Committee Reports

April 2009

Water was the focus of the April Environmental Affairs Committee meeting. The Department of Environmental Services (DES) has been traveling around the state speaking with stakeholders and presenting the recently released Water Resources Primer. Last month, Sarah Pillsbury, administrator of DES' Drinking Water and Groundwater Bureau, Paul Currier, administrator of the Watershed Management Bureau, and Paul Susca, supervisor of the planning unit in the Drinking Water and Groundwater Bureau, came to the BIA to discuss the primer and what went into its creation.

DES has developed the Water Resources Primer to inform policy makers and residents about the state’s water resources and the challenges of managing them sustainably. The report's lead author is DES, but the document was significantly influenced and improved by the contributions of many stakeholders and experts. According to the report, the state faces four challenges: population growth and the associated land development, climate change, aging water infrastructure, and data needs.