Rob Smith
@robesmit.bsky.social
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All news is local. Reporting on the environment for ecoRI News.
reposted by
Rob Smith
Patrick Anderson
3 days ago
More than a century ago Providence abandoned plans for a 2-line subway system similar to Boston's Green Line. The decision haunts city and transit experts to this day. The story of what happened and why 👇
www.providencejournal.com/story/news/p...
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Providence almost had a subway system 100 years ago. Why it went nowhere
Providence drew up plans as far back as 1913, inspired by the success of Boston's historic subway line. Here's why it never went anywhere.
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/politics/state/2026/02/17/providence-planned-a-subway-system-100-years-ago-how-it-was-derailed/87513425007/
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Perfect, no notes. Treat the Job Lot price stickers like mattress tags
9 days ago
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Lori Lou Freshwater
10 days ago
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The Forgotten Bob Dylan Love Song That Was Written as a Near-Perfect Masterpiece
Often forgotten, Tomorrow Is a Long Time reveals Bob Dylan at his most vulnerable, offering the kind of romance that still feels deeply personal.
https://collider.com/bob-dylan-love-song-tomorrow-is-a-long-time/
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a rotisserie chicken at most grocery stores will be between 5 and 8 dollars for about two pounds of meat which is actually a pretty good deal
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10 days ago
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my tuition for Rhode Island College was 6k or less for going full-time as an in-state resident lmao
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10 days ago
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Rob Smith
Christian Roselund
11 days ago
These are RI Energy's own numbers. The argument that renewables are the main cause of high power bills is fundamentally wrong. It's our over-dependence on a limited supply of natural gas (see "supply").
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Christian Roselund
11 days ago
REG was 2.3% of the average power bill as of last winter. It's a trivial expense for what we're getting & this should just stay on the bill. Net metering cuts appear to be more reasonable. The program is semi-redundant to REG. But in general McKee is just mouthing utility talking points.
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Steve Ahlquist
12 days ago
Members of Clinate Action RI attend Governor McKee’s press conference. More info here, and the full story and video later this afternoon.
open.substack.com/pub/steveahl...
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say what you will about the local subreddits, but they're still small enough to have niche arguments like this (the correct answer is Knightsville btw as the dividing line)
11 days ago
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net metering and RE Growth were created 20 or so years ago to jump start the state's solar development industry... the industry probably doesn't need the subsidies, but I don't know how you successfully redesign these programs if you just focus on cost and not how we fund them to begin with
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11 days ago
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w/r/t McKee executive order: you know there's an actual discussion to be had with how to fund RE Growth and net metering programs for solar... but it would involve new taxes or revenue streams or money from the general fund which is verboten so the only option they have is cuts:
11 days ago
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Rob Smith
Sue AnderBois
12 days ago
The governor is holding a presser today to bolster his proposal to slash energy efficiency & clean energy. Toray Plastics, speaking at the presser, ironically has received large investments from these programs to help lower their energy usage and stabilize bills:
ripuc.ri.gov/sites/g/file...
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honestly this will be me for this in April:
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15 days ago
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Rob Smith
Matthew Lawrence
16 days ago
I didn't know about the four Resistance Houses in the RI Hospital Parking Lots. Very intriguing (although I have questions about the windows on the Prairie Ave house).
ppsri.org/advocacy/mep...
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2026 Most Endangered Places - Providence Preservation Society
Every year, Providence Preservation Society (PPS) invites community members to nominate places to its annual Most Endangered Places (MEP) List to bring attention to vulnerable places and pressure poin...
https://ppsri.org/advocacy/mep/2026-most-endangered-places/
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Rob Smith
Patrick Laverty
17 days ago
For Rhode Island friends: The Erika Niedowski Memorial Scholarship is currently taking applications. More information and apply at:
erikaniedowski.org
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Rob Smith
Providence Streets Coalition
17 days ago
STATEMENT ON RESIGNATION OF PETER ALVITI The Providence Streets Coalition and Save RIPTA welcome new leadership at RIDOT that will have a multimodal, 21st century approach to transportation, respect and communicate with all residents, and center safety and transparency. In full:
tr.ee/Ia-k-7a9zt
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Rob Smith
ecoRI News
16 days ago
Today our newsroom welcomes new reporter Jonmaesha Beltran
@jonmaesha.bsky.social
. She'll be covering transit, food and farming, and sustainability for ecoRI News. Also, this is her first New England winter. Please send a warm welcome — and any news tips (or winter-survival tips!) her way.
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Rob Smith
Patrick Anderson
16 days ago
End of an era at RI DOT as Peter Alviti steps down Key figure in Gina Raimondo's rise through labor-corporate transportation plan -Privatization of engineering and construction risk -Big increase in spending -More construction jobs
www.providencejournal.com/story/news/2...
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Peter Alviti Jr. is stepping down at RIDOT. What we know.
Alviti to step down at RIDOT
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/2026/02/04/alviti-to-step-down-at-ridot/88508745007/
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Rob Smith
Steve Ahlquist
17 days ago
Café workers at Seven Stars Bakery ratify new contract "Thank you to our customers for supporting us throughout this journey,” said Stephanie Walker, a long-time employee and Shop Steward. "The community sticking by us means so much!”
steveahlquist.substack.com/p/cafe-worke...
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Café workers at Seven Stars Bakery ratify new contract
"Thank you to our customers for supporting us throughout this journey,” said Stephanie Walker, a long-time employee and Shop Steward. "The community sticking by us means so much!”
https://steveahlquist.substack.com/p/cafe-workers-at-seven-stars-bakery-0c2
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one of these things does not belong
19 days ago
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Rob Smith
Steve Ahlquist
19 days ago
Looks like the first spoils of Trumps war on Venezuela is on its way - to Providence.
abcnews.go.com/Internationa...
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Venezuela's first shipment of liquefied petroleum gas has left Venezuela bound for the US
Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodriguez announced the country’s first shipment of liquefied petroleum gas has been exported to the U.S.
https://abcnews.go.com/International/venezuelas-shipment-liquefied-petroleum-gas-left-venezuela-bound/story?id=129768949
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Rob Smith
jael holzman
21 days ago
EXCLUSIVE: The Trump administration has quietly lifted its ban on permits for wind farms unintentionally hurting or killing bald eagles, reversing a policy that implemented a longstanding Trump claim that wind farms are killing bald eagles en masse My latest for
@heatmap.news
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Trump Administration Restarts Key Permitting Process for Wind Farms
The administration has lifted its ban on issuing permits for incidental harm to protected eagles while also pursuing enforcement actions — including against operators that reported bird deaths volunta...
https://heatmap.news/politics/eagle-deaths-wind-ban
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Rob Smith
Frank Carini
29 days ago
Get some exercise, beyond shoveling snow, and help ecoRI News at the same time.
www.eventbrite.com/e/pedal-for-...
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Pedal for the Planet
An indoor charity ride for ecoRI News.
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/pedal-for-the-planet-tickets-1979259677977
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Rob Smith
Timmons Roberts
30 days ago
Some nice coverage of our new report on who's blocking action on climate in the Rhode Island legislature. This is a "blue state" with huge Democratic majorities. Yet 21 of 22 priority bills of statewide climate and environment organizations in 2025 died in committee.
ecori.org/the-usual-su...
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The Usual Suspects When It Comes Climate Action Obstruction in Rhode Island - ecoRI News
The first sentence of the report grabbed my attention. “After stunning successes in 2021 and 2022, climate action has slowed in Rhode Island.”
https://ecori.org/the-usual-suspects-when-it-comes-climate-action-obstruction-in-rhode-island/
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reposted by
Rob Smith
Timmons Roberts
about 1 month ago
Thanks, and HERE is the report that the lobbyists didn't like...
www.climatedevlab.brown.edu/post/who-s-o...
@shankman.bsky.social
@fitzprov.bsky.social
@globeri.bsky.social
danmcgowan.bsky.social
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Rob Smith
lauren
about 1 month ago
seems like some important context for the massive chinese solar buildout in 2025 i haven't seen in a lot of other places
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anyone know what's up with a bunch of GA committees this year starting off with presentations from outside groups?
about 1 month ago
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Rob Smith
Daniel Benneworth-Gray
about 1 month ago
COW TOOLS COW TOOLS COW TOOLS
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Back-scratching bovine leads scientists to reassess intelligence of cows
Brown Swiss in Austria has been discovered using tools in multiple ways – something only ever seen in humans and chimpanzees
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026/jan/19/back-scratching-cow-veronika-bovine-intelligence?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other
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It's very weird the engineering YouTuber made a video declaring he has a major news bombshell about the Washington bridge... that local media already reported out last year
about 1 month ago
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Rob Smith
Osita Nwanevu
about 1 month ago
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Rob Smith
jael holzman
about 1 month ago
BREAKING: Federal judge lifts Trump stop work order on Empire Wind, second loss in court this week over him halting offshore wind construction
@heatmap.news
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New York’s Empire Wind Project May Resume Construction, Judge Says
The decision marks the Trump administration’s second offshore wind defeat this week.
https://heatmap.news/sparks/new-yorks-empire-wind-project-may-resume-construction-judge-says
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Rob Smith
Yonah Freemark
about 1 month ago
US government's policy toward the Big 3 automakers—encouraging them to invest in massive, US-only SUVs & trucks, now encouraging them to underinvest in EVs—has reinforced their global irrelevance. Ford sold 33% fewer vehicles worldwide in 2024 than 2015! GM sold 40% fewer vehicles!
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The other thing to remember too, as was pointed during the EE cut hearings last year, these charges also support jobs in local stores, weatherizing services and solar developers among others
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about 1 month ago
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Rob Smith
Patrick Anderson
about 1 month ago
New details on the McKee millionaire's tax proposal. Speaker Shekarchi says the budget proposal is to raise tax rate on income >$1M from 6% to 9% It is estimated to raise $63 million in the first year
www.providencejournal.com/story/news/p...
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McKee delivers State of the State speech. Here are the takeaways.
Gov. Dan McKee gave his best pitch on Tuesday night for why he should become the state's longest serving governor since the colonial era.
https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/politics/state/2026/01/13/mckee-focuses-on-affordability-trump-cuts-in-state-of-the-state-speech/88150124007/
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Highlighted are the only charges on your utility bill the state has the power to eliminate or reduce btw, from RIE's own site. On this bill they only account for $25 out of a $92 bill. These programs fund new solar panel installations, utility assistance, and energy efficiency programs
about 1 month ago
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Rob Smith
The New York Times
about 1 month ago
Breaking News: The EPA will stop considering lives saved when setting pollution limits and instead calculate only the cost to businesses.
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E.P.A. to Stop Considering Lives Saved by Limiting Air Pollution
In a reversal, the agency plans to calculate only the cost to industry when setting pollution limits, and not the monetary value of saving human lives, documents show.
https://nyti.ms/4aREYyI
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reposted by
Rob Smith
Phil Lewis
about 1 month ago
After a white county in South Carolina rejected a data center, developers have sets their sights on a Black community for a proposed data center complex the size of 1,200 football fields
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After a White Town Rejected a Data Center, Developers Targeted a Black Area
Four million Americans live within 1 mile of a data center. The communities closest to them are “overwhelmingly” non-white.
https://capitalbnews.org/data-center-south-carolina-black-community/
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We have our first environment bill of the session, a re-introduction of the Climate Superfund Act from last year. Essentially a modern version of polluters pay programs.
about 1 month ago
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in what's probably only funny to me, CRMC's first public meeting tonight would have been a subcommittee meeting for evidence on the Spring Ave ROW. It's been canceled:
about 2 months ago
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Rob Smith
Philip Eil
about 2 months ago
Some exciting Rhode Island media news:
@thepvdeye.bsky.social
-- where I serve as a board member and volunteer opinion editor -- is hiring its first full-time reporter. Details below. Feel free to spread the word!
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City News Reporter - The Providence Eye
The Providence Eye (pvdeye.org), a digital news organization based in Providence, RI, seeks a full-time multimedia reporter to join our newsroom. This position will be our first time hiring a full-tim...
https://pvdeye.org/city-news-reporter/
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Rob Smith
Joanna Detz
about 2 months ago
This image epitomizes ecoRI News reporter
@frankcarini.bsky.social
. This photo was taken of Frank on assignment. The man literally will go anywhere and talk to anyone—or creature— for the story. Keep Frank and the rest of our reporters on assignment with a year-end gift @
bit.ly/3N9c6Il
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Rob Smith
josh (oldfriend99)
about 2 months ago
(daft punk One More Time voice) Auld Lang Syne
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Rob Smith
Adam Bonica
2 months ago
The Abundance movement often points to environmental groups as the obstacles to building. But who actually files the lawsuits blocking projects? It’s not environmental groups. It’s been lawyered-up HOAs protecting property values all along. Regulation by litigation is the problem.
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Christian Roselund
2 months ago
I know everyone is in full-on panic mode, but please remember that Trump's stop work order on the Revolution Wind
#offshorewind
project this summer was quickly shredded in court. This is a move of desperation.
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starting to get COVID presser flashbacks from how ornery some of the reporters are starting to get during these daily ones now
2 months ago
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Rob Smith
Perry Bacon
2 months ago
"The newspaper industry served as a feeder for our entire news media ecosystem. So when we lose those newspapers, we've lost that journalism. In the early 2000s, we had 40 journalists per 100,000 people. We're now down to 8 journalists per 100,000 people," says
@victorpickard.bsky.social
.
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Rob Smith
Steve Ahlquist
2 months ago
The PVD Police Department has released a new photo depicting the individual. Anyone with information is urged to submit tips at
fbi.gov/brownuniversityshooting
or contact the Providence Police tip line at 401-272-3121.
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I really didn't think we'd top the news from the first COVID press conferences in my lifetime and here we are
2 months ago
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Rob Smith
Clare Fieseler, PhD
2 months ago
ICYMI Here’s your Friday long read: My in-depth profile story of David Stevenson, the man who crushed America’s offshore wind industry. Thanks to
@motherjones.com
for republishing. 🙏
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bikepedantic
2 months ago
It would cost the country n o t h i n g for the next transpo authorization bill to take discretion away from USDOT to grant permission to pursue cordon pricing. It’s been proven here, let our cities cook.
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