The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs is responsible for the protection and enhancement of the Commonwealth's environmental resources.

The Office of the Secretary coordinates programs and initiatives in all areas of environmental protection, including water quality, air quality, land preservation, and waste management. In addition to providing policy direction to the various departments in these areas, the Secretariat administers programs directly in areas such as environmental impact review (under the Massachusetts Environmental Policy Act), toxics use reduction, including business assistance, coastal zone management, and conservation services. Major priorities and strategies include pollution prevention, watershed management, brownfields redevelopment, and planning for growth. All of these initiatives are oriented towards incentives for planning by affected businesses, watersheds, and communities, rather than more regulation at the state level. The Secretariat is responsible for directing an aggressive land acquisition and protection program which has added more than 100,000 acres of protected open space over the last eight years and is committed to adding another 200,000 acres in the coming decade.

In Fiscal Year 2000, the Massachusetts Watershed Initiative will continue to target agency resources to its watershed teams to help them support community-based environmental protection and resource management. The watershed and growth planning initiatives will be merged and coordinated with programs in other secretariats for the purpose of providing more resources and assistance to local communities to enable them to plan for sustainable economic growth, natural resource protection, and preservation of community character. A major focus will be on "building local capacity," including better capacity to administer and streamline local permitting programs. Another priority will be to use the resources of the Office to leverage contributions from local and federal government, as well as from the business, nonprofit, and academic communities.

A major objective in Fiscal Year 2000 will be to address the short- and long-term maintenance and rehabilitation needs of our state public parks and recreational facilities.

The amount recommended for Fiscal Year 2000 includes an additional $1.5 million to expand recycling programs funded through the Executive Office including: $650,000 to establish a comprehensive household hazardous waste program; $200,000 to promote source reduction and pollution prevention, including technical assistance to businesses; $250,000 for the mailing of recycling information in 150 municipalities; $125,000 to promote recycling in the business sector; $150,000 to expand recycling programs in multi-family dwellings; and $125,000 to begin a recycling education campaign in the schools. In addition, these recommendations include $150,000 in additional funding in the administrative account (2000-0100) to support the Planning for Growth program which provides assistance and grants to communities and regional planning agencies working to curb urban sprawl. In anticipation of planned renovations at the Saltonstall State Office Building and the anticipated relocation of several agencies within the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs to rental space in Fiscal Year 2000, a $1.75 million reserve account (1599-3875) is recommended at the Executive Office for Administration and Finance for rental costs.