Environmental groups back Kenney for mayor
Using Earth Day as a backdrop, four environmental groups endorsed former City Councilman James F. Kenney in the Philadelphia mayor's race.
Using Earth Day as a backdrop, four environmental groups endorsed former City Councilman James F. Kenney in the Philadelphia mayor's race.
The Sierra Club, Clean Water Action Pennsylvania, Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, and Penn Environment said Wednesday in a joint news release that Kenney's record on Council and his environmental policy proposals "offer a unique opportunity to protect the health of millions of Philadelphians and their environment."
While on Council, Kenney created an environment committee, and sponsored bills requiring energy-efficient roofs and encouraging solar development. He "has been at the forefront of supporting and crafting commonsense solutions to some of our most difficult environmental problems," said Brooks Mountcastle, eastern Pennsylvania director of Clean Water Action.
The groups sorted through questionnaires turned in by Kenney and rival Democratic mayoral candidates Lynne M. Abraham, Nelson A. Diaz, and Anthony Hardy Williams.
Kenney, Abraham, and Diaz answered yes to questions ranging from funding 20,000 solar homes by 2025 to imposing fees on single-use plastic bags or banning them. Williams opposed such a ban and said a fee "would disproportionately impact poor communities."
Whoever wins will follow an administration that made sustainability and green infrastructure a goal. When he took office, Mayor Nutter promised to work toward making Philadelphia the greenest U.S. city. Since 2008, the city has added 142 acres of green space and 16 miles of trail. Green roofs have tripled since 2010.
In an interview Wednesday, Nutter cited recycling as the biggest accomplishment within his green initiative, saying, "I'm very excited that we have single-stream, once-a-week recycling at the curbside, the same day as trash."
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