Bill > H1072

This bill, known as the Commonwealth GREEN ZONES ACT, aims to address environmental injustices faced by Black, Indigenous, Latino, Asian, and low-income communities in Massachusetts by authorizing a comprehensive environmental audit of environmental justice neighborhoods. The bill defines an "environmental justice neighborhood" as an area meeting specific demographic and economic criteria, such as having a low median household income, a high percentage of minority residents, or limited English proficiency. The Secretary of Environmental Affairs is mandated to conduct a detailed environmental audit that will identify and quantify environmental burdens like pollution, inadequate infrastructure, and limited access to natural resources. To ensure community involvement, the Secretary will create a working group of at least nine local residents to provide guidance on the audit. Upon completing the audit, the Secretary must identify and designate "Green Zones" within these neighborhoods—areas with potential for environmental sustainability and resilience—and produce a public report. The bill also allows the Secretary to enter into cooperative agreements with local municipalities to implement strategies for mitigating environmental challenges. Importantly, the bill recognizes the disproportionate environmental challenges faced by marginalized communities and seeks to provide a structured, data-driven approach to addressing these longstanding inequities, with the ultimate goal of improving environmental conditions and public health in these areas.