big announcement last week of a tentative agreement with Ford, and news this weekend of a tentative agreement with Stellantis!
We will continue to keep tabs on local calls for action, and in the meantime call attention to two other labor fights currently ongoing –

D’Youville College

Milk-Bone Plant

We’re all still a bit rattled from the air quality emergency from the wildfires this past summer – so, we are a bit worried by this coverage by Public Health Watch about a little-known pollution rule which undermines federal regulations of pollution that contributes to large scale events like this, the “Exceptional Events” rule. This rule essentially allows regulators to waive pollution reporting caused by “natural” or “uncontrollable” events, such as the large wildfires we experienced.

Read this coverage by clicking here and here.

In a pleasant but unexpected turn, the Supreme Court rejected a challenge to one of the most important metrics used in U.S. climate policy, the “Social Cost of Carbon.”

This measure quantifies the hidden price of emitting carbon dioxide, such as flood damage, air quality impacts, and other environmental and public health impacts.

Read more by clicking here.

NY experienced yet another record shattering weather event driven by climate change a few weeks ago when NYC was inundated by 10 inches of rain. We felt that this short reflection by author Joshua Hill about how this crisis is not simply one of weather disasters but rather the overarching crisis of capitalism, white supremacy, and the supporting military-police structure was a particularly impactful piece and encourage you to take a moment to read it as well.

Earlier this month, the presidents of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the Laborers International Union of North America, and the International Union of Operating Engineers announced the signing a national tri-trade solar agreement governing the construction of utility-scale solar projects, making it easier for developers, contractors, and unions to bring critical renewable energy generation online to power America’s communities!
Read more from Prospect Magazine.

We all remember the ominous looming black plume of smoke from the Norfolk Southern Railway derailment earlier this year.

Rail companies need greater regulation to prevent future derailments, and unions such as Railroad Workers United are on the frontline of this fight. RWU produced a short film about the movement to nationalize our rail lines to prevent future massive derailments.

We were saddened and horrified by the gun violence against BSA employees last week which cost the life of Keyshawn N. Gault, 22, and put fellow employees  Myron L. Walker, 30, and Lamar T. Whitfield Jr., 23, in the hospital. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these workers as well as all BSA workers.

CACWNY Events

• November 1 – North Tonawanda Organizing Meeting
• November 2-3 – Gas Phasedown Retreat
• November 16 – General Meeting, focusing on the Cumulative Impacts Bill
• November 19 – Climate Cafe
• November 27 – Tonawanda – River Road Meeting

Community and Coalition Events

• November 2 – Community Responders Meeting
• November 7 – Election Day, don’t forget to vote!
• November 8 – NYS DEC East Side Environmental Forum
• November 16 – 18 – BLRR’s Black Joy Weekend
• November 16 – Advocacy Institute Training
• November 30 – Anne Braden Anti-racism Training
• Ongoing – Highlander Institute Fascism 101 Webinar Series
• Ongoing – Equality NY LGBTQI Capacity Building Training Series

Public Comment Deadlines and Hearings

• October 31 – Town of Tonawanda Deadline for Public Comments on Draft Zoning Code. Click here to send a letter supporting Clean Air’s comments, or email jhartz@tonawanda.ny.us!
• November 3 – 743 Main Street BCP application comment deadline
• November 10 – extended deadline for comments on Route 33 Environmental Assessment
• November 13 – deadline for comments on DAPL EIS
• November 25 – 9 Lakeview Ave comments due

Also see our regularly updated list of events at bit.ly/CleanAirEvents and linktr.ee/cleanairwny

Be sure to check out the Buffalo Mutual Aid Network Facebook group, where mutual aid services and calls for donations and donations are being posted on an ongoing basis. You can also click here to join the Buffalo Snow Brigade. We also suggest checking out the resources at mutualaiddisasterrelief.org as well as their new website relieftoolkit.com.

If interested in joining mutual aid efforts with Clean Air, particularly in the realm of community resiliency amid climate change,
please reach out to Bridge.

Interested in joining our Tonawanda Tomorrow or River Road campaigns, Proof of Work campaign, or supporting NYRenews/climate justice?

Interested in joining our Peabody Street, TESLA campaigns, Energy Democracy Alliance, or other Just Transition campaign work?

Interested in joining our
American Axle campaign or supporting our work in the Delavan-Grider neighborhood?

Interested in joining our events committee, mutual aid team, or want to connect with CACWNY about an emerging campaign or issue?

Interested in supporting Clean Air’s grassroots fundraising efforts, or know of a grant opportunity that might support our work?

Want to donate to support our work?