County Organizations Forge Regional Sustainability Plan
by Marty Illick,
June 16, 2011, page 2.....

ECOS is the name of a new county venture that has all interested organizations and planning groups coming together to make a regional sustainability plan for Chittenden County. Thanks to a $1 million federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) grant, Chittenden County Regional Planning Commission (CCRPC) has reached out to its many partner groups to help make this happen in three years. Working together in earnest is the first step toward insuring a more sustainable economy and lifestyle.
The ECOS brand was selected because it is the root word for ecology and stems from an older Greek word “Oikos,” which means “earth household.” This brand recognizes that people’s welfare is possible if there are healthy environmental conditions. ECOS also conveys the theme of the venture’s work: Environment-Community-Opportunity-Sustainability. With ECOS in mind, all county groups will, together, forge an agreement for how Chittenden County will plan for its future in a manner that honors its environmental and its community assets. They will include the results of this work in their individual and various plans, including the county land-use plan, the county transportation plan, the county economic plans, working lands plans, town plans, conservation plans; and education, health, art and soul plans. All interested people and groups are invited to visit ecosproject.com to join the conversation. Be ready to help define this work and be part of making it happen.
The second Steering Committee meeting, held on March 16, was attended by 58 people from towns and organizations representing schools, health industry, conservation, commerce, industry, agriculture, forestry, transportation, legal aid, arts, religion, energy supply and water supply. Governor Shumlin graciously offered the keynote address in which he emphasized the urgent need for this work. With the Vermont income trend remaining flat for 10 years while expenses are rising, the governor noted this trend is of grave concern since Vermont is simultaneously using up its precious natural resources. He challenged the county to look at Lake Champlain and climate change as two primary indicators for measuring sustainability over time. He went on to suggest that this project’s implementation priorities should result in the resetting of our architecture and our infrastructure in a manner that will truly power our future. In keeping with state priorities, he urged the county to focus on renewable energy supplies, plug-in transportation and a regional food economy.
During this three-year project, $280,000 of the grant will be awarded to complete inspired projects, including art, education, farm, energy and transportation projects aiming to kick start and lead the county toward its new way of doing business. Think closed loops in manufacturing; think green infrastructure and fresh food; think multimodal transportation and local energy; think social equity, theatre, arts and music; think a sparkling Lake Champlain in our future…
The next meeting is set for July when David Raphael (david@landworks.com) and Charlie Baker (cbaker@ccrpc.org) will guide the Steering Committee through tasks that will identify county goals and indicators for measuring whether our independent plans are keeping us all on course toward a sustainable future.
Marty Illick, Charlotte alternate to
the Chittenden Regional Planning Commission