Photo Courtesy of Benny Polatseck/Mayoral Photography Office
The view of the Manhattan skyline from Long Island City was much clearer Monday evening.
By Forum Staff
Days after smoke and haze stifled New York, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer on Sunday warned it might soon happen again as he gave an update on the wildfire situation and made a push to double the number of U.S. personnel via the Forest Service deployed to Canada. Schumer said we have to go from roughly 300 U.S. personnel to 600 to help fight these fires.
Schumer, after a morning call with Canada, said there are still not enough U.S. personnel involved and that to prevent a “summer of smoke,” the U.S. is going to have to send in more wildland firefighters.
“Last week, New Yorkers stepped outside feeling like they were living in a chimney. To try and prevent a summer of smoke, we need to take action,” Schumer said. “The best way to ensure New York and other parts of the U.S. do not suffer another wave of wildfire air pollution from these fires is to contain them as soon as possible. That will not be easy, but the Federal Government must explore all options on the table to keep Americans safe. I recently secured $7 billion in federal funds to help us take action on this front. Climate change has taken these once-in-a-hundred-years events and turned them into yearly occurrences.”
Schumer said that Canada’s wildfire season this year is already “severe” and current predictions” indicate the potential for continued higher-than-normal fire activity across most of the country throughout the 2023 season due to ongoing drought and long-range forecasts for warm temperatures.” Schumer said, just as we work to remedy fires on the West Coast, we now have to focus in on the Northeast as climate change forces us to adopt new methods and measures.
“We have fire mitigation plans on the West Coast, and they are very precise. We are going to have to better develop these now for the East Coast, specifically as it relates to New York and Canada,” Schumer added.
Last week, the Northeast – including much of New York State – was overtaken by a thick haze of wildfire smoke. Toxic air and smoke bellowed across the border and put the health of families and communities across the East Coast at risk, forcing them, no matter their health, to attempt to seek shelter indoors. Many workers, like New Yorkers who work outdoors, had to make decisions between their safety and their livelihood, while everything from afterschool activities to Broadway shows, to sporting events and flights had been cancelled.
Schumer noted that he has long-championed environmental efforts to combat the damages caused by climate change, including historic wildfire mitigation and response funding. In the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and the Inflation Reduction Act passed last Congress, Schumer helped to secure $7 billion in forest management and wildfire funding that the Biden Administration is currently getting out to communities throughout the country. In addition, Senate Democrats fought for and secured funding to improve air quality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Education Stabilization Funds from bills like the American Rescue Plan can be used to improve indoor air quality through efforts like filtering and purification. While these helped keep COVID out of our schools, these efforts can play a similar role in keeping out smoke. Combating climate-change-fueled wildfires is a cross-agency effort and funding is moving to efforts like expanding the firefighter workforce and purchasing new technology to beat back fires, Schumer said.
