Environmental issues were one of the hottest topics on the campaign trail last year. Now, the winners of that election are hoping to put those words to action.
Advocates for renewable sources of energy held solar panels toward the morning sun on Wednesday in Capitol Square as part of a rally organized by a handful of environmental groups. They are celebrating a sweep of all three statewide races last year, including the election of Lieutenant Governor Ghazala Hashmi.
"We sent a clear signal that Virginians wanted change. They want us to get back into RGGI. They want us to fight for the Clean Economy Act," Hashmi says. "They want us to fulfill our goals on meeting the needs for clean energy, and that's exactly what we’re going to do."
One of the organizations gathered in Capitol Square for the rally was the Virginia League of Conservation Voters.
"When our president overthrows another government to steal their oil so that his big oil executive friends can make billions of dollars, when he does this two weeks after cancelling offshore wind projects up and down the East Coast including right here in Virginia," says Mike Town, executive director of the group. "Those projects would make electricity cheaper for millions of everyday Americans."
While advocates were gathered outside, lawmakers were huddled inside the Capitol taking the first steps for Virginia to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which is expected to take place later this year.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
