Protecting our Environment and Investing in a Climate Resilient Waterfront
Throughout my time in the Senate, I have supported policies that promote clean air and water, invest in climate resilience, and ensure that all communities—especially those historically overburdened by pollution—have a voice in environmental decision-making.
At the State Senate this year, I supported the Mass Ready Act, a $3.64 billion environmental bond bill that protects infrastructure from climate change and severe weather, safeguards drinking water, and advances environmental protection, including limits on single-use plastics.
As part of that effort, I filed an amendment to establish a commission on resilient urban coasts to identify barriers that delay climate resilience projects and streamline permitting so communities can act more quickly. This includes large-scale solutions that protect entire neighborhoods, not just individual properties, and projects that cross municipal boundaries and public and private land. The commission will also bring together state officials, environmental experts, and local stakeholders to align priorities and cut through the fragmentation that often delays progress.
The bill also makes targeted investments in coastal communities across Boston, including funding for nature-based solutions and real-time monitoring along our waterfront and harbor. It also supports major capital improvements to the Boston Harbor Islands, protecting one of our region’s most important natural and recreational resources.
Closer to home, the bill invests in resilience upgrades at the Boston Children’s Museum and along the Fort Point Channel, safeguarding key cultural and economic assets in the Seaport. It also advances critical planning and engineering work in Dorchester, from Davenport Creek to the Dorchester Bay Basin and nearby parks. These investments will strengthen flood protection and reflect a more comprehensive approach to climate resilience.
This is not about one project or one neighborhood, but about protecting our city’s entire coastline and building the infrastructure it takes to be a resilient Boston.