Bay State Banner: State’s new climate report card earns mixed grades on environmental justice efforts

 

The report card, released Feb. 13, is the third annual self-assessment released by the state regarding its clean energy and climate goals. The environmental justice section outlines efforts to address injustices and other disparities experienced by communities of color, low-income populations or populations that primarily speak a language other than English as a result of environmental actions taken by local, state or federal governments. It is one of six sections the report tracked.

 

The other sections looked at the commonwealth’s progress on climate adaptations and resilience, natural and working lands, transportation, buildings and environmental justice. Overall, the state reported mixed results on its climate goals, with higher than expected uptake of heat pumps, for example, but electric vehicle adoption that didn’t measure up to state targets.

 

For Tristan Thomas, director of policy and law at the Roxbury-based nonprofit Alternatives for Community and Environment, which does environmental justice advocacy, the report card’s environmental justice section failed to inspire confidence.

 

“The report card is a reflection of the lack of progress that we’re making,” Thomas said, speaking broadly about the findings.

 

According to the report card, the state saw some growth in the amount of state funds directed to minority-owned businesses or in funding for programs in environmental justice communities. In fiscal year 2025, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, the state’s quasi-public agency focused on climate-related economic development, spent $29 million of its budget for workforce grants. Those grants help provide business training on programs in environmental justice communities, up about $5 million from the year before and up nearly $9 million from the time of the first report in 2023, even as that particular grant’s overall budget dropped during that same period.