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Natural Resources Projects —
Policy Analysis
Tualatin
Basin Goal 5 ESEE and Existing Environmental Health Report
APG worked with eleven jurisdictions in the Tualatin Basin to create
an innovative environmental analysis. These local governments
pooled their resources to create a coordinated Goal 5 analysis and program
within the context of a regional Goal 5 process led by Metro. APG developed
an innovative approach to analyze the consequences of allowing, limiting,
or prohibiting development within natural resource areas in the Economic,
Social, Environmental, and Energy (ESEE) analysis. APG staff applied
their methodology to the whole study area, documented their analysis
(the urban portion of the Tualatin Basin) and created a template for
local governments to apply to the 80 local sites (watersheds) within
the study area. APG staff created presentation materials to explain
the complex subject to technical staff and elected officials.
In addition to the ESEE, the APG team created a unique approach to integrate disparate data sources
and inventories to document the “existing environmental health”
of the study area. The Existing Environmental Health Report summarized
and presented extensive environmental information for 11 study areas
(sub-basins). The information created a baseline from which improvements
can measure the success of implementation programs.
This innovative approach went well beyond the existing state requirements
for natural resource inventory and evaluation. [back]
City
of Hillsboro Goal 5 ESEE Analysis
Angelo Planning Group
led a team to conduct an “ESEE Analysis”. The Economic, Social, Environmental,
and Energy (ESEE) analysis is the crucial step in weighing the relative
importance of these four factors against each other to derive a recommendation
to allow, limit, or prohibit activities in the city’s significant
natural resource sites. The ESEE was the second step in the city’s
“Goal 5” program, which included an inventory of significant
wet lands, riparian corridors, and wildlife habitat areas. The city staff and Planning Commissioners were actively involved in the process through a "hands-on" approach. [back]
Metro Title 13
In 2005, the Metro Council approved a regional Nature in Neighborhoods (Goal 5) program, which became Title 13 of Metro's Urban Growth Management Functional Plan. Local governments were required to comply with Title 13 by January 5, 2009. An important feature of the Nature in Neighborhoods approach is the encouragement of local agencies to assess current codes for implementation barriers to land developers, builders, and property owners to incorporate nature-friendly practices in their site design. APG was hired by Metro to assist the city of Happy Valley with an evaluation of the city's Comprehensive Plan, Development Code, and Engineering Design and Standard Details Manual, in terms of their ability to adequately address natural resources protection and storm water management and to encourage nature-friendly development practices as required by Metro's Title 13. Clackamas County Water Environment Services currently regulates buffer requirements for natural resource protection within Happy Valley , so the “Surface Water Management Rules and Regulations for Clackamas County Service District No. 1 (2005)” document was also reviewed as a part of the audit. This work was completed as a part of a State of Oregon Department of Environmental Quality 319 grant awarded to Metro to identify and promote low impact development planning.