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Press Release from Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs
100 Cambridge Street, Suite 900
Boston, MA 02114-2119

 
UNDER GOV. PATRICK, LAND CONSERVATION TO REACH NEW HEIGHTS

 
Five-year capital spending plan provides at least $50 million per year for new urban parks, prime open spaces, and working landscapes; funding up 65 percent over previous four years.  Total annual funding with other state and federal resources to exceed $65 million.
 
BOSTON – Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Ian Bowles announced today that Governor Deval Patrick’s five-year capital spending plan includes at least $50 million per year for land conservation, beginning with the current fiscal year, which began July 1.
 
“What we preserve is just as important as what we build,” said Governor Patrick. “We need to leave for future generations a legacy of nature, beauty, and serenity, along with a legacy of commerce and prosperity. That makes land preservation a worthy investment for the Commonwealth, now and in the future.”
 
The funding represents a 65 percent increase over annual land protection spending during the previous four years, and 24 percent over annual spending from 1993 to 2003, adjusted for inflation. In only one year since 1993 ($59.9 million in 2002) did inflation-adjusted spending from the Commonwealth’s capital accounts exceed the $50 million minimum Governor Patrick has pledged for each of the next five years.
 
“Governor Patrick has made an historic commitment to land conservation,” said Secretary Bowles. “This is an investment that will pay enormous dividends to the Commonwealth and its citizens for generations to come.”
 
Governor Patrick also identified three top priority areas for land spending in the coming years:
 
 * Commonwealth Urban Parks – visionary new large urban parks in 10-15 cities located in neighborhoods with few existing parks, as well as new or expanded urban parks in all 51 of our cities over the next four years.  These investments in many cases will also take advantage of the Commonwealth’s streamlined approach to cleaning up contaminated “brownfield” sites for new parks;
 
 * Commonwealth Habitat Reserves – working with land trusts and with municipalities, protect at least 10 premier large, unfragmented ecosystems across the state to protect our most unique large habitats for future generations and as destination attractions to boost our emerging “green tourism” industry. These 10 landscapes include mountain tops, wilderness areas, sustainably managed forests and forest reserves, and wild rivers.  
 
 * Commonwealth Working Landscapes – prime agricultural and forest lands that support local, sustainable agriculture and forest industries, which together contribute over $1 billion per year to our rural economies. Expanded funding is slated for innovative programs including the Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program, the Farm and Forest Viability Programs, the Forest Stewardship Program, and the new Working Forest Easement Program. These programs purchase land protection easements, covenants, and agreements that keep farming and forestry vibrant in our rural regions.
 
“With Governor Patrick’s extraordinary five-year commitment, the Commonwealth has an opportunity to encourage development where communities want it, but also to provide, on a permanent basis, parks for city residents, working lands for rural industries, and large wild areas for critical habitat for future generations,” said Secretary Bowles. “Never before has the Commonwealth devoted this level of funding, over a sustained period of time, to the critical goal of land preservation.”
 
In addition to the minimum of $50 million from the state’s capital budget, Secretary Bowles expects a commitment of roughly $7 million from the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority for land acquisitions in the Quabbin and Wachusett watersheds for the current fiscal year, up from an average of $1.7 million per year over the last five years. Bowles serves as Chairman of the MWRA.
 
Land protection in the areas that feed the reservoirs with clean drinking water has saved MWRA ratepayers from a federal requirement to build a water filtration plant, at a cost of $220 million. The current land acquisition program – a partnership of the Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) and MWRA – calls for the protection of 4,000 acres identified as top priority by DCR’s nationally acclaimed watershed land model. Funding is derived from MWRA bond funds.  
 
Plus, the Commonwealth garners an average of $1.5 million per year for land protection from hunting and fishing licenses under the Land Stamp program and receives $5 million to $10 million from federal Department of Interior and Agriculture land programs. All together, spending by the Commonwealth on land acquisition and preservation should exceed $65 million to $70 million in each of the next five years.
 
“Mass Audubon is very excited and enthusiastic about this announcement,” said Laura Johnson, president of Mass Audubon. “Governor Patrick and Secretary Bowles have made a significant commitment to land conservation in Massachusetts by authorizing this spending level for land.”
 
“This is a great step forward – a significant increase over recent years, and a major commitment by this administration on land conservation,” said Bernie McHugh, coordinator of the Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition. “I look forward to working with the Governor and the Secretary to get the Commonwealth the most green for the greenbacks.”
 
“This was the first test of Governor Patrick and Secretary Bowles on land conservation, and with this announcement, they passed with flying colors,” said Colin Novick, executive director of the Greater Worcester Land Trust. “Knowing there’s a long-term commitment from the Commonwealth to be a partner allows us in the land trust community to work on more complicated land projects. I’m very encouraged that the state is recommitting itself to land conservation.”
 
“The Nature Conservancy applauds Governor Patrick’s and Secretary Bowles’ leadership to protect our natural infrastructure and commitment to a robust program of bond-funded land conservation across the Commonwealth,” said Wayne Klockner, state director for The Nature Conservancy Massachusetts. “Despite inadequate investment in protecting critical lands in recent years, large wilderness areas of global significance still exist in Massachusetts and can continue to be part of our natural heritage. The Nature Conservancy supports the Patrick Administration’s plan to protect our last unfragmented landscapes as well as working woodlands, which are so essential to our state’s rural, economic and social fabric.”
 
“For the past few years the state hasn’t made the level of investment it needed to preserve some of our most treasured landscapes for future generations,” said Craig MacDonnell, Massachusetts State Director for The Trust for Public Land. “With the promise to commit $50 million a year in bond funds plus additional spending from other sources, we’re seeing evidence today that Governor Patrick and Secretary Bowles have a very strong commitment to seizing the conservation opportunities we have left.”
 
“This is terrific news for the Berkshires and Western Massachusetts,” said Tad Ames, president of the Berkshire Natural Resources Council. “Our version of sprawl is creeping up the mountainsides and threatening quality of life and environmental health. We’re thrilled by the initiative Governor Patrick and Secretary Bowles have taken to chart a healthy future for the Massachusetts landscape.”

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News From Ward 4: KIRVIN PARK BRIDGE

Progress continues slowly on replacing the pedestrian bridge at Kirvin Park.  The next step is for the Conservation Commission to grant a construction permit at their August 23rd meeting.  A bridge design will also be approved at that meeting.  Funding for construction has not been determined at this time, so it wouldn’t be a bad idea to make your support for this project known at the Mayor’s office.

Mike Ward
City Councilor
Ward 4 Pittsfield, MA
ward4ward4.com
413-499-0462

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DRINKING WATER SUPPLY PROTECTION GRANTS
 
FY08 Drinking Water Supply Protection Grant Program
Application Deadline: 3 p.m. Wednesday, September 5th, 2007
 
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, in coordination with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, is pleased to issue the FY08 Request for Responses for the 2008 Drinking Water
Supply Protection Grant Program.  
 
This grant program provides funding to public water systems and municipalities for land acquisitions that protect public drinking water supplies and drinking water quality. The direct recipient of a grant must be a municipality
or public water system authorized by the Commonwealth to provide water to the public.  Eligible land
acquisitions include land located in existing drinking water supply areas.  Land may be acquired through
purchase of fee
simple title, purchase of a conservation restriction, or purchase of a combination of fee simple title and conservation restriction(s).
 
The maximum grant award for a single project is $500,000.  The maximum reimbursement amount available is 50% of the total project cost. This Request for Responses is being issued in anticipation of the availability of funding. Final grant awards are continent upon funding. There is no guarantee that monies will be awarded. Multiple contracts may be awarded by MassDEP.
 
Qualified applications will be selected on a competitive basis.  We look forward to receiving your applications. Applications must be submitted no later than Wednesday, September 5, 2007 at 3:00 p.m.
 
The complete Drinking Water Supply Protection Request for Responses (RFR) is now available on the Comm-
PASS website: https://www.comm-pass.com/ Directions for negotiating the site are included below.
 

Questions? Contact Christy Edwards (EOEEA) via email at Christy.edwards@state.ma.us
 
FY08 Drinking Water Supply Protection Grant Comm-PASS Instructions:
1.) On the Comm-PASS home page (http://www.comm-pass.com/) select the “Solicitations” tab at the top-left of the page.
2.) Select “Search for a Solicitation”.
3.) In the "Search by Specific Criteria" section enter “BRP 2007-03” in the Document Number field.
4.) This search will yield one result. Click on the sentence on the top of the page that says: "There are 1 Solicitation(s) found that match your search criteria".
5.) Select the spectacle icon on the far right-hand column to view all information available for this grant
program.
6.) Click on the tab that says "Specifications" to view the grant Request for Response. Answers to questions and amendments to the original RFR (if necessary) will also be posted here. Click on the spectacle
icon to view and print any document posted in this section.

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Joint Committee on the Environment, Natural Resources, and Agriculture 2007-2008 Hearing Schedule.
This schedule is subject to change.  For questions please contact the Committee at (617) 722-2210
 
All hearings in State House Hearing Room A-1 unless otherwise noted
 
Pesticides & Hazardous Waste – September 10, 2007 – 1:00 PM
Fish and Game – September 17, 2007 – 1:00 PM
Policies – September 24, 2007 – 1:00 PM
Dept. of Conservation & Recreation (DCR) – October 1, 2007 – 1:00 PM
Sewers, Title V, Wetlands – October 15, 2007 – 1:00 PM
Miscellaneous – October 22, 2007 – 1:00 PM

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