MASSLAND E-NEWS
The Newsletter of the Massachusetts Land Conservation Community
March 24, 2008
Volume 8, Number 4
************************************************************************

RALLY & LOBBY DAY FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL BOND!

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 9th AT THE STATE HOUSE
Please plan to be there!  We need as many people as possible to show up!

************************************************************************
"Oh, come tell me Sean O'Farrell, tell me why you hurry so.
'Hush, me bhuachaill, hush and listen', and his cheeks were all aglow.
I bear orders from the captain, get you ready quick and soon,
For the pikes must be together, by the Rising of the Moon."
  --  John Keegan 'Leo' Casey (1846- March 17 1870) Irish poet ,orator and Republican  --
************************************************************************
Please "cut-and-paste" item #1) and send it to your friends, family and colleagues who care about our environment!  More information at www.ENVIROBOND.org

1) RALLY & LOBBY DAY FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL BOND!
	The most important Land Conservation Bill of the next 5 years!

Mark your calendar! Wednesday, April 9 at 10 am we need as many people as possible to come to the State House (gathering first at AMC at 5 Joy St.) in Boston to tell the legislature that it must pass the Environmental Bond this session! We will hear from Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Bowles, Rep. Frank Smizik and others (possibly including Governor Patrick) and then go meet with our Senators and Representatives in their State House offices.
 
IF YOU BELONG TO A LAND TRUST, WATERSHED ASSOCIATION, PARKS FRIENDS GROUP OR OTHER ORGANIZATION, PLEASE SEND THIS MESSAGE OUT TO ALL YOUR MEMBERS!
And to anyone else you know who might show up for the Rally.
We need as many people as possible to show up and support the Bond!

Take Action for the Environmental Bond!
Join us on Beacon Hill
Wednesday, April 9
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Appalachian Mountain Club’s Cabot Auditorium – 5 Joy St. in Boston (steps from the State House.)

SCHEDULE FOR THE RALLY
PLEASE BE AT AMC BY 10:00 AM!
10:00-10:30	Coffee, donuts, &registration (meet at Appalachian Mountain Club, 5 Joy St., not the State House)
10:30-11:15	Rally for the Environmental Bond
		with Secretary Bowles, Rep. Frank Smizik, House and Senate champions
		*Governor Deval Patrick, invited speaker
11:15-11:30	Lobbying Training, Q&A, how to lobby your legislators on the bond
11:30-12:30	Visits to your Reps. and Senators in State House 
12:45-1:00	Debriefing and Rally closing

________________________________________________________________________

2) WHO YOUR LEGISLATORS ARE & WHAT TO SAY TO THEM

To find out who your legislators are, visit http://www.wheredoivotema.com.  Enter your home address, then click on "Find my election information" and scroll down to "Rep in General Court" and "Senator in General Court."  Click on the legislator's name to be taken to their official web page for their contact info.

When you visit your legislator on Lobby Day, the message is simple: 

Pass the Environmental Bond before this legislative session ends in July!  This is the most important environmental bill of the next 5 years.
________________________________________________________________________

3) BACKGROUND ON THE ENVIRONMENTAL BOND

The Massachusetts Land Trust Coalition and the other members of the Commonwealth Conservation Council (CCC) 
are working with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs (EOEEA) on what will be the most 
important environmental legislation of the next five years, the Environmental Bond.  The bond funds programs and 
policy initiatives ranging from land protection, aquatic and wetland restoration, rare species recovery, and MassGIS, to 
renewable energy initiatives.  CCC is working to rebuild the very successful 2002 Coalition for the Environmental 
Bond, which brought together land trusts, hunters and anglers, water activists, farmers, foresters, gardeners, parks 
advocates, mayors and boards of selectmen, conservation commissioners and business people.

Our goal is to move the bond bill through the legislature by the close of the session in July 2008, as many accounts, 
including those that provide land protection funds, are almost through their prior bond authorization.

Absolutely essential environmental investments are funded through this bond, including:

Recreational Facilities, Parks and Parkways
	* Recreational Facilities Restoration - skating rinks, swimming pools, basketball courts, playgrounds, beaches, golf courses, forests, parks, harbor islands - $220 million
	* City parks and playgrounds - Urban Self-Help - $55 million
	* New "Signature Parks" in under-served urban areas - $25 million
	* DCR parkways & boulevards repair & improvement - $75 million
	* DCR vehicle bridges repair & improvement - $250 million
	* Mass. Historical Commission preservation grants - $10 million

Land Protection
	* Town Conservation Areas and parks - Self-Help - $36 million
	* Conservation Partnership Grants to land trusts - $7 million
	* DCR State Forests, Parks, and Reservations land acquisition - $76 million
	* Trails and Greenway corridors - $15 million
	* Drinking Water Protection grants to cities & towns - $22.5 million
	* MassGIS support and improvement - $13 million

Agriculture & Forestry
	* DAR Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program (APR) - $67.7 million
	* DAR agricultural economic and environmental sustainability - $20 million
	* Private forest landowner program - $4 million
	* State Forest management and conservation - $10 million

Wildlife
	* Wildlife Habitat & Endangered Species land acquisition - $73 million
	* Endangered Species Habitat Recovery - $10 million
	* Upland Habitat Management - $8 million
	* Riverways Program - $10 million
	* State Wildlife Action Plan implementation - $11.4 million
	* Fishing and boating access facilities - $6.5 million

Water  Quality Protection
	* Water quality monitoring, assessment and protection - $15 million
	* DCR storm water management & Clean Water Act - $30 million
	* Water Pollution Abatement Fund - $50 million
	* Safe Drinking Water Fund - $25 million
	* State & Municipal dam rehabilitation / removal - $31.5 million
	* Protection and rehabilitation of the lakes and ponds - $5 million
	* Stream flow and ground water monitoring networks - $25 million

Coastal & Marine
	* Coastal resources protection, preservation, access, & enhancement - $30 million
	* Navigable coastal and inland waterways projects - $12.5 million
	* Harbor and Waterfront Improvement Grants - $60 million

Air, Solid Waste & Pollution
	* Solid waste facilities clean-up and closure - $13 million
	* Hazardous materials cleanup - $32 million
	* Statewide air monitoring network - $4.5 million

If you know of land that has been conserved in your town, chances are good it was funded at least partially with money from past Environmental Bonds.  
________________________________________________________________________

4) DIRECTIONS TO THE APPALACHIAN MOUNTAIN CLUB

The AMC's Boston headquarters is at 5 Joy St., in the Beacon Hill neighborhood of Boston. Street parking near the office is extremely limited.  Driving directions all include parking garage information.

From points north via I-93 South:
1) Take the Storrow Drive/Cambridge exit (Exit 26A). Follow the ramp and merge onto Storrow Drive.
2) From Storrow Drive, exit left at the Government Center exit.
3) At the end of the exit, there are two lights in quick succession. Go straight through the first light. At the second light, stay left (but not sharp left) on Cambridge Street.
4) There are three parking garages on Cambridge Street: one on the left, two blocks up, and two on the right (after the road bears right past City Hall).
5) If you park in the first parking garage, walk up Cambridge Street to Joy Street. Turn right on Joy Street. The AMC is located at 5 Joy St. If you park in one of the later parking lots, walk up Cambridge Street to Beacon Street. Turn right on Beacon Street. Then turn right on Joy Street just past the State House. The AMC is located at 5 Joy St.

From points south via I-93 North:
1) Take the I-90/Logan Airport/Worcester/S. Station exit (Exit 20). Bear immediately to the left onto Frontage Road, following the sign for "South Station" — do not get on the Mass. Pike.
2) Stay in the left lane (Retail District). At the light, turn left on Kneeland Street.
3) Go through five sets of lights (at the fifth set, you will cross Tremont Street, in the Theatre District). Pass the Transportation Building on the right.
4) At the sixth light, turn right on Charles Street (you have no choice).
5) Go through one light. You can park your car in the Boston Common parking garage on your right.
6) Exit the garage onto Beacon Street, heading toward the State House (the big building with the gold dome). Joy Street is just before the State House on the left.
7) Turn left onto Joy Street. The AMC is at 5 Joy St. on the left side of the street.

From the Massachusetts Turnpike:
1) Take the Cambridge/Allston exit (Exit 18), a left exit.
2) After the toll, the exit splits. Bear right, following the signs to Cambridge.
3) At the traffic light at the end of the exit, take a sharp right onto the ramp leading to Storrow Drive.
4) Take Storrow Drive to the Government Center exit.
5) On the exit ramp, bear right at the fork, following the signs to Government Center. You will be on Cambridge Street.
6) There are three parking garages on Cambridge Street: one on the left, two blocks up, and two on the right (after the road bears right past City Hall).
7) If you park in the first parking lot, walk up Cambridge Street to Joy Street. Turn right on Joy Street. The AMC is located at 5 Joy St. If you park in the later parking lots, follow Cambridge Street to Beacon Street. Turn right on Beacon Street and then right on Joy Street just past the State House. The AMC is located at 5 Joy St.

From the Park Street T station (MBTA Green Line and Red Line)
1) Exit the station to Boston Common.
2) Walk across the Common toward the State House (the big building with the gold dome).
3) Facing the State House, turn left and walk down one block to Joy Street.
4) Turn right on Joy Street. The AMC is at 5 Joy St. on the left side of the street.

From the Downtown Crossing T station (MBTA Orange Line)
1) Exit the station to Summer Street.
2) Walk up one block to Boston Common.
3) Follow directions from the Park Street T stop, above.

From North Station (MBTA Commuter Rail - Fitchburg/So. Acton Line, Framingham/Worcester Line, Haverhill Line, Lowell Line, Newburyport/Rockport Line)
1) Take the MBTA Red Line to Park St. T Station and follow the directions above.
	OR, if you'd rather walk (it's uphill all the way)
1) Exit the station to Causeway Street.
2) Turn right, walking south on Causeway St.
3) Going straight, cross Lomansey Way/Merrimac St. and walk up Staniford St.
4) Cross Cambridge St. and turn left. 
5) Take the third left, Joy St.  Walk up and over the hill t to the AMC at 5 Joy St. on the right side of the street.

From South Station (MBTA Commuter Rail - Fairmount Line, Franklin Line, Greenbush Line, Kingston/Plymouth Line, Middleborough/Lakeville Line, Needham Line, Providence/Stoughton Line)
1) Take the MBTA Red Line to Park St. T Station and follow the directions above.
________________________________________________________________________

To protect your privacy, MassLand E-News is sent out as a bcc (blind copy).  That way, no one else can see your email 
address.  Our apologies for the cross posting if you receive more than one copy.  If you wish to be removed from 
MassLand E-News, send an unsubscribe message to Info@MassLand.org and we will unsubscribe you immediately.

Prepared by:
Bernie McHugh, Editor
MassLand Weekly E-News
Info@MassLand.org
Tel: 978-443-5588

MassLand E-News is a service to the Massachusetts land conservation community.
To subscribe to MassLand E-News send an email request to Info@MassLand.org
________________________________________________________________________

###