Bianca Sanchez, bianca.sanchez@sierraclub.org
BROOKFIELD, Ct. -- On May 30 and 31, fourteen Sierra Club Connecticut and Sunrise New Haven members and supporters completed the Ride to End Fossil Fuels, a 100 mile bike ride across the state in protest of methane gas expansion projects.
The two-day ride began Saturday in Brookfield, where Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) is in the final stages of approving the expansion of a dangerous, polluting compressor station within 1,900 feet of the town’s middle school. Later that afternoon, bikers and community members painted a mural at Chips Ahoy Community Farm in Middletown, where Eversource has proposed a new methane gas pipeline under the Connecticut River.
The ride concluded with a Rally Against Fossil Fuels in Mansfield, one of several towns on the so-called “Algonquin” Pipeline, a name appropriated from the Indigenous people of the region, runs through. The ride happened days after Enbridge unveiled “Project Beacon,” a proposal to expand the “Algonquin” Pipeline by installing larger methane gas pipelines and new pipe routes. The gas pipeline runs from New Jersey to Massachusetts, through New York, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. Connecticut is overreliant on methane gas for electricity when renewable options are readily available to meet the region's needs.
"This weekend, fourteen riders and 40 community members joined together to protest the expansion of fossil fuels and the harm that they cause to our health, affordability, and communities,” said Sena Wazer, Ride Organizer with Sierra Club Connecticut. “Along the ride, we fostered community, created art, and protested through bike riding. Now, it's up to our elected leaders to make a choice: will they stand with the communities impacted by fossil fuel expansion, or will they line the pockets of billion dollar fossil fuel companies at everyone else's expense."
“As an environmental geologist and a member of Sunrise New Haven, I know first hand that our changing climate is central to my life and to the lives of everyone in our communities,” said Elliot Faulkner, Sunrise New Haven. “We need to take action now to combat the global climate crisis. Further investment and expansion in fossil fuel infrastructure is not the answer. I’m proud to have biked side-by-side with my peers in protest of this expansion, and I ask our elected officials to join us in this fight for a cleaner, safer, more sustainable future.
"The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is in the process of permitting multiple methane gas expansion, to the benefit of gas companies and to the detriment of Connecticut's air quality. The demand for these projects comes from the gas companies themselves, who profit from building gas infrastructure while our energy bills skyrocket and electricity shut-offs increase," said Martha Klein, No Pipeline Expansion Northeast Coalition. "This weekend, riders completed a heroic 100 mile ride. They highlighted how broken our gas powered energy system is - it harms our health and economy, is intrinsically unjust by polluting the most vulnerable communities, and is foreclosing a safe and stable climate for young people - while also standing up for themselves and their right to a future, for the planet, and for the health and safety of all Connecticut residents.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.