If we only had ONE DOLLAR to spend, how do we:

Like many other communities across the nation, Springfield is looking for a way to balance increasingly stringent environmental regulations with other important community priorities. 

Federal and State regulations require Springfield to devote an large amount of money and resources toward protecting the environment. Amid these increasing environmental obligations, Springfield is facing growing levels of poverty and an increasing demand for public spending.

The citizens and leadership of the Springfield-Greene County region understand the importance of environmental stewardship and are widely recognized as a model community in this regard. Quality environmental resources are especially important to the Ozarks since much of our economic development, tourism and overall quality of life are directly tied into the quality of our air and water. However, environmental regulations are often applied independent of each other and without consideration of the overall needs of our community.

Making informed environmental investments is a difficult challenge for all communities, and because it’s such a significant issue, leaders from the City of Springfield, Greene County and City Utilities developed a local decision-making approach called the “Integrated Plan for the Environment”. This holistic approach proposes to use local knowledge to examine our environmental resources related to wastewater and stormwater as well as solid waste, drinking water and air quality.

This approach to decision making will ensure that our community’s resources will be invested in what matters most to our community, while addressing the most significant problems, using the most effective solutions, in a way that is affordable to our citizens.

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