2019 -- S 1020

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LC002805

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2019

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S E N A T E   R E S O L U T I O N

CELEBRATING RHODE ISLAND'S NO.1 RANKING FOR THE BEST NATURAL

ENVIRONMENT IN 2019

     Introduced By: Senator V. Susan Sosnowski

     Date Introduced: June 26, 2019

     Referred To: Placed on the Senate Consent Calendar

     WHEREAS, According to the U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 annual rankings,

released in May, Rhode Island ranked first in the nation for air and water quality, and is the top

state for natural environment; and

     WHEREAS, In order to determine the best and worst states, various rankings based on 80

metrics, including economy, infrastructure, public safety, fiscal stability, and opportunities for

residents, are measured and determined. The rankings also factor in healthcare, education, crime

and corrections, and the natural environment; and

     WHEREAS, Among the measures used to evaluate states' natural environments were

drinking water quality, urban air quality and total toxic chemical pollution per square mile; and

     WHEREAS, Rhode Island's policymakers have enacted legislation and implemented

numerous regulations over the past decade to ensure a safe relationship between the people of the

State and the State's environment; and

     WHEREAS, These laws and regulations have not only helped preserve the state's natural

resources, but have also protected the public from harmful toxins and resulting health concerns;

and

     WHEREAS, The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM)

serves as the chief steward of the state’s natural resources and has diligently worked with myriad

partners including the Coastal Resources Management Council, the Audubon Society of Rhode

Island, and the Narragansett Bay Commission, to restore the state's lands and waters, to conserve

wildlife and marine resources, and to monitor environmental quality in order to build healthy,

more resilient communities; and

     WHEREAS, Rhode Island's Congressional Delegation has been tireless in their advocacy

for key programs in support of air, land and water conservation including, working to safeguard

the Land and Water Conservation Fund, bringing tens of millions of dollars in federal funding for

Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Funds, spearheading efforts to pass the

American Opportunity Carbon Fee Act, a federal law that would impose fees on carbon and

greenhouse gas emissions, and creating the Blackstone Valley National Historic Park, to name

but a few; and

     WHEREAS, For the past four decades the Rhode Island General Assembly has passed

and Governors have signed countless bills designed to protect the Ocean State’s natural resources

and have supported and approved legislation for open space and clean water bonds. In addition,

Rhode Island was one of the 18 states that supported the Clean Power Plan that would implement

an EPA-approved plan to reduce air pollutants from industrial facilities such as chemical plants

and utilities, and has passed legislation earning Rhode Island the distinction of being a national

leader in both renewable energy and energy efficiency; and

     WHEREAS, Rhode Island's joint efforts to safeguard the state's natural environment have

brought about accountability, meaningful action, and laudatory results; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantation

hereby celebrates Rhode Island's No.1 ranking for the best natural environment in 2019 by the

U.S. News & World Report; and be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

transmit duly certified copies of this resolution to the Director of the Rhode Island Department of

Environmental Management, the Coastal Resources Management Council, the Audubon Society

of Rhode Island, the Narragansett Bay Commission, and the Rhode Island Congressional

Delegation.

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