"I know that as a freshman senator, I have a lot to learn."
Ted Kennedy, Jr.
A member of the Kennedy family will now be heading up the state's environment committee. In the upcoming legislative session, Ted Kennedy, Jr., a newly-elected Senator from Branford, said he'll be tackling everything from pesticide use to pollution in Long Island Sound.
Kennedy said he's optimistic about taking over the state's environment committee. "I think our state has a strong environmental legacy that has been supported by both Democrats and Republicans," he said.
Kennedy, who has a master's degree in Environmental Studies from the Yale School of Forestry, and a law degree from the University of Connecticut, said he's interested in the public health aspects of things like environmental contamination. "Not protecting things and preserving things for their own sake, but really looking at the public health impacts of toxic substances," he said. "I worked on issues, for example, pertaining to pediatric lead poisoning."
Still, Kennedy is new to state politics. He's taking over a big committee, one which was previously chaired by his 12th district predecessor, Senator Ed Meyer. "I know that as a freshman senator, I have a lot to learn," Kennedy said. "I have a lot to learn about the process. I want to be respectful of members that have been here and really benefit from their perspective and benefit from their input. I'm lucky, for example, that Clark Chapin who's a ranking member of the environment committee, Republican, but very thoughtful -- I'm actually looking to him, quite honestly, to help me try to figure out what have been some of the more contentious topics."
One of those issues, pesticide use on school grounds, has become an emotional focal point in the state. Connecticut doesn't allow pesticides on the grounds of K-8 schools. And last year, a bill to extend that ban to high school fields failed.
As he navigates the chorus of voices lobbying on all sides of the issue, Kennedy said he'll be relaying on science. "I do think it's important to make public policy based on scientific, peer-reviewed evidence," he said. "I'm not suggesting that hasn't been done in the past, but I think that's the way that public policy should be made when considering environmental issues."
Kennedy also said he'll be working on the Long Island Sound "Blue Plan," an inventory of the Sound's 1,300 square miles, and he'll be looking at agricultural development in towns like Guilford, North Branford, and Durham.
