Community-Based Environmental Protection Clearinghouse, Office of Sustainable Ecosystems and Communities (2184), U.S
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
CoverREV.QXD 9/13/00 2:55 PM Page 1 United States Office of Policy, EPA 230-B-96-003 Environmental Planning, and September 1997 Protection Evaluation EPA Community-Based Environmental A Resource Book For Protecting Ecosystems and Communities Front Cover Photo Acknowledgment: Photo at lower right, “Young Fisherman, Anacostia River Watershed, Washington, DC”, by Jamal Kadri. Acknowledgments: This resource book was prepared by EPA’s Office of Sustainable Ecosystems and Communities (OSEC), within EPA’s Office of Policy, Planning, and Evaluation with assistance from the Office of Cooperative Environmental Management (OCEM). The following Team members contributed to this report: Gerald Filbin (Team Leader), Eyvonne Harris, John Moses, Shirley Brauer, Holly Stallworth, Bill Painter, Lisa A. Harris, Lori Park, Theresa Trainor, Mark Joyce, Barbara Mandula, Jacolyn Dziuban, Bob Black, Sarah Malloy, and Margo Burnham. OSEC’s Resource Book Project Team was managed by Leonard Fleckenstein (Deputy Director, OSEC). OSEC would also like to acknowledge the assistance of the Agency’s National Advisory Committee on Environmental Policy and Technology (NACEPT) Community- Based Environmental Protection Subcommittee, the Local Governments Advisory Committee (LGAC), and the following individuals who contributed to this resource book: Deanna Mueller-Crispin, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality; L. Gregory Low, The Nature Conservancy; Megan Gallagher, The Center for Compatible Economic Development; Ed Hopkins, The Nature Conservancy; Maureen Hart, Hart Environmental Data; Linda Hixon, Friends of the North Chicamauga Greenway, Inc.; Lillian Kawasaki, City of Los Angeles, Environmental Affairs Department; Gary Machlis, U.S. Department of Agriculture/ University of Idaho; Kathy Magruder, Queen Anne Co. (MD) Visitor Services; Robert Neville, U.S. Department of Agriculture; William Norris, Virginia Lakes and Watersheds Association; J. Kathy Parker, The Oriskany Institute; Douglas Porter, Growth Management Institute; Luther Propst, The Sonoran Institute; Ted Strong, Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission; and Edward Whitelaw, University of Oregon. Valuable editorial assistance was provided by Roy Popkin of EPA’s Office of Communications, Education, and Public Affairs. The report was prepared with the support of Industrial Economics, Incorporated (IEc) under U.S. EPA contract 68-W4-0041. For additional copies of this resource book, call the National Center for Environmental Publications and Information at (513) 489-8190. Written requests may be sent by fax to (513) 489-8695 or by mail to: NCEPI, 11029 Kenwood Road, Building 5, Cincinnati, OH 45242. Copies also may be obtained by contact ing the Community-Based Environmental Protection Clearinghouse, Office of Sustainable Ecosystems and Communities (2184), U.S. EPA, 401 M Street SW, Washington DC 20460, or by e-mail: [email protected]. If you want to cite the resource book in documents you write, please refer to it as Community-Based Environmental Protection: A Resource Book for Protecting Ecosystems and Communities, 1997, U.S. EPA (EPA 230-B-96-003), Washington, DC. Permission to copy all or part of it is not required. DISCLAIMER The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Community-Based Environmental Protection (CBEP) initiative is designed to help people become effective partners in protecting the environment, including the ecosystems that support the physical and economic health of the places where they live and work. The EPA Office of Sustainable Ecosystems and Communities has compiled this book to identify practical approaches and tools to help communities carry out their own ecosystem protection efforts. Mention of organizations or products in this resource book does not constitute an endorsement by EPA, but is intended to point communi ties to places where they may look to find information, resources, or assistance and then evaluate for them selves the appropriateness of the resource for their own situations. Recycled/Recyclable Printed with Soy/Canola ink on paper that contains at least 50% recycled fiber i Community-Based Environmental Protection: A Resource Book For Protecting Ecosystems and Communities Contents AN OVERVIEW OF COMMUNITY-BASED ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION . .CHAPTER 1 1.1 What Is Community-Based Environmental Protection and How DoesIt Support Ecosystem Protection?............................................................... .1-1 1.2 Community-Based Environmental Protection Goals Can Address Ecosystem Protection......................................................................................................1-2 1.3 Basic Approaches for Developing a Local Ecosystem Protection Project — How to Use This Book....................................................................................................1-4 GETTING STARTED: GOAL-SETTING AND DEVELOPING AN ORGANIZATION . .CHAPTER 2 2.1 Getting Everyone Involved........................................................................................... .2-1 2.2 Identifying Goals and Defining an Approach ................................................................2-6 Setting Versatile Goals........................................................................................... .2-6 Using Indicators to Measure Progress Toward Goals........................................... .2-7 Adapting Goals....................................................................................................... .2-8 Making Sure the Goal-Setting Process Involves the Whole Community............... .2-8 2.3 Defining Geographic Boundaries....................................................................................2-8 Starting Small......................................................................................................... .2-9 Deciding What to Include..................................................................................... .2-17 2.4 Choosing the Best Organizational Structure............................................................... .2-20 ASSESSING THE CONDITIONS OF LOCAL ECOSYSTEMS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON COMMUNITIES: TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES . .CHAPTER 3 3.1 Using Indicators............................................................................................................. .3-1 What Are Indicators?............................................................................................. .3-1 Why Use Indicators?................................................................................................3-2 Choosing Indicators............................................................................................... .3-3 3.2 Assessing Conditions and Trends in Local Ecosystems............................................... .3-6 Specific Indicators of Ecosystem Health............................................................... .3-6 Developing an Historical Perspective................................................................... .3-9 Gathering Technical Data......................................................................................3-11 Linking Stressors With Impacts..............................................................................3-17 iii Contents (continued) 3.3 Assessing Links Between Ecosystems and the Local Economy................................. .3-19 Local Economies Depend on Ecosystems..............................................................3-19 Evaluating the Links Between Ecosystems and Local Economies....................... .3-26 3.4 Assessing Links Between Ecosystems and Quality of Life....................................... .3-31 Healthy Ecosystems Make Life More Fulfilling................................................... .3-31 Evaluating the Links Between Ecosystems and Quality of Life........................... .3-32 STRATEGIES TO CONSIDER FOR ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION . .CHAPTER 4 4.1 Strategies Using Voluntary Activities........................................................................... .4-1 Low Cost, Immediate-Result Voluntary Strategies................................................. .4-1 Land Acquisition..................................................................................................... .4-3 4.2 Strategies Using Local Laws......................................................................................... .4-6 Zoning Ordinances................................................................................................. .4-6 Property Taxes and Municipal Fees..................................................................... .4-10 Performance Standards..........................................................................................4-11 Transfers of Development Rights (TDRs)............................................................. .4-12 Growth Planning in Local Communities............................................................. .4-12 4.3 Strategies Based on Federal and State Laws and Programs....................................... .4-15 Federal and State Laws Affecting Ecosystems..................................................... .4-15 Working With Federal and State Laws................................................................. .4-15 EVALUATING AND CHOOSING STRATEGIES FOR ECOSYSTEM PROTECTION EFFORTS . .CHAPTER 5 5.1 Initial Considerations..................................................................................................... .5-1 5.2 A Hypothetical Community Choosing Its Strategy........................................................5-4 5.3 Analyzing