CEM TIERS / STRUCTURE

TIER 1 - Survey Community Natural Resource Concerns
Identifies a community’s current perception of their water quality and other natural resource problems

TIER 2A - Community Capacity Assessment
Provides a current overview of a community’s ability to address their natural resource concerns. This worksheet identifies key decision-makers, existing local regulations, regulatory infrastructure, and current enforcement & maintenance capabilities.

TIER 2B - CEM Assessment Worksheets
Individual assessment worksheets are used to evaluate the existing level of risk from concerns identified in Tier 1. These worksheets further help a community evaluate the extent of existing environmental problems along with potential strategies and management options for addressing.

TIER 3 - Community Natural Resource Planning
The remedial and preventive strategies and management options the community identifies for addressing each concern are then incorporated into individual plans or an overall 5 year natural resources plan for the community based on restoration and protection goals established for the assessment area. The natural resources plan should then be incorporated into the Community’s Comprehensive Land Use Plan to provide the documentation of the importance of these resources to the community. The Master Plan will provide the legal justification that the public welfare will be adequately protected by any regulations that might be adopted to protect and preserve these resources.

TIER 4 - Natural Resource Plan Implementation
Components of the natural resources plan(s) are implemented with the overall objective being to establish effective local programs for addressing specific community concerns such as loss of farmland. This tier involves practices, development and adoption of ordinances or implementation of a local public outreach program.

TIER 5 - Feedback and Evaluation
Tier V will provide guidance for ongoing evaluation of plan implementation to determine if goals are being met.