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Sustainable Communities Toolkit
These websites will provide information and resources that can help you create, manage and maintain a sustainable community.
Stormwater Management and Water Quality
- Mass Audubon’s Rain Garden brochure (pdf 390k)
Describes how to reduce stormwater volume from your property by building a “Rain Garden” to collect roof runoff, enhance your landscaping, and infiltrate to groundwater.
- Mass DEP
Water Wastewater and Wetlands, Policies and Guidance documents. Includes:
- Erosion and Sedimentation Control Guidelines: a guide for planners, designers, and municipal officials
- Stormwater Best Management Practice Demonstration
- Massachusetts Stormwater Handbook
- Blackstone River Coalition
- Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management
“StormSmart Coasts,” A program designed to help coastal communities address the challenges arising from storms, floods, sea level rise, and climate change. Provides a menu of tools for successful coastal floodplain management.
Community Planning and Smart Growth
- American Planning Association
- Natural Lands Trust, Inc.
Growing Greener (1997) (pdf). A booklet of methods for municipalities to use to protect interconnected networks of open space, and ensure that their conservation goals are achieved in a manner fair to all parties. Describes amendments to municipal comprehensive plans, zoning ordinances, and subdivision ordnances.
- Massachusetts Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development (EOHED), Division of Community Services
- The Division of Community Services builds the capacity of individuals and strengthens communities through a comprehensive and integrated service delivery approach. This page includes many resources for community development, including
“A Guide to State Development Resources”
“Citizen Planner Training Collaborative”, and
information on a “Peer-to-Peer Technical Assistance Program”
- EOHED’s Smart Growth Initiatives
- ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability
STAR Community Index. A national, consensus-based framework for gauging the sustainability and livability of U.S. communities, helping local governments set priorities and implement policies and practices to improve their sustainability performance.
Land Protection
- Mass Audubon’s Land Protection program
Mass Audubon acquires land, or rights to land, for the protection of wildlife habitat and for places for people to enjoy nature
- Community Preservation Act
Information on this new tool to help communities preserve open space and historic sites, and create affordable housing and recreational facilities.
Climate Change
- Mass Audubon climate change resources
Placemaking
- Project for Public Spaces
A non-profit organization dedicated to helping people create and sustain public places that build communities.
- Place Matters
An organization supporting the creation and maintenance of sustainable and vibrant communities and regions through the application of innovative decision making tools and methods.
- Sustainable Communities Network
“Placemaking: Tools for Community Action” (pdf)
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