MADISON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) celebrates the end of another successful year for the Green Tier Legacy Communities charter with three new members. 

The Green Tier Legacy Communities charter is part of the DNR’s Green Tier program. Involvement is voluntary for businesses, local governments and organizations looking to work with the DNR to expand and enhance their sustainability practices. The Green Tier Legacy Communities charter specifically empowers local governments to move toward a sustainable future through initiatives promoting environmental stewardship, economic growth, public health and social equity.

The DNR is excited to officially welcome the city of Sun Prairie, the Bay Lake Regional Planning Commission and the city of Stoughton into the program and looks forward to working with them to improve their communities’ environmental performance and outcomes.

Green Tier Legacy Communities (GTLC) is a network that is committed to helping communities pursue actions that result in thriving communities with healthy environments, engaged residents and strong economies. Membership helps participants access funding opportunities and technical assistance, track their progress over time through annual reporting as well as learn from each other’s experiences.

Each new community has demonstrated a commitment to pursuing environmental goals, and joining this charter will enhance their ability to achieve them. By connecting with other members to share their progress and knowledge, Green Tier Legacy Communities help each other become more sustainable and resilient. Some of the goals and accomplishments of the new members include:

• The city of Sun Prairie helped the community reduce the amount of waste going to landfills by increasing the frequency of recycling pickup from biweekly to weekly. The city is promoting renewable energy by installing the first two municipally owned level 2 electric vehicle charging stations for both public and city fleet vehicles at its City Hall facility and installing the city’s largest solar array on the wastewater treatment plant.​ Sun Prairie’s sustainability goals include writing a full climate action plan, completing a greenhouse gas inventory and electrifying 50% of the city’s fleet vehicles by 2035.
  
• Bay Lake Regional Planning Commission (RPC) is a multi-service government entity that delivers a variety of federal, state and local programs to eight counties in northeastern Wisconsin. The commission is available to help member counties and communities in the Bay-Lake region with a variety of long-range planning efforts, including environmental projects such as coastal planning, invasive species management and climate resiliency preparation. The commission is a new type of member for the Legacy Communities charter, and we are excited about the potential collaboration opportunities that will come out of this partnership.
  
• The city of Stoughton has completed multiple projects related to energy reduction including the installation of an electric vehicle charging station in the City Hall parking lot, the conversion of all Main Street lights to LEDs and upgrading multiple pieces of equipment across municipal buildings to more efficient versions. The city’s utility, Stoughton Utilities, has received national recognition nine times from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory for its green power participation and was recognized as a Dane County Climate Champion in 2023. The city formed its Sustainability Committee in 2021 to develop a formal sustainability plan. Approved in November 2024 by the Stoughton City Council, the plan mirrors the environmental priorities of other Legacy Communities and includes goals for energy and emissions, water quality and conservation, transportation systems and community health.

Learn more about Green Tier Legacy Communities on the DNR’s Green Tier webpage.