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So, your municipality has decided to develop a sustainable community plan, but you don’t know where to start or which approach to take? The term “sustainable community plan” can have different meanings to different municipalities. There are many approaches to use and tools available to help you develop one that’s right for you. All approaches tend to follow the basic principles laid out in the 1987 Bruntland Commission report, Our Common Future.

FCM’s Green Municipal Fund™ (GMF) provides grants for up to 50 per cent of costs to a maximum of $350,000 toward the development of a sustainable community plan that includes a vision and targets. All of the types of plans mentioned here are eligible for GMF funding.

A list of the different types of plans, their focus, examples and additional information has been compiled into a table to help you decide which plan is right for your municipality. This is not a comprehensive list of all the ways to develop a sustainable community plan, just some of the most common approaches being adopted by municipalities across Canada.

Main types of sustainable community plans

Municipalities in most provinces are required to produce an Integrated Community Sustainability Plan (ICSP) as part of the Federal Gas Tax Agreement to receive infrastructure funding. Municipalities in other provinces are required to develop similar plans. Exact requirements vary by province. Municipalities can consult their provincial municipal association for further details. In some provinces, an existing plan required under provincial legislation (e.g. an Official Plan in Ontario) may be accepted as is or with modifications. Municipalities may also use the opportunity to craft a new plan; long-range sustainability plans or Local Agenda 21 (LA21) plans have been accepted in some provinces. Funding may be available to help create the plan (this varies by province).

Municipalities participating in the Partners for Climate Protection program have been developing Local Action Plans for more than 10 years. These plans represent Milestone Three of the PCP five-milestone framework. They are action-oriented plans that identify projects, responsibilities and timelines for meeting a target. While the PCP plans focus on energy and greenhouse gases, similar plans could focus on water soft paths or other targeted issues that require actions in all sectors. The Local Action Plan incorporates all pillars of sustainability starting from an environmental perspective.

Local Agenda 21 (LA21) was one of the first frameworks for sustainable community plans. Led by the United Nations as part of the 1992 Rio Declaration on Environment and Development, LA21 encourages participatory, long-term strategic planning that helps municipalities identify local sustainability priorities and implement long-term action plans. LA21 plans incorporate all pillars of sustainability, emphasizing an inclusive and participatory approach to sustainable community development. LA21 resources have been developed by ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, FCM’s partner in managing the Partners for Climate Protection program.

Long-range sustainability plans have been around for some time and gone by a variety of names. Vision 2020 plans were popular during the 1990s. In the last few years, municipalities have lengthened their scope to 50 or 100 years. These plans focus on creating a vision and establishing the strategic direction for the municipality. Their long-term approach helps municipalities look beyond short-term topics of contention toward broad areas of common interest.

While some municipalities are developing their sustainable community plan as a stand-alone strategic plan to integrate their other secondary plans, others have gone a step further to make it their top-level planning document (i.e. Official Plan, Municipal Development Plan). The right approach for your municipality depends on how you weigh vision against action. Do you want a plan that will set a vision and policy direction for your municipality over time, or a plan that digs into the issue, identifying short- to medium-term projects, responsibilities and outcomes?

Any of these plans can be supported by a different conceptual approach. The Natural Step, the Melbourne Principles and the Earth Charter are a few examples of the underlying concepts of sustainability that have been used to support sustainable community plans. A variety of tools are also available to assist you in creating your plan. Check out some of these planning resources on the FCM Green Municipal Fund website.

Find out which plan is right for your municipality.

For more information, contact Devin Causley, MCIP RPP, Senior Program Officer, Green Municipal Fund, at 613-907-6370 or dcausley@fcm.ca.