Our city government must take a more active, creative role in preserving our environment and in conserving our natural resources—to maintain Northampton’s quality of life for the next generations.

Achieving a sustainable city requires an engaged city. Positive environmental change mainly comes about through many small actions made by a large number of people on a consistent basis over a period of time.

Of course, while every citizen can play a part, some actions necessarily must be taken by businesses, institutions, and government. Yet in order to achieve them, community involvement and support are necessary. As Mayor, I will work to encourage increased community involvement in environmental protection and conservation issues. And I will strengthen city government’s efforts to achieve sustainability.

I will especially focus on the following priorities:

• Improvement of the city’s recycling rate
• Development of long-term plans to address the issue of solid waste reduction and management
• The strengthening of wetlands preservation regulations
• Reduction of energy consumption and costs both of city government as well as of energy consumers in the city

In taking action in these areas, I will draw on the advice of local experts as well as our citizens—and from the experience of other communities that are tackling these issues.

For an in-depth look at these issues, strategies to address them, and specific steps I will take as Mayor, please see my new Report on Environmental Issues (PDF, 66KB). It also contains important questions that I believe must be answered regarding any future plans for the Northampton Landfill.