Robert Kesten Releases Legislative Proposal for Sustainable Energy Development
Calls for Algonquin pipeline to be shut down and a moratorium on fossil fuels
PEEKSKILL, NY: Robert Kesten, Candidate for NYS Senate District 40, released today a legislative proposal for sustainable energy development on a massive scale and a complete replacement of fossil fuels. His statement comes in response to the release last month of redacted and incomplete risk assessment the Algonquin pipeline. The full statement can be viewed on his website.
While New York has banned fracking, the transport and household use of fracked gas persists. “Although New York has banned fracking, pipelines continue to transport fracked gas directly through our district, delivering major profits to the fossil fuel industry at the expense of our communities,” say Kesten in his statement. “New York State should never be in the business of putting profits over people. Clean energy policy and the health and safety of our communities should be the top priority and consideration, protected by law.”
Kesten calls for a “herculean-like effort” to develop renewable infrastructure. “If today’s elected leadership would be as bold as John F. Kennedy was in 1961, when he called a nation to attention and focused the American people on putting a man on the moon, we would be well on our way to a modern and robust energy transformation. … The possibilities are endless, the talent in our midst real, and the opportunity for the Hudson Valley to lead the way in building a cleaner, safer, energy efficient world a realistic possibility.”
Unique to Kesten’s proposal is the demand for a moratorium on all fossil fuel projects – both new and existing. While others have called for increased renewable energy investments, Kesten’s forward-thinking proposal emphasizes the importance of moving fully off of fossil fuels within a matter of years, including fracked gas and its corresponding infrastructure. On the urgency of this transition he says, “we cannot let our elected officials delay this objective by decades. We must demand significant action immediately with a goal to be free of fossil fuels within years, not generations.”
In the statement, Kesten emphasizes the relationship of renewable energy and large-scale job creation. He says, “By developing a statewide renewable energy project, on the scale of a NASA-style endeavor, there will be good jobs for those currently employed by the pipeline and Entergy. These would be sustained jobs, in clean energy, adding real value to the community.”
He concludes the statement with a call to harness the opportunity of Indian Point’s decommissioning. “The decommissioning of Indian Point presents a real opportunity to change New York’s future for the better,” says Kesten. “We cannot let the opportunity pass us by to create a safer environment, a more stable economy, and a healthier community for all New Yorkers for generations to come.”
About Robert Kesten
For the past decade, Robert has been a consultant for PDHRE, the organization behind the United Nations Decade on Human Rights Education. Previously, he ran the Center for Screen Time Awareness in Washington, DC, where he advocated for a FCC Task Force on the impact of screened media on children’s health.
He has been actively engaged in government at the local, national, and international levels. A Democratic District Leader in the Town of Lewisboro, he has worked with U.S. Senators Tom Daschle, Harry Reid, and Paul Simon as well as for NYS Senate Minority Leader Manfred Ohrenstein, where he was also active in the NYS Democratic Senate Campaign Committee.
His international efforts include advising the U.S. government during the break-up of the Soviet Union. He was also engaged in encouraging democratic institutions during the Arab Spring in both Egypt and Tunisia and last year worked to assist Mountain View, California (home to Google) on becoming a Human Rights City.
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