Calling all Vermonters to plan for a more resilient Green Mountain state

VNRC's Executive Director Elizabeth Courtney writes regularly for the Time Argus environmental column – the Weekly Planet. This essay was published June26, 2011.

In a dark sort of way, I enjoyed Kathryn Blume’s recent VPR commentary offering a tongue-in-cheek description of the weather these days — she calls it charismatic. Others would say it’s downright frightening.

In just the past few months we’ve witnessed flooding of downtown Montpelier and adjacent farm fields, droughts in the Midwest, forest fires in Arizona, the Joplin, Mo., tornados and the cluster of violent storms that ravaged Tennessee. Understandably, we worry about our ability to recover from the abuses of nature on a carbon high. And many of us are concerned about our future. Food, energy and job security are all on our minds. As the weather ramps up, the economy shrinks down and the price of gas goes through the roof, we look for ways to develop more resilience.

To address these realities of our changing world we must first understand how we contribute to the problem and then work to minimize our most harmful human activities and envision innovative alternatives.

The good news is that Vermont is drafting a Comprehensive Energy Plan right now. Later this summer, Commissioner Elizabeth Miller of the Department of Public Service and her team will roll out a draft and will want to hear from you, the public. The administration is taking an integrated approach for this plan, one that recognizes the complex network of interactions accounting for our energy usage. As Vermonters go from work to school, to shopping and home, we consume energy in a myriad of ways, efficiently or not. Understanding the complex web of energy use is critical to the success of the plan. That’s why the public’s input — your input — is so important.

In his recent book, “The Global Shift Toward Sustainable and Resilient Cities,” Dr. Timothy Beatley describes what he calls the “resilient city.” It resembles a city you might find in Vermont someday soon: a compact, transit-oriented, walkable, bikeable, full service community, surrounded by a working landscape that provides for a variety of ecological and economic functions, clean water, local food, renewable energy sources and waste recycling.

Vermont communities might just have the resources to achieve this level of resilience and sustainability. But first we must be on the same page in understanding the problems we face, developing a vision for an innovative, secure and sustainable future and crafting a strategy for success.

For instance, the prices of gasoline and home heating oil are only going to rise as sources become scarcer. But many folks can’t afford new, highly efficient cars or more energy-efficient homes. We must have more diverse mobility options for all Vermonters, options that will be used — because only through their use will they become cost-effective. Likewise we should build more energy-efficient, affordable homes for those who need them.

Climate scientists have been saying for some time now that we will be facing more extreme weather events. And now we are. We must rethink and rebuild our infrastructure — from resizing culverts to redesigning our sewage treatment plants. With worsening storms, we’ll also need to protect and restore the ecological functions of natural systems, such as wetlands and stream banks, so we can ensure clean water supplies and prevent the loss of topsoil necessary for growing our food.

It’s been a long time since we’ve worked on a common, statewide community-building effort. Let’s make sure that the Comprehensive Energy Plan provides a vision that will inspire us to action and goals that will guide us to a more resilient Vermont. Visit the Web site for the plan to learn how you, as a member of the Vermont public, can participate in this process.