Massachusetts has been known as an environmentally friendly state–often at the expense of the business community. But how much does the Commonwealth actually spend on environmental programs compared to the rest of the country? According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the state and its cities and towns together spent about $270 per capita on environmental programs in fiscal year 1995. That’s higher than the national average of $227 per capita, but 13 states, including Rhode Island, spent even more. Massachusetts ranks 13th nationally in the amount of municipal solid waste it recycles – 34 percent in 1997. However, the Commonwealth sends a smaller proportion of its trash to landfills–21 percent–than other states, with the exceptions of Maine (18 percent) and Connecticut (12 percent). So what happens to the rest of the state’s garbage? It’s burned. New England leads the country in use of waste incinerators. Massachusetts has the nation’s second-highest incineration rate–45 percent. Connecticut is the national leader, at 64 percent, while Maine comes in third, at 40 percent.