Editor’s note: This press release was provided by Ecopel.

Dear Members of the Pelham Board of Education, Village of Pelham Board of Trustees, Village of Pelham Manor Board of Trustees, Members of the Pelham Town Board, State and County Legislators, and Community Leaders:

            On September 25th, the Environmental Coalition of the Pelhams (EcoPel) and concerned community members presented a letter signed by 70 members of the Pelham community, urging the Pelham Board of Education to do its utmost to ensure that the new Hutchinson Elementary School is built as a green, zero-emissions, sustainable building. See attached.

            We write now with increasing urgency in light of the recently released report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which concluded that we have 12 years to put in place measures to avoid a worldwide temperature rise of more than 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2040, and to stave off devastating consequences for the planet and for our children’s future.

            See “Major Climate Report Describes a Strong Risk of Crisis as Early as 2040,” New York Times (Oct. 7, 2018), available at www.nytimes.com/2018/10/07/climate/ipcc-climate-report-2040.html; “Why Half a Degree of Global Warming Is a Big Deal,” New York Times (Oct. 7. 2018), available at www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/10/07/climate/ipcc-report-half-degree.html; “The Climate Outlook Is Dire. So, What’s Next?,” New York Times (Oct. 9, 2018), available atwww.nytimes.com/2018/10/09/climate/climate-change-report.html; “The world has barely a decade to avoid disaster. We need to combat climate change — now,” Washington Post (Oct. 8, 2018), available at wapo.st/2pKEjaB?tid=ss_tw&utm_term=.637e960cefdc; “The Dire Warnings of the United Nations’ Latest Climate-Change Report,” The New Yorker (Oct. 8, 2018), available at www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-dire-warnings-of-the-united-nations-latest-climate-change-report.

            See also 350.org ’s analysis of the current emergency: 350.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/The_Peoples_Dossier_on_1.5C_LQ.pdf, including recommendations for how we stay below 1.5 degrees.

            The IPCC report can be found here: www.ipcc.ch/report/sr15/. We are attaching the “Summary for Policymakers.”

            Subsequent to the release of the IPCC report, we learned that the situation may be even more urgent. See “Oceans warming faster than anticipated, giving even less time to stave off worst impacts of climate change, study finds,” Los Angeles Times (Oct. 31, 2018) at www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-oceans-study-climate-change-20181031-story.html. See also www.washingtonpost.com/energy-environment/2018/10/31/startling-new-research-finds-large-buildup-heat-oceans-suggesting-faster-rate-global-warming/?utm_term=.161ae36a24fb.

            If we are to meet the challenge of climate change, each level of government — beginning at the grassroots community level — must do its part. We applaud your efforts thus far to improve sustainability for our communities, but request that all Village, Town, County, and State officials redouble their efforts to move us to a sustainable future. We urge the Pelham Board of Education to reconfigure its plans for the Hutchinson Elementary School to maximize sustainability and energy efficiency, keeping in mind that saving energy also saves money. Likewise, we urge all Village, Town, and other officials and community leaders to take these concerns into account in every project, purchase, and plan going forward. Our children deserve no less.

Thank you.

Amy Dunkin
President, The Environmental Coalition of the Pelhams (EcoPel)

Melissa Eustace
Board Member, EcoPel

Kevin Healy

Maryanne Joyce

Bea Kerr

Lindsay Preftakes
Board Member, EcoPel

Anna Riehl
Board Member, EcoPel