Orange County NC Website
~ a~ <br />The ~'i(lage Project Comments on the Ora~~ge Co~~€~ty Comprehensive flan Ul~clate Draft 2 <br />Orange County Comprehensive Plan <br />DRAFT 5-6-08 <br />1.3. TOWARD A SUSTAINABLE <br />FUTURE <br />An emerging point of consensus in Orange <br />County is that we need to act in a manner <br />that will achieve a quality of life that is <br />sustainable into the future. Objectives <br />include environmental conservation, energy <br />efficiency, affordable housing, social equity, <br />a thriving economy, regional agricultural <br />production and the availability of transit- <br />oriented, walkable, mixed-use communities. <br />Orange County residents understand the <br />linkages that support a sustainable future. <br />Examples abound: To help preserve rural <br />character, shop at a farmers market to help <br />keep local farms in production. To help pay <br />for schools and services, encourage growth <br />of the non-residential tax base by locating <br />residences close to business and retail <br />centers. Reduce growth in carbon emissions <br />by achieving compact development patterns. <br />Village Project Suggested Revisions <br />to Section 1.3: (new text italicized & <br />bolded) <br />1.3. TOWARD A SUSTAINABLE <br />FUTURE <br />An emerging ~ consensus in Orange <br />County is ~e the need to act in a <br />manner that will achieve a quality of life that <br />is sustainable ' Local and <br />global natural resources are finite. Local <br />activities have global consequences that <br />must factor into. our decision-making. <br />Limited oil reserves and the onset of global <br />warming compel us to embrace economic <br />models, development patterns, <br />transportation systems, and public <br />investments that will result in steadily <br />decreasing COz emissions. E~l~jee~i~es Our <br />principle tenets including environmental <br />conservation, energy efficiency, affordable <br />housing, social equity, a thriving economy, <br />regional agricultural production and the <br />availability oftransit-ready, walkable, <br />mixed-use communities must be tailored to <br />enhance current prosperity and well being <br />without reducing choices for future <br />generations. <br />[This sentence panders to the reader and is <br />actually false. The linkages are complex and <br />poorly understood. Even issues as simple as <br />litter or as pervasive as stormwater runoff <br />are poorly understood.) <br />Page 1 June 6, 2008 <br />