Massachusetts 2035 · 08 / 10

Air, Water & Food

You will breathe clean air, drink safe water, and eat nutritious food

The moonshot

Clean the Air and Water. Grow Food Here.

We will replace lead service lines, repair water and sewer systems, cut pollution where people live and learn, and expand year-round local food production. Build the infrastructure and dependable food supply that make healthy daily life possible across Massachusetts.

The opportunity

A picture of 2035

A child in Lawrence fills a glass from a tap with a verified lead-free service line. Her school has well-maintained ventilation. Lunch includes produce from a nearby grower that hires local residents and offers student visits.

What we can build on

The Commonwealth has major protected water supplies, farms, fisheries, universities, utilities, and communities ready to improve local infrastructure. That base can support better monitoring, targeted upgrades, and dependable demand for Massachusetts food.

The gap to close

Good source water does not fix a bad service line. A sensor does not remove pollution. A high-tech farm does not automatically produce affordable food. The work must change exposure and access in daily life, not merely install equipment.

The work starts here.

Top three key initiatives

Replace lead pipes and rebuild water infrastructure

Set a statewide target to remove lead service lines by 2032, with a verified inventory and no out-of-pocket replacement charge to participating homeowners. Coordinate public and private portions and prioritize the greatest exposure and least ability to pay.

Use leak detection, pressure monitoring, and engineering assessments to repair water and sewer systems before failures become emergencies. Coordinate excavation and publish replacements, water loss, overflows, schedules, and costs.

Clean the air where people live and learn, and restore our rivers

Pair neighborhood air monitoring with funded action on diesel emissions, cleaner fleets, and other local pollution sources. Upgrade and maintain school ventilation and filtration, including the workshops where students learn practical skills.

Bring utilities, watershed groups, and municipalities together to reduce sewage overflows and polluted runoff into the Charles, Mystic, and other rivers. Publish air and water results people can use, with accountable owners for the work.

Grow food here year-round and make it accessible

Expand local food production through competitive partnerships with farms, greenhouses, and suitable controlled-environment growers. Compare crop economics, energy use, and delivered prices before scaling. Put jobs and reliable nutritious food within reach of more communities.

Connect growers to schools, hospitals, and public facilities as dependable buyers where procurement requirements allow. Improve distribution and food-access programs so local production reaches households that need it. Support a range of crops and growing methods rather than relying on one technology.

The supporting work

Measure air where exposure is highest

Maintain calibrated air monitoring near diesel corridors and in overburdened neighborhoods. Pair results with funded emissions-reduction actions and public reporting, not just a map.

Make clean school air routine

Assess and maintain ventilation and filtration, using appropriate monitoring and professional design. Help districts fund upgrades and operating costs. Protect workshop air quality as hands-on learning expands.

Connect cleaner mobility to cleaner neighborhoods

Electrify suitable fleets and reduce unnecessary driving. Evaluate freight-tunnel proposals within the 3D-grid program. Tunnels can relocate pollution and still need ventilation; cleaner-air benefits must be measured, not assumed.

Grow more food in and near Gateway Cities

Invite greenhouse, controlled-environment, conventional, and urban growers to compete on fresh-food access, crop suitability, water use, and price. Pair proposals with realistic energy and operating costs. Do not assume vertical farms can supply most of the state's diet.

Make the state a dependable buyer and protect access

Use schools, hospitals, and public facilities as buyers where procurement and nutrition requirements allow. Support food-access programs and local distribution. Connect farm, water, and food-system jobs to practical education and apprenticeships.

The path to 2035

Proposed milestones. Expand against evidence, delivery, and public value.

2027
Map the work and fund the first delivery
Publish lead-line inventory categories and a replacement schedule toward 2032. Select water-loss pilots, prioritize school ventilation, and identify initial local-food procurement and production partnerships.
2029
Show measurable exposure reductions
Accelerate verified replacements and fix high-priority water leaks. Advance sewer projects through their real construction schedules. Connect neighborhood air data to emissions actions and publish the cost of locally supplied food.
2031
Close the remaining gaps
Be on track to finish the lead-line program by 2032, with unknown lines resolved. Expand effective ventilation and food-access programs. Scale growers only where operating results support more production.
2035
Make the basics dependable
Safe water, cleaner neighborhood air, healthier school buildings, and affordable nutritious food become practical standards across the Commonwealth. Publish remaining problems and the work to resolve them, even as statewide averages improve.

Questions & answers

Will infrastructure costs overwhelm household bills?

Publish lifecycle costs and prioritize projects by exposure and service need. Combine appropriate grants, loans, and public funding with targeted affordability support. Low-interest debt is still debt, and its repayment must appear in the plan.

Why support indoor farms after some have failed?

Support delivery of food, not a technology label. Compare greenhouse and indoor proposals with conventional farms and distribution improvements. Require credible energy costs, crop economics, and buyers before expansion. A procurement contract should not guarantee unlimited losses.

Does this depend on tunnels or fusion arriving first?

No. Pipe replacement, sewer work, ventilation, fleet improvements, and food access can proceed now. Future tunnels and lower-cost power may help, but each project must stand on its own measurable benefits and operating plan.

Show the results.

The public scorecard

These are the measures we would publish to judge progress.

Verified lead-line removal
Water quality and loss
Sewer overflows
Neighborhood pollution
School ventilation
Food insecurity
Nutritious-food price and access