Section 2. There shall be within the department a division of water supply protection which shall be subject to chapter 737 of the acts of 1972. The division shall construct, maintain and operate a system of watersheds, reservoirs, water rights and rights in sources of water supply, shall supply thereby a sufficient supply of pure water to the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority, and shall utilize and conserve said water and other natural resources in order to protect, preserve and enhance the environment of the commonwealth and to assure the availability of pure water for future generations. The division shall maintain a visitors' informational center at the Quabbin reservation. All records pertaining to the history of the Swift River and Ware River Valleys, land takings therein, Quabbin Reservoir construction and matters regarding the 4 discontinued towns and extant adjacent communities shall remain accessible to the public at the Quabbin Reservoir administrative facilities in Belchertown, Massachusetts.

The division of water supply protection shall be under the administrative supervision of a director, who shall be called the director of water supply protection. The director shall be responsible for the watershed system formerly under the care, custody and control of the division of watershed management of the metropolitan district commission, and the watershed system formerly under the care, custody and control of the division of water resources of the department of environmental management.