Remarks on Sustainability Action Plan

By Bruce Jennings

Statement to the Hastings Village Board on introducing the Sustainability Action Plan for board approval.

For the past year I have been working on sustainability policy issues. First in setting general objectives, then in developing a more detailed sustainability agenda. Beginning last fall, it occurred to me that this agenda was too vague and that something more specific and directed was needed to coordinate many of the separate ideas and initiatives that were developing.

And there are many such ideas. One focal point of ideas was the section of the Comprehensive Plan having to do with sustainability issues and the work of the Comprehensive Planning Committee thereon. Another focal point of activity was the Conservation Commission, which with a new Chair and some new members have ongoing work, such as participation in the ICLEI process, and are going to undertake new work, such as a waste management initiative. In addition, the renewed attention to the LWRP and the process to submit it to the state has a bearing on the sustainably area. Finally, since we charged them with the task, the Planning Board has been looking into approaches to make the building code adhere to more sustainable standards.

Consequently, what I am presenting tonight moves beyond a sustainability agenda, to a sustainability action plan. Essentially, it takes specific action items under each major sustainability goal and specifies a time frame for the implementation of the action, and specifies what individuals and groups are responsible for moving this action item forward.

Here are some of the functions and advantages of a sustainability action plan:

• First, it is not static or meant to be complete. It will be modified and added to as we go along.
• Second, it is primarily a tool to help coordinate the activities and energies of many individuals and groups. It is an overview that allows everyone working on some facet of sustainability in the village to see the relationship between what they are doing and what others are doing.
• Finally, it is a clear statement that we are serious about sustainability in Hastings: we have clear objectives that we embrace as a matter of public policy; we have specific changes and activities that we propose to initiate within the next 12 plus months; and we are going to monitor and evaluate our progress and be open and accountable to the public about this.

It is my hope that the board will approve and support a Sustainability Action Plan as a framework and a management tool for our various sustainability efforts over the next year and beyond.