Much has been accomplished in environmental protection. If we want to leave our children a lasting legacy of environmental excellence, however, we must apply our time, energy and resources to meet and accomplish the challenges of the future.

Will our children breathe clean air and have healthy lungs? Will we be able to fish for trout in the Pigeon River one day? Will Tennessee have more fishable and swimmable lakes and streams? Will Tennessee still be, as it is today, one of the most biologically diverse states in the nation? To answer our questions about the quality of our environment, we must develop measurable indicators of environmental quality and a means by which we can measure relative risk of harm to public health and the environment. Additionally, we must determine our goals for environmental protection and set priorities for the future.

TDEC has undertaken a two-year comparative risk analysis program, called the Tennessee Environmental Priorities Project, to help us understand the current status of Tennessee's environment, and to help us discern what our future problems are and how we will work together to solve them. This interactive process will involve the public, environmentalists, scientists, ecologists, industry representatives, technical experts and others. Through a variety of public forums, we will discuss environmental risks to human health, ecosystems and quality of life. By evaluating and prioritizing these risks, TDEC can better assign its manpower and limited resources to address the most significant obstacles to protecting Tennesseans and the environment.

An important component considered throughout these tasks will be environmental justice or environmental equity. After environmental risks have been identified, we can evaluate how those risks are distributed throughout the state and make sure that no demographic group is being exposed to more significant risk than others. This approach provides the necessary framework for evaluating the existence and extent of environmental inequities. It also allows policy makers and the public to make informed choices to remediate the risk and the health effects caused by environmental conditions.

To achieve balanced environmental protection, state regulatory programs are moving toward a comprehensive method of issuing permits and enforcing environmental laws. This integrated approach will allow TDEC to consider the total effect of a business or industry's emissions on our air, land and water. Likewise, a creative enforcement program will allow the state to use incentives along with penalties to encourage violators to comply more quickly with environmental laws. Flexibility in managing and administering state and federal programs will be essential in these efforts.

Environmental education is a key element to making the public aware of environmental issues. Environmental awareness empowers citizens to become more involved in protecting their environment and to initiate change in their personal lives. Knowledge of environmental issues allows us to participate in preventing pollution and reducing personal risk through exposure to pollutants.

The purpose of this report is to focus on Tennessee's environmental accomplishments and to highlight environmental goals which are still being addressed. There are several significant omissions in this State of the Environment preview, which will be addressed in future reports. For example, more attention will be directed toward improving our indoor air quality, since our exposure to toxic chemicals and other pollutants is generally much greater in indoor environments than outdoors.

Another area of concern is ground water protection. Tennessee's unique geology make this resource particularly vulnerable to contamination.

We hope that Tennesseans will use the information in this report to become more informed and involved in protecting and conserving our state's resources.