Robert Sanford

Evaluating the effectiveness of Act 250 in protecting Vermont streams

Vermonts progressive land development and land use law (Act 250), now 30 years old, provides district and state control over major developments through the review of environmental and planning criteria. Although it is comprehensive in nature, the law is applied on a case-by-case basis, which can make the results inconsistent. Up to now, there have been no significant studies of the role of Act 250 in conserving water quality through stream buffers. This research uses four case-studies of stream buffer use along Vermont streams as a step toward understanding and improving the role of comprehensive land use regulation in protective buffers. Such a study, while directly applicable to Vermont, could be useful to other states that are interested in improving compliance with existing regulations or in adopting new land use legislation.

Vermont's Act 250 legislation: a citizen-based response to rapid growth and development

Unregulated land development, dramatic increases in population, soaring land prices, and environmental degradation are significant factors responsible for the widespread concern among Vermonters that the state is losing its distinctive rural character and its small, picturesque villages. The citizen legislature responded by adopting Act 250, Vermonts principal land development and land use law. This paper describes the events leading to the passage of this law, examines the major components of this progressive legislation, and analyzes its effectiveness in protecting Vermonts natural resources.

Cleaning Artifacts with CalgonTM

Experiments in which recently excavated artifacts were soaked for at least four hours in 40 g/liter aqueous solutions of Calgon (sodium [hexa]metaphosphate), then rinsed off in a colander under tap water, show this method to be 1.5 to 6.4 times more thorough than traditional scrubbing while taking only two-thirds the time. This method, particularly effective in cleaning large batches of small or intricately surfaced objects, is a practical cost-saving procedure in both public and private-sector research.

PERSPECTIVES FROM THE FIELD: Strategic Planning and the Gorham East-West Transportation Corridor Study

The Gorham ~Maine! East-West Corridor Study is a major new transportation and land use study of the Greater Portland region, with a strong focus on transportation corridors immediately west of Portland. This region has historically been the fastestgrowing residential and job area in Maine and, as a result, the recipient of many undesirable regional growth challenges. The current crisis in transportation funding, added to rising energy and highway construction costs, makes this a good time to take a step back and fully evaluate the range of opportunities available for this corridor. The study’s goal is to evaluate all the options and find the right package of alternatives to protect home owners’ quality of life over the long term, increase mode choice, and address regional growth challenges through coordinated local land use actions and transportation system investment, all while striving to maximize the life of existing and future roadway networks.