Environment
Protecting the Environment and Preserving Our Natural Resources
Senator Reed understands that a clean environment is important to our state’s health, economy, and quality of life. His conservation efforts have earned him high marks from leading environmental groups and helped clean up and preserve Rhode Island’s open spaces, beaches, and Narragansett Bay.
Reed Chairs the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior and Environment, which has jurisdiction over several key agencies, including the Department of the Interior and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). He has fought efforts to gut the Clean Air Act, defeating legislation that would have overturned the EPA’s scientific finding that greenhouse gases are pollutants that impact public health and welfare.
Save the Bay honored Senator Reed for his long-standing commitment to preserving the environment and address the problem of climate change, which affects our environment, economy, and security, noting: “Senator Reed has been a staunch advocate for protecting Rhode Island’s coastal environment and preserving Narragansett Bay. Senator Reed has secured millions of dollars to help restore the Bay and its ecosystems, educate the public about marine conservation, protect coastal property, and reduce pollution into the Bay from combined sewer overflows.”
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Reed has also been at the forefront of a national movement to reconnect kids with nature and strengthen environmental education in America's classrooms. He is the author of the proposed No Child Left Inside Act, which would support outdoor learning activities.
Key Priorities & Accomplishments
- Reed has helped provide millions of dollars in federal Brownfields funding to support environmental cleanups and revitalize former industrial and commercial sites throughout the state, transforming them from abandoned and blighted properties into community assets.
- Reed secured over $27 million in federal funding for conservation projects to help preserve Rhode Island’s fish and wildlife populations, cultural heritage, and protect open spaces. Major projects included the Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor, the Rhode Island National Wildlife Refuges, and Rocky Point.
- In an effort to help protect the health of Narragansett Bay, Senator Reed has worked with the U.S. Navy and non-profit groups like Clean The Bay to remove hazardous submarine floats from the Bay and marine debris that was littering the shoreline.
- To ensure the safety and security of Rhode Islanders, he helped successfully block a controversial proposal to locate a liquefied natural gas plant in a densely populated, environmentally sensitive area that posed enormous risks to the vibrancy of Narragansett Bay and the safety of surrounding communities.
The Latest
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Reed Helps Cleanup Winnapaug Salt Pond
U.S. Senator Jack Reed joins with Serve Rhode Island, volunteers from Schneider Electric, and a special AmeriCorps team from the National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) to assist with Sandy recovery and cleanup of Winnepaug Pond in Westerly. Reed, a member of the Appropriations Committee, has helped direct m...
Posted on 5/17/2013 | -
Delegation Announces $800,000 in Federal Brownfield Clean Up Grants for Providence
Rhode Island’s Congressional delegation today announced $800,000 in federal funding to help clean up brownfield sites in Providence. A brownfield site is property where expansion or redevelopment is complicated by the presence or potential presence of a hazardous substan...
Posted on 5/8/2013 | -
Reed Celebrates Earth Day, Cleans up Roger Williams Park Pond
Senator Reed teams up with Serve Rhode Island to celebrate Earth Day and cleanup litter and debris from Roger Williams Park pond. ...
Posted on 4/20/2013 | -
Reed Announces $6.7 Million for RI Fish & Wildlife Preservation Projects
CRANSTON, RI -- In an effort to fund fish and wildlife conservation and recreation projects and preserve open spaces, U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today announced that Rhode Island will receive $6.7 million for Wildlife and Sport Fish Restoration (WSFR) programs, including $3,598,719 through the Dingell-...
Posted on 3/28/2013 | -
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Reed Saves Funding to Preserve U.S. Natural and Cultural Resources
U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) today led the successful effort to reject cuts to America’s heritage areas and corridors as part of the stopgap Appropriations bill known as the Continuing Resolution (CR). Reed, the Chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Interior &a...
Posted on 3/20/2013 | -
Reed, Inhofe, Boxer Speak about Inhofe Amendment to Exempt Farms from EPA Oilspill Regulation
Mr. REED. Mr. President, Senator Inhofe is proposing a very sweeping amendment that would affect a rule the EPA has developed over the normal rulemaking process, with notice and comments over many, many, many months. It is scheduled to go into effect in May of this year. The amendment the Senator is off...
Posted on 3/13/2013 |
