Good morning. Wealthy, white communities in the Northeast are more likely to oppose wind energy, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
The researchers analyzed media reports from 2000-2016 and found that 17% of wind projects nationwide faced significant opposition, primarily in the Northeast. Regionally, 31% of projects experienced opposition. Republicans made up most of the opposition while Democrats expressed more support. Most used courts, legislation, physical protests or letters to oppose projects.
The study determined that opposition from wealthy, white groups delayed the removal of fossil fuel in poor communities of color. This caused the lifespan of polluting infrastructure to increase, endangering people of color to breathe in harmful pollutants and forming a kind of “energy privilege.”
Here’s a bite-sized look at what else we are hearing:
More than 100 employees of Geico’s Melville corporate office workforce will be laid off. The Maryland-headquartered insurance company issued a memo to employees on Thursday detailing how they will lay off 2,000 employees across the country. The memo blamed the layoffs were to ensure the company’s long-term profitability and growth. Geico CEO Todd Combs cited high inflation, growing medical costs and longer repair times.
Parolees in Connecticut escaped almost 400 times in 2022, a 23% increase since 2017. According to data collected by CT Insider, most parolees simply walked away from a halfway house or stopped reporting to their parole officer. However, most did eventually return to their supervisors. The state Department of Correction cites a statewide transition from incarceration to supervised releases as the cause for the departure increase.
New Haven’s Board of Alders approved a contract with a local nonprofit to run a shelter program at a former Days Inn hotel the city acquired. Continuum of Care helps provide housing and crisis services to over 2,000 adults diagnosed with mental illness or developmental disabilities. Under the two-and-a-half-year, $3.5 million contract, the plan is to provide housing and mental health resources to people experiencing homelessness starting this December. They plan to help get 112 people off the streets this winter.
A Port Jefferson Station commuter has started his new role as acting Long Island Rail Road president. Rob Free is the former Senior Vice President of Operations, working for the LIRR for more than three decades primarily as a station cleaner. As acting president, Free told Newsday he wants to work to improve customer experiences and continue to recover post-pandemic ridership.
Connecticut customers may soon be limited in the amount of marijuana that can be purchased in a single transaction. Retail customers are limited to purchasing one-quarter ounce in a transaction while medical cannabis customers may purchase up to five ounces in a month. But that may change after the Department of Consumer Protection reviews the market demand of cannabis products to determine if a further transaction limit is necessary. Over 100 cannabis-related businesses are in the process of opening in the state with 46 being recreational or hybrid dispensaries.
The Diocese of Rockville Centre failed to reach a settlement with 600 survivors of clergy sexual abuse. The diocese offered survivors an average of $400,000 each but their attorneys claim the offer is too little and plan to send abuse cases to state civil court to be awarded more funds. The diocese declared bankruptcy after the abuse cases went on for three years, totaling $70 million in legal fees. The diocese has a deadline of Oct. 31 to reach a settlement with all of the survivors before the cases are sent back to court.
A New Haven resident is suing Alder Salvatore DeCola after he crashed into her car and fled the scene in February. An anonymous Internal Affairs complaint alleged that DeCola received favorable treatment from neighborhood officers Brian McDermott and Mark Salvati following the crash. Julie Ferrucci is also suing the officers after they pressured her not to press charges against the alder. The lawsuit charges the three of deprivation of constitutional rights and civil conspiracy. DeCola blamed the crash on his multiple myelodysplastic syndromes and claimed the lawsuit is a “character assassination.”
Sacred Heart University will join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in July. Sacred Heart and Merrimack College in Massachusetts are leaving the Northeast Conference. Among the other colleges in the MAAC are Siena, Iona, Marist in New York, as well as Fairfield and Quinnipiac in Connecticut. The additions bring the number of member colleges to 13. In a statement, the Northeast Conference said it recognizes the departures “with a high level of disappointment.”
