Frequently Asked Questions

Question: Aren't City departments already doing sustainability? What s new about this effort?

Reply: The City is already practicing many aspects of sustainability. One of the first tasks of the City's Sustainability Action Plan team was to assess existing successes already in place in City operations, as well as additional opportunities that could be implemented. The successes and opportunities assessment helped to identify and document existing sustainability practices. However, there is no measurement, management, or optimization of the existing sustainability practices and emerging opportunities. The purpose of the Action Plan for Sustainability (Action Plan) is to be more strategic about sustainability. This project has goals of bringing together and highlighting the many existing sustainable efforts as well as organizing new, collective efforts in an attempt to maximize the opportunities to sustain and grow in a healthy, efficient, and productive manner.

Question: What is sustainability?

Reply: You may have heard the word uttered, skimmed over it in a magazine, or perhaps overheard coworkers talk about it, but do you know what sustainability is? The City of Fort Collins defines sustainability in City Plan as, "the long-term social, economic, and environmental health of a community." Another example is the most internationally recognized definition from the 1987 Bruntland Commission: Meeting the needs of the present without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. This definition builds off the concept that human consumption has exceeded the earth s carrying capacity and we need to bring that back in balance if we expect future generations to survive.

Question: What is the triple bottom line?

Reply: To bring the global concept of sustainability to action at the local level, sustainability advocates using the triple bottom line in decision-making. Essentially, costs are looked at across three categories: social, economic, and environmental. Rather than making decisions solely on the basis of the economic bottom line, the three bottom lines (social, economic, and environmental impacts) are considered. City Plan already uses this triple bottom line approach when it defines sustainability as, the long-term social, economic, and environmental health of our community. For the City's Action Plan, it means creating an optimal mix of resource efficiency, cost effectiveness, and employee well-being in implementing daily City operations.

Triple Bottom Line Sub-question: How can the City use the triple bottom line to make decisions?

Reply: There are two areas where the City can use the triple bottom line: (1) planning and (2) daily decision-making at the staff level. On the planning level, the triple bottom line was used within the Action Plan for Sustainability to prioritize areas on which to focus based on their potential triple bottom line benefits. Similarly, the Action Plan recommends that the capital planning team modify the feasibility, urgency, need, and desirability (FUND) scoring criteria to include the triple bottom line. In terms of daily decision-making, an example of purchasing paper can be used. If the City follows the triple bottom line approach, it might be asking a few questions: What is the budget for purchasing paper? Are we spending too little or too much to meet our needs? What products will foster employee productivity (e.g., avoid equipment jams, etc.)? Will purchased products have a minimum recycled content and/or be chlorine-free? What impacts will various paper products have on employee well-being and the environment?

Triple Bottom Line Sub-question: Is the environment valued above the other two tenets of the triple bottom line?

Reply: While sustainability emerged out of the environmental movement, there is increased recognition that environmental gains must be balanced with economic and social well-being.

Triple Bottom Line Sub-question: How does social well-being fit into the City's Action Plan?

Reply: For the scope of this project, employee well-being encompasses the social component of sustainability for City staff members. Employee well-being includes physical health, such as the City's wellness, health, and safety programs. Also, employee communications are identified in the City's core values. Finally, employee satisfaction and enjoyment of the workplace is part of this definition. The definition of the social component was narrowed for this project to define a consistent project boundary around the City's day-to-day operations as opposed to the community at large. However, it should certainly be recognized that fostering employee well-being helps the citizens of Fort Collins because employees become more productive and cost effective in their jobs.

Question: How does sustainability fit in with existing City plans and programs?

Reply: The City already has existing plans and programs that incorporate sustainability principles. Some examples include: Wellness Programs, Core Values, Health and Safety, Economic Vitality and Sustainability Plan, Energy Policy, Cities for Climate Protection, and Green Building Guidelines. The Action Plan for Sustainability helps identify the commonalities between programs and maximize returns by selecting action steps that incorporate principles from all three categories (social, economic, and environmental). For instance, Green Building could incorporate Energy Policy and Wellness principles, inspiring a building design that saves money from energy costs (economic), reduces energy consumption (environment), and uses low toxicity materials to protect employee health (social).

Question: Will this effort conflict with other existing policies?

Reply: There are many existing City operational policies that include sustainable practices and overlap with the goals of the Action Plan for Sustainability. In those cases, staff members can determine how to best refine City practices to include the best sustainable methods. If there are conflicts with existing policies, staff members can determine whether the existing policy or practice should be updated or refined or whether the sustainability goal or target is more appropriate.

Question: Will there be checklists available for staff members to easily implement sustainability?

Reply: As part of ongoing efforts to implement and measure updated or new operations, the implementation team may develop checklists, resource listings, or other effective tools to assure that best practices are being carried out.

Question: What are other cities doing about sustainability?

Reply: Many cities throughout the world are practicing aspects of sustainability, and several have developed formal policies and action plans. Three good examples include the cities of Calgary, Seattle, and Portland, which have all adopted sustainability policies. The Fort Carson Army Base in Colorado Springs provides a good local example and has a 25-year vision for a comprehensive sustainability planning process, including goals and quantitative targets.

Question: Is this effort going too far to emphasize sustainability?

Reply: Many businesses and government entities have determined that there is a correlation between sustainability and best practices. Emphasizing sustainable practices throughout operations has a number of long- and short-term advantages. Measurement is used to monitor progress and to determine if new or revised practices need refinement.

Question: How do I learn more about the Action Plan for Sustainability?

Reply: Once the Action Plan for Sustainability is completed, it will be presented to the Executive Leadership Team for its feedback and suggestions for improving the plan. We will then share this guidance and the next steps with you. We envision communicating the Action Plan for Sustainability goals and targets with all of the service areas in much the same way as the Wellness Program opportunities are shared and encouraged.