Bay State climate activists hope the adoption of a building gas ban in Brookline, Massachusetts, will do for the state what an ordinance in Berkeley, California, did for the West Coast: set off a domino effect. The Brookline Town Meeting recently overwhelmingly supported the policy, which prohibits most gas piping in new buildings and gut renovations. The vote may signal that two neighboring cities with similar ordinances in the works could see those move forward, but backers also think the move will convince even more local officials to consider the climate change policy. Those lawmakers will be closely watching a review of the Brookline ban by the Massachusetts attorney general, a standard step to ensure town bylaws are consistent with the state’s laws and constitution. “Assuming they sign off on it, then I think you’ll see a lot of other communities immediately follow suit,” said Mark Kresowik, deputy director of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign for the eastern region.
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