Extinction Rebellion launches climate emergency campaign in Newburyport

Extinction Rebellion launches climate emergency campaign in Newburyport

Calls on City to Declare Climate Emergency

Sea level rise and flooding immediate hazards

NEWBURYPORT - Extinction Rebellion-Newburyport (XR) is taking to the streets to demand that leaders in the city of Newburyport declare a climate emergency and tell the truth about the climate crisis in the community.

Last Saturday October 3rd, residents of Newburyport flooded into Market Square under colorful XR flags and dressed in blue-green representing the nearby Merrimack River and Atlantic Ocean. Touring historical downtown safely with masks, the group shared postcards from a future Newburyport where much of the waterfront below Merrimac Street will be underwater by 2100 based on intermediate sea level projections from Mass.gov. ¹

The local XR activists are calling upon the Newburyport Mayor and City Council to declare a Climate Emergency in light of the clear and present danger to the city and its people, historical district, waterfront communities, and seaside economy. “The Climate Emergency declaration should include concrete steps to educate the public of all ages on the current reality of the climate crisis,” said Leslie DiCola, XR Newburyport leader.

In addition, the group calls for annual reports by the city on carbon emissions from the Merrimack valley, and active collaboration between the city and the media on the topic of the climate crisis.

“The City Council must communicate the dangers we are facing and act on the Commonwealth’s studies indicating that Newburyport and other coastal communities are taking on water from sea level rise & flooding now and at an accelerating pace,” says DiCola.

Extinction Rebellion Boston is inviting participants of all ages to join the Blue-Green Ocean People and Polar Bear Brigade for the second rally in Market Square this Saturday, October 10th. According to DiCola, “This will be a fun and safe event for a lovely autumn day with social distancing and mask wearing. Look for the colorful XR flags and the “polar bears” searching for their ice.”

These actions are part of Extinction Rebellion-Boston’s Emergency Everywhere campaign to demand municipalities across Eastern Massachusetts step up and start telling the truth about the climate crisis. There are active campaigns in Newburyport, Arlington, Wellesley, Watertown, Somerville, Cambridge, Chelsea, and Worcester. More information about the campaign can be found at: https://emergencyeverywhere.net/

Extinction Rebellion Boston is an autonomous chapter of the international grassroots movement, Extinction Rebellion (XR), which started in London in 2018. The purpose of XR is to tell the truth about how dire the ecological and climate crisis is and spark immediate action in order to prevent complete climate and ecological collapse. We aim to mobilize people around the world to utilize nonviolent direct action to demand that governments take radical action to avert societal collapse caused by widespread climate and ecological disaster, and to protect front-line communities, biodiversity, and the natural world. This movement is non-political, and unites all of humanity behind a singular goal of a just and livable future. Learn more at: xrboston.org

1. Mass.Gov, “Massachusetts Sea Level Rise and Coastal Flooding Viewer”