Antonio Butts
By Antonio Butts
Executive Director, Walnut Way
The clean energy transition is here, and it’s finally beginning to address the environmental racism that has plagued communities like mine for far too long.
I’m the executive director of Walnut Way Conservation Corp, which focuses on the interconnectedness of wellness, work, and wealth in the Lindsay Heights neighborhood of Milwaukee. As we celebrate Black History Month, I wanted to take this opportunity to acknowledge the ways we can and should take advantage of the clean energy transition to close the door on environmental racism and embrace environmental justice instead.
In the middle of the 20th century, a freeway was built right in the middle of the historically Black community of Bronzeville, near where I live today. More than 8,000 homes and many businesses were destroyed. The government’s actions decimated the economic prosperity of this community, a wrong that I and many others have spent decades trying to right.
With the clean energy transition, we have the opportunity to create the first inclusive economic boom in our nation’s history, reversing the harms of centuries of under-investment. By harnessing the inherent strengths of a neighborhood and its people, we can build economically diverse communities through environmental stewardship and catalytic development.
At Walnut Way Conservation Corp, one of the ways we do this is by promoting sustainable practices while providing meaningful employment. The clean energy transition offers many opportunities for this, and has created more than 200,000 new, good-paying jobs in communities across the country since 2022.
Most of these jobs won’t require a college degree, and many will have training or apprenticeship programs designed to help individuals build sustainable, long-term careers. The Biden administration is helping ensure that the next generation of workers is well-equipped to thrive in this economy: in 2023, Wisconsin nonprofit Reflo Inc. was selected to receive $500,000 to support Milwaukee community-based organizations in creating environmental internships for high school students.
Through programs like the Justice40 Initiative, the Biden administration’s clean energy plan is proactively investing in communities that have been redlined, polluted, and stripped of natural resources. Some of these investments are intended to reduce pollution, which disproportionately impacts people of color in Wisconsin. Investing in clean energy like water and solar power as well as electric vehicles will lead to cleaner air and fewer asthma attacks in communities that have been most affected.
Our state also has an estimated 167,000 lead service lines, many of which are located in communities of color. Through President Biden’s clean energy plan, 106 Wisconsin communities will receive $402 million to replace these lead service lines, build water infrastructure projects, and address contaminants like PFAS. Milwaukee will receive $30 million to replace its lead pipes, more than any other city in the state.
It’s not just pollution that we need to address as part of environmental justice. As the climate crisis worsens, we can expect to see more extreme weather. By 2050, the number of extreme heat days Wisconsin experiences annually is projected to jump from 10 to 100.
“Urban heat islands”—areas with more asphalt and fewer trees—are more likely to be located in communities of color, especially those that have experienced redlining. This is true of the northwest side of Milwaukee, which has a larger Black population.
Addressing climate change by transitioning to clean energy will help drive temperatures down over the long run. In the short term, improving the energy efficiency of homes and businesses will help consumers save money on electricity bills. Wisconsinites already face high energy burdens, with the average low-income family spending 6-8% of their income on home energy costs. Alleviating this burden is a critical part of building strong, resilient neighborhoods.
The Biden administration is helping achieve this in a number of ways, including providing Wisconsin with over $149 million for consumer home energy rebate programs, which will help low-income households save an average of 31% on their home energy bills. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has also awarded $103 million worth of loans and grants to make 1,500 low-income households in our state zero energy and climate-resilient.
I was raised to believe in the importance of civic responsibility. As I grew up and watched countless friends get trapped by disparity, I was convinced there had to be a better way. Investing in communities that have long been underserved and helping them make the most of the clean energy transition will allow us to turn the page on environmental racism and start writing a new chapter on environmental justice.