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To Improve Services, MassDEP To Finalize Regional Office Changes 21 Communities to be Re-assigned by May 1, 2006; Wilmington Office Re-opening a Success; New Cape Cod Satellite Office Expected to Open by Summer
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MassDEP is changing its regional office structure in order to facilitate public access to MassDEP's services and to provide better environmental protection.
The changes are the recent re-opening of MassDEP's Northeast Regional Office in Wilmington, which had been closed for more than two years during the state's budget crisis, the opening of a satellite office on Cape Cod this summer, and shifting services for 21 communities to new MassDEP regional offices. |
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Adjustments to Regional Boundaries
The Towns of Athol, Hardwick, Petersham, Royalston, and Warren - along with all their environmental files, wetlands cases and landfill issues - were re-assigned from MassDEP's Central Regional Office (CERO) in Worcester to the Western Regional Office (WERO) in Springfield on February 1, 2006.
Effective May 1, 2006, 16 more cities and towns will be covered by a different MassDEP regional office. These are the upcoming regional boundary moves:
- Moving from the Northeast Regional Office (NERO) in Wilmington to the Southeast Regional Office (SERO) in Lakeville will be: Braintree, Canton, Cohasset, Hingham, Holbrook, Hull, Randolph, Norwood, Walpole, and Weymouth.
- Moving from NERO to CERO will be: Medfield, Millis, and Norfolk.
- Moving from SERO to CERO will be: Franklin.
- Moving from CERO to NERO will be: Tyngsborough, and Westford.
 As is the case with any positive change, the transition itself comes with its share of challenges, including staff and project reassignment, record and file relocation, facility requirements, and communication. Where appropriate, some ongoing projects may remain with the current region until completed. If there are any questions regarding the regional boundary shifts during this transition period, please contact the appropriate regional office; contact information can be obtained at the following web link: www.mass.gov/dep/about/organization/depofflo.htm
Northeast Regional Office Re-opens in Wilmington
One move that has already been completed is the re-opening of a Northeast Regional Office (NERO) - now located at 205B Lowell Street in Wilmington. For more than two years, NERO was located at MassDEP's downtown Boston headquarters. The move back to Wilmington has been well received by the communities in the Northeast part of the state. Approximately 200 people attended an Open House on December 15, 2005 to tour the new facility.
According to NERO Director Richard Chalpin, the opening of the Wilmington office allows MassDEP staff to provide better outreach and compliance assistance to the cities and towns it serves. He said the new location helps MassDEP provide optimal environmental services and offer more convenient access to seminars on such topics as Title 5, Perchlorate, and Wetlands. The Salem records and file review office is also now closed, and all file reviews for the Northeast Region are taking place in the Wilmington facility.
New Cape Cod Satellite Office Planned
A last move, expected to be final by July 1, 2006, is the opening of a new satellite office in the Hyannis area of Cape Cod. The Cape Cod Satellite Office will make MassDEP more accessible to people living on the Cape and Islands who would normally have to travel to the Southeast Regional Office in Lakeville, enhance MassDEP's delivery of services to Cape Cod communities, and also decrease MassDEP's response time in the case of environmental emergencies.
Many of the same services provided in the Lakeville location will take place in the Cape Cod Satellite Office, including file review, permitting and technical assistance, and emergency response. In addition to a full-time Office Manager, MassDEP expects that on any given day, 5-10 employees, representing various MassDEP programs, will be working out of the Cape office.
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