Submitted by Ella Brown, Greenwich
As a 21-year-old Greenwich resident I cannot vote for Ryan Fazio. He voted against the 2022 State Clean Air Act that calls for the reduction of emissions from medium and light-duty vehicles that make up the majority of our state emissions — that’s 37 percent of CO2 and a whopping 67 percent of nitrous oxide, an even more potent greenhouse gas.
Considering box trucks, delivery vehicles, and large semi-trucks emit the most greenhouse gases despite the fact they make up only 6 percent of the fleet, I have to wonder, why didn’t Senator Fazio support this legislation? It is smart policy to target these vehicle emissions if you believe global warming is affecting our climate.
Reducing vehicle emissions isn’t just good environmental policy, it’s critical to the health of our residents. According to the American Lung Association, Fairfield County has some of the worst air quality in the nation, scoring an “F” for smog for ten consecutive years including 2021. Asthma rates are notoriously high in our state and Fairfield County has over 100,000 residents who suffer from it. Ryan Fazio failed to represent the people whose health is compromised by air pollution.
Senator Fazio’s vote against the Clean Air Act constitutes a vote against cleaning up our emissions and protecting our collective health and is enough for me to disqualify him as a candidate representing me in Hartford. Ryan Fazio is 32 years old and by definition is of the generation that is going to have to deal with the worst effects of climate change and the health care costs that come with it. My generation rejects this kind of representation.
What Senator Fazio’s vote says to me is that dealing with climate change is not a priority, which means he is part of the problem — and not working for a solution.
Trevor Crow has made climate action a pillar of her platform. She is a Harvard Business alum and can help write legislation that will invest in Greenwich’’s economic future by dealing with climate change now. And she is a professional family therapist with over 20 years of experience, which tells me she cares about people and their families, knows how to listen and how to communicate and problem solve.
She is getting my vote in November.