Green Tier Legacy Communities Charter Signed in Appleton
Five communities across Wisconsin committed to a new, voluntary state sponsored sustainability program that promises to help those communities save energy, reduce pollution, save money and develop in ways that reduce traffic. The new effort, called the Green Tier Legacy Communities Charter is a collaboration between the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, four nonprofit organizations and five communities to establish a pathway for communities in the Wisconsin.
The five communities, the Wisconsin DNR and four non-profit collaborators formalized the effort at Green Tier Charter signing ceremony in Appleton.
“Wisconsin is a leader in innovative strategies to help communities become better places to live from the air breathed to the taxes paid,” said Steve Hiniker, Executive Director of 1000 Friends of Wisconsin, one of the founders of the Legacy Community program.
Green Tier Legacy Communities have pledged to improve the environmental practices in their jurisdictions to lower the costs of local governmental operations, improve the walkability of neighborhoods and set the goal of a higher quality of life for residents. The participants in the program will receive technical assistance from the state and the participating nonprofit organizations. The communities will also share strategies to determine the most cost-efficient practices to achieve superior environmental performance.
“We applaud the cooperation between communities, the state and nonprofit organizations to improve the quality of life for residents of these communities. The Green Tier program stands as a national model for sustainability efforts,” added Hiniker.
Under the terms of the charter, participating communities will identify areas where they can reduce energy consumption through more efficient local operations or more efficient technologies. Communities will also work to reduce traffic by the development of walkable neighborhoods and better transit strategies.
The Green Tier Legacy Community program starts off with five participating municipalities, four non-governmental organizations and the Department of Natural Resources.
The Municipalities in the Legacy Community program include: the cities of Appleton, Bayfield, Fitchburg, Middleton and the Village of Weston. The non-governmental organizations include 1000 Friend of Wisconsin, the Wisconsin League of Municipalities, the Municipal Environmental Group, the Center on Wisconsin Strategy (COWS) and the Wisconsin Energy Conservation Corporation. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources administers the Green Tier program.
For More Information on Green Tier Legacy Communities visit the website.