Virginia Mayors Need Help With Climate Change

by Stuart Shapiro

Nothing like some local disasters to put partisanship aside.  In the wake of a study on flooding of Virginia’s coastal cities has led mayors to push the state for money to combat the effects of climate change.  And state reps may be starting to listen:

State senator John Watkins, an influential Republican from Richmond, agreed with the mayors and planners. He also insisted that debating climate change is counterproductive. “That’s what people like Ken Cuccinelli want to do,” Watkins said of Virginia’s conservative attorney general and GOP gubernatorial candidate. “They want to debate climate change. I refuse to debate that.”

“The fact of the matter is, we’ve got rising waters,” Watkins added. “We’ve got recurrent flooding. There are more 100-year storms in the last 15 years than we’ve ever seen. Somebody has got to deal with it.” Watkins said he would be proposing a state legislative study commission in the next legislative session.

It’s too bad it had to come to this but better late than never.  Hopefully this is a sign that sane politicians nationwide should focus on prevention and preparedness in dealing with climate change.

By: Stuart Shapiro

Stuart is a professor and the Director of the Public Policy
program at the Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy at Rutgers
University. He teaches economics and cost-benefit analysis and studies
regulation in the United States at both the federal and state levels.
Prior to coming to Rutgers, Stuart worked for five years at the Office
of Management and Budget in Washington under Presidents Clinton and
George W. Bush.