FINISH LINE’S IN SIGHT

and mechanic who could fix almost anything. He worked for Manafort Brothers, Automated Door Systems and recently retired from Automated Door Doctor.

Peter and Kelly spent many years fostering teens in their home and received awards for their tireless work providing a supportive and stable family life for those children. His smile and zest for life will be fondly remembered by all.

Visiting hours were held Sunday, July 30 from 4-6pm at Biega Funeral Home, 3 Silver St., Middletown, CT. Burial will be private.

Potluck party

On Friday, Aug. 11, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., at the Durham Community Center on Pickett Lane, the Durham Senior Citizens Board is sponsoring a Potluck Summer Get Together. Everyone attending is asked to bring a dish to share.

Also, at this time the Senior Board will honor Recreation Director Sherry Hill, who will be retiring in August. Call 860-343-6724 to let the organizers know what you would like to bring and to reserve a place.

Brooke Shields,

Long-lost ring back in family’s hands

Our Saturday Weekender edition has all the weekend inserts along with our new feature, EXTRA EXTRA, our 12-page entertainment/puzzles section.

USPS delivery is available in the towns of Berlin, Cheshire, Durham, Middletown, Middlefield, Meriden, Plantsville, Southington and Wallingford. Delivery is Tuesday-Saturday by USPS.

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Haven Mayor Justin Elicker, lawmakers and advocates came on a day when the front page of the New York Times featured a story warning that warming ocean waters were showing signs of reaching a tipping point towards disrupting crucial currents that shape the climate around the North Atlantic.

The messaging for climatechange bills has broadened in Connecticut from an emphasis on how state policies can eventually reduce greenhouse gases to the more immediate impacts that cleaner air will have on urban children who suffer from some of the highest rates of asthma in the U.S.

New Haven was called one of the nation’s “asthma capitals.”

“The air that’s flowing into our state is already out of attainment with ozone standards. And our transportation sector is contributing, exacerbating those ozone and smog impacts because of vehicle exhaust,” Dykes said. “And we have many of our cities that are where we have communities living adjacent to major transportation corridors.”

Elicker noted that New Haven now has an Office of Climate and Sustainability run by Steven Winter, a former city alder who worked on Lamont’s unsuccessful 2010 campaign for governor while a student at Yale.

Sen. Tony Hwang, R-Fairfield, said, “Clean air is critical, and it’s a non-partisan issue.”

While other measures have generated broader support, Hwang was the only Repub- lican in the Senate to vote in 2022 for passage of the Connecticut Clean Air Act. Every House Republican was opposed.

Passage of the law was one of the victories that made the 2022 session a high point for environmentalists, and Dykes. On climate change, the 2023 session that concluded in June was largely a bust.

The Lamont administration’s major bill died in committee. It would have given Dykes’s agency authority to designate greenhouse gas emission targets for specific sectors of the economy and levy penalties if they weren’t met. Opposition came from Republicans and the fossil fuel industry.

The 2035 all-electric deadline in the 2022 law is a mandate on automakers and will not ban the purchase or sale of used gas-powered vehicles in 2035. But in concert with federal policy and rules adopted or being adopted in another dozen states, the Connecticut regulations will reinforce the direction already set by makers of cars and trucks.

With the publication of the proposed regulations, Connecticut joins Rhode Island, Maryland, New Jersey and New Mexico in announcing an intention to adopt the new standards. Massachusetts, New York and Vermont already have finalized adoption of the rules.

“Connecticut and our neighboring states are taking decisive action to meet our climate pollution reduction targets,” Lamont said. “Cars and trucks represent the largest air pollution sector in our state, and these regulations are moving in coordination with commitments made by vehicle manufacturers to go all in on electrification.”

As Dykes spoke, Lamont glanced towards one of Toyota’s oddly named offerings in its all-electric line, the bZ4x sports-utility vehicle. The first two letters stand for “beyond zero” emissions, and X marks it as a crossover.

The version on the floor was the more expensive of the two basic versions: one a front-wheel drive car with a single electric motor; the other, with a motor on each axle and all-wheel drive. It carried a sticker price of $49,899 and had a range of more than 220 miles.

There are only 36,000 electric vehicles currently registered in Connecticut, but Dykes said a shift to EVs is underway: Registrations are up 20% since January and 42% over a year ago.

With federal funds, the state Department of Transportation is currently mapping a network of fast chargers on its interstates, with construction expected in 2024. Once completed, the federal funds can be used for chargers on secondary roads.

This story originally appeared on the website of The Connecticut Mirror, www.ctmirror.org

In Brief

Monthly tag sale

Notre Dame Church’s monthly tag sale will be held Saturday, Aug. 5, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., at 272 Main St. Rain or shine. The church kitchen will be serving breakfast sandwiches, hot dogs, hamburgers, beverages and snacks.

Service award

The Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce Support the Troops Committee is accepting nominations for its annual William J. Pomfret Veteran Community Service Award.

The award is presented to a veteran of the United States armed forces in recognition of their distinguished service to the citizens of Connecticut, and selfless commitment to public service. The nomination form can be obtained at middlesexchamber.com.

Project Graduation

The Project Graduation Committee provides an allnight, fun, safe, substancefree, adult-supervised graduation party for Coginchaug’s graduating class. For over 20 years, dedicated parents, teachers and other community members have run this non-profit event. Support and volunteers are always appreciated.

Donations can be mailed to: Project Graduation, P.O. Box 81, Durham, CT 06422. For more information, find the group on Facebook.

Volunteer

The Middlefield Volunteer Fire Company seeks volunteers age 18-plus. No experience is required; the department provides the necessary training.

To learn more, visit middlefieldfirect.org, email info@ middlefieldfirect.org or stop by the firehouse Mondays before 7 p.m. The department has an Explorer program for youth, 14 to 18.