Dear Mayor Gainey:
We are high school students who care about the environment and climate change. We believe it is important to speak out for the future of Pittsburgh and the globe based on our firsthand experiences and the stories we have heard. We encourage you to live up to your potential. campaign promises A comprehensive climate action plan is needed to ensure environmental justice.
We find the vague statements of “continuing” the work of the previous administration to be insufficient, since we know that there is much more to be done.
Air quality This is a pressing problem in our city, which places a heavy burden upon its residents. While many of us have lived here for our entire lives, others moved here from other areas.
Several of us found the air to be detrimental to our health, and one of our members experienced several asthma attacks — which led to pneumonia — within the first few months after moving to the city. Respiratory issues are also a problem. especially problematic for our city’s Black and brown CommunitiesThis is often due the industrial location of low-income areas.
The polluters, like the gas-well drillers, will continue their harm to these communities. There is no way for them to make up for the health issues that they cause. We urge you to work with other mayors and to press Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald for a ban on fracking in Allegheny County. This is similar to what has been done in the actual city. You have the unique opportunity to push for more environmental actions by Fitzgerald for the benefit of our Pittsburgh community and others.
We also want to see significant improvements to our public transport system. For one thing, Pittsburgh’s bus system is generally untimely. Some routes are full, but others are empty. Both the buses and the city’s light rail system poorly connect many parts of the city. A bus schedule that optimizes timeliness and provides more lines would be a plus.
To reduce strain on bus drivers, it is important to improve working conditions and increase wages. We ask that you use public advertisements to encourage public transportation and carpooling. We ask you to take these improvements to your county executive and use it to fight for our communities.
We also ask that you take more direct action in the city. We would love to see you take more direct actions in the city to ensure that there is more equality. green space Planting trees. Squirrel Hill, Point Breeze and other wealthy neighborhoods are home to many parks. However, green spaces in East Liberty and Garfield are less well-tended and less plentiful. We also want to see you use public influence to promote a reduction in the use of pesticides within yards.
Finally, we ask you to ensure that a ban is passed on plastic bags. This act may seem insignificant in light of the massive problem of climate change, but it would make a significant difference in decreasing plastic consumption and reducing litter in our watersheds. The ban on single-use plastics would go further.
When you are considering your future policies, keep in mind the looming climate crisis. Because the actions we take now will be crucial in protecting our city from the worst of its effects, and the world. Although we may not be eligible to vote or run for office, what we do now will make this planet safe for future generations.
We admire your thoughtful intentions. We believe in your potential to be our mayor. We appreciate your consideration of our concerns.
Sincerely,
Vanessa Gonzalez-Rychner
Tadao Tomokiyo
Ilyas Khan
Felix Gamper
Rho Bloom-Wang
Frankie Mizikowski
Brynne McSorley
