1. Sustainability Resolution and Sustainability Plan

The far sighted Patterns for Westchester released by the County’s Planning Department in 1996 set out a road map for the physical development of the county to provide a range of strategies that would nurture environmental health, economic growth and the quality of life in Westchester. Since that excellent document was released, much work has been done around the world and in many communities in the United States to address not only physical development but all of the other aspects of development that are essential to a sustainable future. That work must be done in Westchester.

Sustainability and sustainable development were widely discussed at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (the Earth Summit) in Rio in 1992. From this summit emerged Agenda 21, which is the global plan for achieving sustainable development. Recognizing that successful implementation rests on the acts of government and that many of the problems and solutions have their roots in local activities, Agenda 21 contains a call for local governments to undertake a consultative process with their population to achieve consensus on the approach to be taken to achieve sustainability.

“Sustainability” has been used as a catchall for a great many things. The most commonly used definition is that from the 1987 World Commission on Environment and Development: “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their economic needs”.

The International Council on Local Environmental Communities ( ICLEI) has a program called Communities 21, which is its local Agenda 21 program for the United States, through which it offers resources and technical support to communities embarking on Agenda 21 style initiatives. Over 50 governmental entities in the United States are members of ICLEI. See iclei.org Scores of governmental entities in the United States have adopted resolutions establishing their commitment to a sustainable future. Many have completed the deliberative process and have sustainability programs in place.

A wealth of information, guidance and funding sources on sustainability are available. The Department of Energy has published a simple “Ten Step Guide to Sustainability” to assist in developing a sustainability program.

See, http://www.sustainable.doe.gov/management/tensteps.shtml

ICLEI has collected helpful sites on its TOOLS FOR A SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY page at http://www.iclei.org/LA21/ONESTOP.HTM (this site includes links to sustainability policies adopted by other local governments in the United States.) The Sustainable Communities Network provides a great deal of helpful information in its “Placemaking: Tools for Community Action” at http://www.sustainable.org/

In assessing how to approach the task of organizing such a sustainability effort in Westchester, serious consideration should be given to becoming an active participant with an established organization that facilitates such work. ICLEI is the leader in this field but other groups such as the Natural Step are available for the task.

The ultimate goal is the development of a sustainability plan for the county as broad in its vision as Patterns. In order to commence the effort, Westchester should adopt a resolution now setting the groundwork for the development of the plan. While much input will go into the final language of the resolution,
it is urged that Westchester’s affirmation of the basic principles of sustainability include language which provides that:

• The county is committed to meeting current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
• The long term impacts of choices will be considered by the county to ensure a sustainable legacy and the county will be guided in its decision making by a mandate to maximize environmental benefits and reduce or eliminate negative environmental impacts.
• The county is committed to promoting a sustainable future by accepting its responsibility to:

• Support a stable, diverse and equitable economy
• Protect the quality of the air, water, land and natural resources
• Conserve, where possible, and enhance ecosystems
• Reduce the production and disposal of materials which degrade the environment
• Promote energy efficiency and resource conservation
• Minimize adverse human impacts on local and regional ecosystems
• Promote quality housing for all of its citizens (consistent with its infrastructure), sensitive to resource and energy efficiency
• Promote the protection of open space and the development of environmentally beneficial transportation systems and opportunities for non- motorized travel.
  
• The county adopts the precautionary principle that requires a careful examination of environmental consequences and the selection of the alternative that presents the least potential threat to human health and natural systems.
• When evaluating potential alternatives, the county will utilize full cost accounting including all reasonably foreseeable costs, including raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, use, cleanup, disposal and health costs, even if such costs are not reflected in the initial price.
• The county will lead by example and will wherever and whenever possible operate its services and facilities in a sustainable manner.
• The county will evaluate its current practices and programs with respect to sustainability.
• The County will be a leader in educating others and will encourage individuals, businesses, municipal governments, schools and institutions to consider the potential impacts of their activities in the context of sustainability.
• The county recognizes that the health of the environment and the economy are interdependent. In achieving a healthy environment, the county will be sensitive to not placing inequitable burdens on any one geographic or socioeconomic sector of the population.
• The county recognizes that community participation is essential and will facilitate stakeholder and citizen participation in the development of a long term program for sustainability.
• The county will undertake to explore and develop incentive programs to support environmentally beneficial practices by businesses and individuals.
• Criteria for measuring progress on sustainability goals will be established.
• Sustainability goals will be reviewed after set periods of time to review the extent to which they have been attained and to modify them to reflect changes in societal circumstances.

The passage of such a statement of commitment by the county will launch the county into the kind of analysis in its decision making essential to preserving our environment and will commence the process that must be undertaken to plan intelligently for our future.

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