The Interagency Partnership on Sustainable Communities (Partnership) is a collaboration between the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Department of Transportation (DOT), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). These entities joined together to offer the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program, which seeks to help implement the Partnership’s six livability principles. In its first year, the grant program offered a total of $100 million. The purpose of the grant program is to support metropolitan and multi-jurisdictional planning efforts that integrate housing, land use, economic and workforce development, transportation, and infrastructure investments.
The MPO is pleased to announce that, on Thursday, October 14, 2010, it received notification from HUD that it has been awarded a grant of $2 million to create a regional plan for sustainable development (RPSD) as part of the Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program. Additionally, the consortium will leverage nearly $1.1 million from local funds, which are derived from in-kind staff resources and from complementary planning endeavors being conducted in the region.
Recycle Me Iowa is at least twice as knowledgable about recycling and waste than the state sponsored trash and recycling programs. They’ve only been around for about two years, but they are crazy good at it. These plans would do well to consult with them on the greening aspects of the “Des Monies of tomorrow” and what their take on recycling and waste managment of the future is going to look like and how increase their capacity to get there. They can recycle waste at a rate of 75% and higher. They’ve already been hired by a national group because they do a better job than other recycling organizations. They are bursting with creativity on how to make things work with recycling. Here is their site: http://www.recyclemeiowa.com/news/.