ecoRI News

ecoRI News focuses on covering environmental and social justice topics in southern New England. Our journalism aims to educate the community and empower individuals with the knowledge they need to take care of their surroundings effectively.

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Narragansett Tribe's Annual Strawberry Thanksgiving Brings Family, Community Together

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

CHARLESTOWN, R.I. — On a rainy Saturday afternoon at Ninigret Park, pops of red stood out against the overcast sky. Strawberries in lemonade and on shortcake, along with beaded and fabric fruit sewn onto clothes, marked a special celebration for the Narragansett Indian Tribe: Strawberry Thanksgiving. This Thanksgiving is one of 13 celebrations held with each moon of the year, said Lorén Spears, executive director of the Tomaquag Museum and a member of the Narragansett Tribe.
Jamestown Grows Its Own Beachgrass to Bolster Conanicut Island's Dune System

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

JAMESTOWN, R.I. — There’s something strange growing on one of Conanicut Island’s farms. Sandwiched between the Jamestown Reservoir and East Shore Road, the Jamestown Community Farm has occupied 17 acres of prime farmland in eastern central Jamestown since 2001. Its primary focus is actually vegetables; every year it grows more than 11 tons of produce for distribution to food pantries around Rhode Island.
Revised Budget Would Allocate $15M for RIPTA; May Not Be Enough to Avoid Route Cuts

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — A revised fiscal 2026 budget, released by the House Finance Committee late Tuesday night, raises and reallocates about $15 million to the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority. The funding comes from a bump to the gas tax and an increase in how much of that revenue is funneled to RIPTA.
CRMC Gives Quidnessett Country Club 30 Days to Submit Restoration Plan for Illegal Seawall

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — The shot clock has started for Quidnessett Country Club’s seawall. On Tuesday night, the state Coastal Resources Management Council (CRMC), in a 6-0 vote, rejected a petition from the club to refer the case of its illegally-constructed seawall to the agency’s hearing officer, attorney Mark Krieger.
Hopeful Urbanism: Human-Scale Neighborhoods More Necessary than Ever

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

As Providence hosts the 33rd Congress for the New Urbanism from June 11-14, it’s a good time to reflect on the value of human-scale neighborhoods as an essential response to the evolving needs of our society. Human-scale neighborhoods — places that are compact, mixed-use, and walkable — offer practical solutions to today’s economic, environmental, and social challenges.
Prudence Island Estuarine Reserve Responsible for Decades of Valuable Research

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PORTSMOUTH, R.I. — On Roger Greene’s first trip to the naval base on Prudence Island several decades ago, the military’s infrastructure was already falling into disrepair. Few people still worked on the base, aside from a couple of caretakers. One stopped Roger and his wife, Gail, both of whom worked at the Department of Environmental Management at the time, and asked them why they were there. “You really shouldn’t be on federal property,” Greene recalled a caretaker telling them.
CRMC to Consider Ordering Quidnessett Country Club to Remove Illegal Seawall

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

NORTH KINGSTOWN, R.I. — Two years after it was first erected, state coastal regulators are stepping up enforcement action against a private club’s illegal seawall. On Tuesday, June 10, the Coastal Resources Management Council is hauling in the Quidnessett Country Club over its seawall, and considering an “order to restore” for the structure, essentially removing it entirely and returning the impacted coastline to its natural state.
RIPTA Advocates, Union to Push for More Funding in Legislature 'Until the Gavel Comes Down'

2 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — Among the various groups of advocates and interest groups that crowded around inside and outside the Statehouse on Tuesday afternoon, a large contingent included supporters making a last-ditch effort to fund the state’s public transit system. In the coming fiscal year, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority faces a $32.6million deficit that the agency has said would lead to the loss of a third of its workforce and deep service cuts.
Shoreline Rights of Way, and Where to Park, Would Be Clarified Under New Bills

3 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

PROVIDENCE — There are two different catechisms that most Rhode Islanders use in their daily lives: how many minutes away is a particular location and is there parking? On most days it’s a self-deprecating joke from residents that shows off sarcastic provincialism, but in the General Assembly this year, it’s a serious issue under consideration.
An Electric Ride: What Happened When I Rented an EV

3 weeks ago | ecori.org | Bonnie Phillips

Consider this a cautionary tale about how not to drive an electric vehicle. Or a story about how, with just a little bit of planning and know-how, a road trip with an EV can be successful. It started out so promisingly. Although when I arranged to rent a car from Hertz for two days in May I wasn’t intending to get an EV, when I got to the Providence location I was told all they had for rentals was a Tesla or a Kia Niro EV.