EPA announces "building blocks" for sustainability planning
Posted February 4, 2011 in Green Enterprise, Health and the Environment, Living Sustainably
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced on February 3 the formation of Sustainable Communities Building Blocks, a program designed to help interested communities adopt sustainable planning methods. Sustainable planning, said the agency, "helps safeguard the environment and spur economic development while also improving Americans’ health."
Interested communities are invited to apply to receive technical assistance during a day-long 
session in each location designed to help them achieve their sustainable planning goals. The application period opens on February 3 and ends on February 23, 2011.
Communities often run into common barriers when attempting to implement new approaches to growth and development, such as outdated zoning codes and other local regulations, lack of consensus around where and how to grow, and misconceptions about sustainable communities development approaches. Moreover, many communities lack the technical expertise needed to make their regulatory environments more supportive of smart growth and the resources to educate local stakeholders about the economic and quality of life benefits these approaches can bring.
Each technical assistance project in a community will include:
- Public engagement — for example, a one-day workshop that is open to the general public.
- Direct consultation with relevant decision-makers.
- A memo outlining specific steps the community could take if it wants to implement the ideas generated during the site visit.
“We’re pleased to be part of this program to help communities build vibrant, healthy neighborhoods where families want to live and businesses want to invest and grow,” EPA Deputy Administrator Bob Perciasepe said in a press release distributed by e-mail. 
“Through this program, we’ll walk communities through the process of making smart, cost-effective investments by helping them navigate existing tools vital to securing a lasting foundation for prosperity.”
EPA will work with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to select 20 participating communities through a competitive process. During the day-long session, participants will explore proven sustainability tools, including zoning code reviews, walkability assessments, parking policy analysis, climate action planning, and commuter benefits. Each community will select a specific tool to focus on and also learn about general smart growth development strategies.
Sustainable Communities Building Blocks is being coordinated through the Partnership for Sustainable Communities, a joint effort among the EPA, HUD, and DOT to coordinate federal actions on housing, transportation, and environmental protection. This interagency collaboration achieves efficient federal investments in infrastructure, facilities, and services that meet multiple economic, environmental, and community objectives.
There is more information on the Sustainable Communities Building Blocks Program here and submission instructions for assistance here.
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Kaid Benfield writes (almost) daily about community, development, and the environment. For more posts, see his blog's home page.
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Comments
Designated Conservative — Feb 4 2011 09:34 AM
No matter how attractive of a notion this may seem, no agency of the federal government should ever pretend to be a competent community planner or planning consulting firm to local government.
It is far beyond the scope of authority granted to the EPA, and far beyond the competency of EPA staff to understand the ins and outs of each state's applicable laws and case law.
This is a service offered by some state or regional planning agencies, and often by private planning consulting firms. They know state and local laws, and they know their communities. The federal government has no business doing this.
Chewie — Feb 4 2011 09:43 AM
This is a positive step. The EPA can hardly fulfill its mission without doing something to promote growth patterns that reduce vehicle miles traveled and use land efficiently. That has a direct bearing on large-scale environmental challenges like reducing greenhouse gas emissions, reducing criteria air pollution and protecting the critical habitat of endangered species.
Land use decisions are traditionally local, and nothing about this initiative changes that. However it is critical to understand that the effects of local land use decisions are not merely local. They are local, regional, national AND global.
Kron from Atlantis — Feb 4 2011 11:21 AM
So much for Mr. Alwegs Monorail solution.
Kaid @ NRDC — Feb 4 2011 03:37 PM
Moreover, in response to Designated's complaint, I believe the feds will mostly be providing resources for these workshops, which in fact will feature private planning consultants contracted by the locals or by EPA.
Moreover, the locals would only have an opportunity for this if they ask for it. I think they are in a better position to judge whether or not this sort of workshop would be in their interest than we are.
Jim Noonan — Feb 4 2011 10:00 PM
Sometimes I wonder if I am same thing that other commentators read. Re: Designated's comment, the offer here is for technical assistance and 'know how'. Many communities lack the cash or the time (for staff) to become familiar with new planning techniques and processes. This is the kind of function the federal government SHOULD be involved with. It is not as though EPA or HUD was writing a local plan or ordinance. Nor are they telling citizens in local communities what their future policies should be. Technical assistance is a conservative approach to federal involvement that should be supported.
Chris Hawley — Feb 5 2011 12:11 PM
The City of Buffalo is completely replacing its 1951 zoning code with a charge to its consultants to create a green, sustainable ordinance. In fact Mayor Byron Brown is even calling it the Buffalo Green Code.
Great stuff! I'll bring this up to my bosses for sure.
Barbara McCann — Feb 8 2011 09:50 AM
My organization is one of the content providers for the EPA program; we work with highly-regarded professionals to help bring the complete streets concept into their communities. Here is our blog post on the effort:
http://www.completestreets.org/resources/building-blocks-available-from-epa/
Michelle De Shane — Feb 9 2011 11:13 PM
I am so thankful to find this site this evening.
We are currently advocating for homeless and have begun a collaborative effort for our "building design" and "social enterprise model."
Looking forward to exploring these topics even though we may not register for this event~To be honest,I don't know if i am in the right place , but with these topics of :exploring proven sustainability tools, including zoning code reviews, walkability assessments, parking policy analysis, climate action planning, and commuter benefits, etc,are very relevant to any community project.please email us at softersideoftown@gmail.com after seeing our project at www.softersideoftown.org to see if we can register for this or not.Thank you so much.
Sincerely,
Michelle De Shane
Hope these links are helpful too:)
Michelle De Shane — Feb 11 2011 09:39 PM
How to Apply
http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/pdf/buildingblocks_rfli_2011.pdf