5Q: Raymond J. Marshall

 / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO
/ PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

1 What does being elected National Association of Clean Water Agencies president mean to you and the commission?

For me … it is a great honor to represent what I am convinced are the most effective environmentalists in the country. For the commission, it’s a real acknowledgement of the success we’ve had not only in cleaning up Narragansett Bay, but also becoming a utility of the future – focused on renewable energy, top-notch science, and improving the community – in addition to our primary responsibility of clean water.

2 How do you plan to lobby Congress?

Our public investments in clean water have yielded incredible environmental, social and public health returns. … In Rhode Island, we’ve got a knowledgeable and responsive congressional delegation, and we plan on working closely [with them].

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3 How has Narragansett Bay changed in the last 30 years?

In 1980, when the Narragansett Bay Commission was created, the bay and the urban rivers were filthy. Now, after 35 years of infrastructure improvements and diligent leadership … Narragansett Bay is cleaner than it has been in 150 years. … Children today will grow up knowing a bay and rivers that have always been clean and available to them.

4 What more should Rhode Islanders expect for the future?

We’ll continue to see water-quality improvements: more [open] shellfishing days per year and greater access to bathing beaches. We can also expect the commission to become 100 percent reliant on renewable forms of energy within the next three years. And now the commission has opened the doors of the most advanced water-quality laboratory in New England. … We are ensuring that Narragansett Bay is and will continue to be a great place to play, work and enjoy.

5 How does the commission’s work interconnect with economic opportunities for the state?

Our focus is to be a part of the solution in creating economic opportunity. … Rhode Island’s fishing and shellfishing industries are booming. Everyone knows Rhode Island clams and oysters are superior, and it’s because of the quality of our water. But we’re also really excited about some of the “quieter” opportunities, in renewable energy, for example, or in ways to use those products we traditionally considered waste – biosolids or effluent – and turn them into resources. •

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