North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission recently released their
Green Growth Toolbox, a website meant to aid towns, cities and counties in implementing green planning solutions. The website contains a handbook, GIS data for creating maps, and sample ordinances to guide planning officials in managing growth while protecting natural resources.
The release of this toolbox is timely as North Carolina is facing continuing development pressures. According to the
Green Growth Toolbox website:
- 3 million people will move to NC over the next 20 years
- 3 of the nation’s top 20 “sprawl centers” are in North Carolina: the Research Triangle, the Triad and the Charlotte metro region
- More than 100,000 acres of North Carolina’s forests and fields are developed each year – an area the size of Winston-Salem and High Point combined
Having data on floodplains, watersheds, biodiversity, managed lands and natural heritage all in one place is fairly exciting stuff and will surely streamline a lot of information searching for many state agencies and students.
-Daria Khramtsova, Research & Communications Intern, UNC Sustainability Office
