RHODE ISLAND: For the health of the bay.

An unprecedented and important event took place at the Rhode Island Convention Center in Providence on April 24 and 25: the Narragansett Bay Summit. The political leaders of the state (including both U.S. senators from Rhode Island) came together with scientists, planners, environmental advocates, business leaders, fishermen, and a broad and varied collection of citizens and groups to discuss the past, present, and future of Rhode Island's key natural resource, Narragansett Bay.

Preparation and planning for the summit had taken nearly a year and resulted in the creation of a series of comprehensive White Papers that surveyed such topics as fisheries, industrial development, and marine transportation. The planning process also brought forward a series of panel discussions held at the summit during which diverse points of view were presented, conflicts were aired, and sometimes surprising consensus emerged.

An important theme of the summit was the interrelation between the management and development of the land in the watersheds that flow into the bay and the health and future of the bay itself. A clear and honest look at this interrelation forces Rhode Islanders to confront uncomfortable facts. That 60% of the watershed for the bay lies outside Rhode Island's boundaries (in Massachusetts) is the most salient of these facts and was repeated many times at the bay summit. That road and bridge construction in the bay watershed, far from the bay itself, can lead to increased levels of toxic substances in the bay is another uncomfortable truth. That the spread of suburban sprawl and increased use of lawn chemicals far upstream can have a real and powerful impact on the "dissolved oxygen crisis" in the bay with a potentially catastrophic impact on its ecosystem, especially on fish, is yet another thorny consideration.

What emerged was a surprising consensus among participants. They included realtors, developers, and smart growth advocates. The consensus was achieved through panel discussions about the need for land-use planning that conforms to smart growth principles, respects Rhode Island's comprehensive planning mechanism, and is mindful of the impact that the "landside" development guided and prescribed by such planning can have on marine and estuarine environments like Narragansett Bay.

CLF was an active participant in the planning of the Bay Summit, with staff members serving on the planning committee as well as on the land use and transportation committee that oversaw and contributed to the white paper on that subject. What we brought to the Bay Summit was a keen awareness of the deep and inextricable connection between land use planning, transportation policy and planning, and the health of key natural resources like Narragansett Bay which feel the impact of such planning. It is gratifying that our concerns and values are shared by a broad cross-section of Rhode Island's citizens and leaders. But it is far from clear that all of these good intentions and shared values will actually lead to adequate protection of Rhode Island's environment in general and the environment of Narragansett Bay in particular. Actual implementation of an integrated vision will involve legislative action and may be opposed by powerful forces who see specific profitable projects as threatened by such efforts.

Identifying problems, sharing information, and arriving at a general consensus about values and general goals are important steps--steps that were part of the Bay Summit process. Now comes the hard part--addressing the specific challenges and changes that must be made to bring a better, cleaner, and more sustainable future to Rhode Island and Narragansett Bay. CLF stands ready to assist in this "heavy lifting," which is essential as we move beyond discussion and vision.

--Seth Kaplan Staff Attorney