The Massachusetts Environmental Trust

In 1988, the Massachusetts legislature established the Massachusetts Environmental Trust to administer Boston Harbor pollution settlement funds. Since that time, the Massachusetts Environmental Trust has emerged as a national model for innovative management and distribution of environmental settlement funds. This Article presents a history and analysis of the Trust based on personal accounts by Massachusetts Environmental Trust insiders and archival records. The analysis exposes significant flaws in environmental settlement practices. The settlement process is unpredictable and opaque. The settling parties often lack the expertise needed to apply settlement funds effectively. Yet, they fail to consult, involve, or inform those who could best assist in that effort—affected communities and environmental experts. Settlement terms frequently value punishment and deterrence over environmental benefit. Even when settlements seek to address environmental damage, they define that damage too narrowly. As a result, the funds often go to short-term, small-scale, or even unrelated projects while much of the damage that was the subject of the settlement remains unaddressed. The Massachusetts Environmental Trust provides an environmentcentered model designed to enhance predictability, transparency, participation, and expanded use of settlement funds. The Massachusetts Environmental Trust’s experience demonstrates that an independent third party with environmental expertise and community knowledge, contacts, and reputation