Since taking office in 2007, I have made the environment one of my office’s top priorities. I’ve enacted green agency operations at my own office while helping other State agencies become more environmentally friendly.

Consumer interest in organic products has grown in recent years, as reflected by rising sales nationwide—with a 56 percent increase in New York from 2008 through 2014.

On the 47th Anniversary of Earth Day, now more than ever, we should celebrate the progress we have made and recommit ourselves to the work that needs to be done.

It’s easy to take clean, safe drinking water for granted. However, as incidents of contamination in our public water supplies in recent years have reminded us, strong regulatory oversight is essential to assure the quality and safety of our water.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the legislation that created New York State’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF) – a development well worth noting. The Fund is one of the State’s most important vehicles for making capital investments to preserve open space, protect water quality, and improve parks and waterfronts all across New York.

Recent actions at the federal level to undercut crucial environmental protections remind us once again that we can’t take our environmental quality and successes over the past decades for granted.

The New York State Common Retirement Fund continues to build on its efforts to integrate sustainability concepts into its investment strategy

Agriculture is important to New York State’s economy, and takes place in almost every region of the State.

Farms are an essential and diverse part of New York State’s economy, contributing significantly to employment, incomes and tax revenues across the Empire State.

New York offers a wide variety of sporting opportunities for the almost two million men and women who hunt, fish and trap in the State. More than 90 percent of New Yorkers who engage in these activities participate in fishing or in both hunting and fishing, while 9 percent participate in hunting exclusively.