Graduate School
MIT

Undergraduate School
University of Massachusetts – Boston

Mentor
Vivien Li, Executive Director of the Boston Harbor Association and Rappaport Institute Advisory Board Member

Agency
MA Department of Agricultural Resources

Supervisor
Susan Phinney, Department of Agricultural Resources

Description of Fellowship
As a Rappaport Public Policy Fellow at the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (DAR), Anne Herbst’s work focused on farm impacts on water quality. Farm runoff can be a source of pollution of surface and groundwater resources. Farms have thus been subject to an increasing number of federal and state regulatory initiatives designed to protect water quality. Her work responded to the growing need for education, technical assistance, and financial support for farms to improve their environmental practices. She evaluated the current environmental programming of the Department of Agricultural Resources and proposed the launch of a systematic effort to: (1) Identify farms that may impact sensitive water resources, and (2) Provide education about best management practices, and compliance assistance to farmers. The proposed “Environmental Policy and Compliance Assistance Program” would utilize the expertise of the many DAR staff that visit Massachusetts farms on a regular basis. It offers a comprehensive and cost- effective approach to assessing and addressing farm impacts on water resources.