NEWS BRIEF: ‘Not in my back yard,’ Rivian detractors say
Is the trade-off viable?
The factory in rural Georgia being planned by upstart firm Rivian will produce 400,000 electric trucks per year, bring 7,500 new jobs to the area, and promote clean energy. But not everyone is happy about it.
Opponents say the factory will contaminate groundwater and change the area’s bucolic character, creating pollution, traffic woes and even more development. “This is a story that’s playing out with solar facilities, wind farms and transmission lines for renewable energy all across the country,” said Michael Burger, executive director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law at Columbia University. “It’s always going to be a case-by-case question of whether the trade-off is viable, and sometimes NIMBYism is going to win out.” nytimes.com