Several local groups are celebrating the 20th anniversary of the New York State Environmental Protection Fund.Buffalo-Niagara Riverkeeper Executive Director Jill Jedlicka says it may not be visible on a daily basis, but she says the Environmental Protection Fund is producing results.
"The EPF set the framework for the major Buffalo River cleanup that's happening right now. If those EPF funds weren't available more than eight years ago, then we wouldn't be in the same place we are today," Jedlicka said.
"The same can be told about Broderick Park and various other projects within the Niagara River watershed."
Brian Smith with Citizens Campaign for the Environment says the EPF has provided funding for a host of projects that protect New York's land, air and water.
"It's not just our environment that the EPF supports. It also supports job creation and our economy. A recent study [showed] every EPF dollar we put into land preservation actually provides seven dollars in economic benefits for New York State," Smith said.
Since 1993, the EPF has invested $2.7 billion in land air and water protection statewide. Some of the local groups that have benefited include the Buffalo Zoo, the Tifft Nature Preserve run by the Buffalo Museum of Science and the Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper.
At the ceremony, Democratic State Senator Mark Grisanti was recognized as a "champion" of New York's Environmental Protection Fund.