Smart growth.

• Position: Around the States

Intensive residential and commercial development pressure is changing the face of New England's traditional town centers and rural landscapes. The trend toward sprawling development throughout the region and the country causes a wide range of environmental problems, placing unnecessary demands on our natural resources and water quality while contributing to a loss of local character.

Low-density sprawl leads to the loss, fragmentation and degradation of wetlands and open spaces. Paving large areas for roads, parking lots and driveways flushes large quantities of stormwater into streams and lakes, polluting them with excess nutrients and toxics. Dispersed development seldom accommodates transit use or walkability, requiring people to depend on their cars for mobility--a primary generator of health-endangering ozone pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

New England states are developing at a...