
Kyla Bennett, PhD, JD
Science Policy Director
P.O. Box 574
North Easton, MA 02356
Phone: 508-230-9933
kbennett@peer.org
From the coves and inlets of Maine to the mountains of southwestern Virginia, PEER is fighting to stop habitat loss and protect wildlife, limit water and air pollution, address drinking water contamination, and implement aggressive actions to address climate change and to stop toxic chemicals from entering our environment.
Northeast and Mid-Atlantic PEER represents municipal, state, and federal employees who are trying to protect the environment of the region. While this region has a reputation of being more protective of the environment than other regions of the country, all levels of government are politically susceptible, and employees often find themselves in trouble for upholding environmental laws and regulations. When politics trumps science and laws, employees turn to us to expose this dereliction of duty.
We work on a wide range of issues, from saving the critically endangered North Atlantic right whale from ship strikes and fishing line entanglements to protecting drinking water from lead, PFAS, and other contaminants, Northeast and Mid-Atlantic PEER is helping improve environmental decision making and working to ensure regulatory decisions are based on science, not politics. With climate change increasingly impacting our daily lives and the ecosystems around us, our work with public employees who are on the front lines of the war on the environment is more important than ever.
NEWS FROM THE NORTHEAST AND MID-ATLANTIC
Maryland Renewable Energy Program’s Dirty Rip-Off
MD Ratepayers Subsidize Polluting Energy at Premium Prices
COMMENTARY | PEER works with Lawmakers to Fight Conowingo License
PEER continues to work to compel Exelon Corp., owners of the Conowingo Dam, to clean it up and mitigate the ongoing risk to the Chesapeake Bay
COMMENTARY | Climate Integrity Project Targets False Solutions
PEER is launching a Climate Integrity Project to address bogus offsets, keeping clean energy clean and strengthening transparency in climate programs.
Maryland Warns Of High Levels Of ‘Forever Chemicals’ In Prince George’s County Fish
High levels of toxic PFAS chemicals have been found in fish in Piscataway Creek in Prince George’s County, a popular waterway for recreational fishing. State officials are warning residents to limit consumption of certain fish from the creek — the first such fish...
COMMENTARY | The Chemistry Council’s PFAS Disinformation Campaign
The American Chemistry Council is trying to convince federal and state legislators that PFAS isn’t a problem that needs to be addressed.
COMMENTARY | New England States Must Act on PFAS in Pesticides
PFAS laden pesticides being sprayed aerially to control mosquitoes is yet another exposure to this ubiquitous forever chemical.
COMMENTARY | Dunn Landfill’s Environmental Injustice
Dunn Landfill in New York impacts the residents of Rensselaer with problems like truck traffic, odor, dust and leachate.
NOAA Kisses Off Right Whale Survival
New NOAA Finding at Odds with Science, Facts, and the Law
EPA Confirms PFAS in Aerial Pesticides
Regulatory Loopholes Allow Massive Spread of Toxic “Forever Chemicals”
New EPA Lead and Copper Rule Inadequate
Final Rule Perpetuates Risk to Minority Communities
Aerially Sprayed Pesticide Contains PFAS
“Forever Chemicals” Potentially Spread Over Millions of Acres
PEERMail: Aerial Spraying PFAS in Massachusetts
Massachusetts communities struggle with PFAS contamination in their water supplies. One source of this contamination could be insecticides.
Rhode Island Ignores Sewage Dumping in Historic Harbor
Federal Action Sought to Stop Sewage Discharges Befouling Sakonnet Harbor
Op-Ed | Should We Stop Spraying for Mosquitoes During the Pandemic?
Should we be using pesticides when spraying for mosquitoes that may compromise someone’s respiratory system during a pandemic?
NYC Schools Lack Ventilation to Stop COVID Spread
Teachers File Complaint Charging Unsafe Conditions in Re-Opened Schools
NOAA to Reduce Right Whale Aerial Surveys
Eliminating Targeted Surveys Hampers Ability to Spot Whales in Distress
New Federal Licenses May Sink Lobster Fleets
NOAA’s Past Accommodations of Lobster Industry Come Back to Bite It
Kyla Bennett talks to MWRA about PFAS
New England PEER Director, Kyla Bennett talks to Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) on the topic of PFAS.
NOAA Balks at Steps to Save Remaining Right Whales
Scientists Ignored as Agency Delays Entanglement and Ship Strike Relief
Massachusetts Concedes Aerial Spraying Largely Ineffective
Half of Spray Events Kill Zero Mosquitos; No Proof of Disease Reduction