Spotlight
On...
Planning
with POWER (Indiana NEMO)
Article
from the National Network Newsletter Spring 2004 issue.
With
the major east-west byways of the nation passing through the
state, Indiana's motto of being the “Crossroads of America” is
certainly apt. But within the last few decades, the Indianapolis
crossroads are looking more like the crosshairs of suburban sprawl.
In the decade from 1990 to 2000, Indiana's population grew by
almost 10%, with the fastest growing counties bordering Indianapolis,
with a nearly 25% increase in the 1990's and another estimated
4% growth in the period since the 2000 Census.
Standing
in the breach of this growing suburban flood is Bob McCormick,
coordinator of Planning with POWER. The POWER program, which
stands for Protecting Our Water and Environmental Resources,
is a collaboration between two successful statewide educational
and technical assistance efforts: the Purdue Extension Land Use
Team, and the multi-agency Indiana Conservation Partnership.
The program has been working in Indiana since 2000, finding initial
funding from an Indiana “section 319” nonpoint source
grant, and additional support from the NOAA Coastal Services
Center. Ongoing support is provided by the two lead agencies,
the Indiana-Illinois Sea Grant College Program and the Purdue
University Cooperative Extension Service.
“
We pretty much hit the ground running,” says McCormick. “Working
with the county extension agents and other team members in the
Conservation Partnership, we were able to deliver presentations
to over 40 counties within the first year.”
And
this exposure has paid dividends.
Focusing special effort on counties with immediate needs, the POWER
program was able to use not only the adapted NEMO materials, but
also the open space planning information gleaned from the Smart
Growth through Open Space Planning training put on by the
National Hub. “Most of the growth in Indiana has come at
the expense of farmland, so open space planning, conservation subdivisions,
and farmland protection is of interest to our communities,” observes
McCormick. Given that Indiana has some of the most productive croplands
in the world, the need for a strategy to protect this resource
is of critical importance.
The
POWER team has used local advisory teams, presentations and topical
workshops to catalyze local action and continues
to work with communities on natural resource protection, comprehensive
land use planning, and smart growth principles. Planning with
POWER is working closely with the recently formed Indiana Land
Resources Council, a group chaired by the Lieutenant Governor
that is working with communities across the state. The Council
has asked POWER to provide assistance and guidance to their first
three pilot communities. This level of involvement with land
use statewide, along with continuing requests from communities,
have kept Bob busy. “This certainly is a growth business,” muses
McCormick, “and I only see the NEMO message growing in
importance here.”
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