Working Strategic Plan:
Mission, Vision, Values

Mission
To provide leadership, education and advocacy for the responsible stewardship of North Carolina's environment and natural resources.

Vision
North Carolina's abundant natural resources, healthy environment, and vibrant economy make it the best place to live, work, and visit.

Values
Values are a code of organizational conduct. They indicate the way we work and deal with others. They guide our actions and must cause all employees to continuously be true to them. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources is committed to demonstrating these values in our daily actions to accomplish our mission and achieve our vision.

Trust
We will demonstrate openness, honesty and integrity in all our actions.

Recognition
We will respect and recognize individual as well as team contributions; support employees reaching their full potential and value in a diverse work place.

Communication
We will communicate clearly and effectively, and exchange ideas freely with our customers and throughout DENR.

Accountability
We will take responsibility for what we do and not do.

Innovation
We will encourage new ideas and solutions at all levels to carry out DENRs mission.

Teamwork/Partnerships
We will work cooperatively to reach common goals.

Customer Focus
We will provide quality services and products to our customers while treating each person with dignity and respect.

Commitment
We will show allegiance to our mission and to each other.

Excellence
We will deliver services of the highest quality, showing initiative and a commitment to quality.

Work Ethic
We will honor our role as public servants by demonstrating hard work and productivity in the public trust.

Clean Water
We will restore and protect the quality of North Carolina's waters

1.1
Protect existing surface and groundwater quality and quantity to maintain designated uses and preserve these resources for future generations.

1.2
Reduce nonpoint source (NPS) pollution.

1.3
Reduce point source pollution.

1.5
Improve compliance and enforcement activities.

2.1
Improve the ability of the citizens of NC to more actively participate in improving their air quality.

2.2
Maintain and improve air quality through an effective permit and compliance program that meets state and federal standards.

2.4
Be active in addressing health, economic, visibility, and aesthetic concerns that may arise regarding air quality.

2.5
Assess the environmental effect of air emissions from animal waste operations.

2.6
Emphasize novel partnerships, including regional approaches, to manage air quality.

2.7
Provide leadership in developing an interagency strategy to reduce mobile source emissions.

3.1
Collect and maintain relevant, accurate inventories of North Carolina's natural resources and provide them to the public, state and federal agencies.

3.2
Develop strategic plans to deal with anticipated environmental problems and to identify ways to protect and manage our environment.

3.3
Implement measures to preserve, conserve, restore and sustain our natural resources.

Sustainable Development
We will provide leadership and endorse a healthy environment in a prosperous economy for present and future generations of North Carolinians

4.1
DENR will be a leader in bringing parties together to advance sustainable development in North Carolina.

4.2
Emphasize incentives to encourage sustainable development.

4.3
Foster and encourage local government land use planning.

4.4
Implement policies and programs that promote the sustainable use, conservation and protection of natural resources.

Environmental Awareness/Outreach
We will foster a statewide environmental ethic through community outreach and partnerships, education and hands-on learning experiences

5.1
Increase environmental and natural resource awareness of all North Carolinians through educational programs and outreach.

5.2
Maintain and expand a progressive and integrated repository of resources for environmental education that is easy to access.

5.3
Develop an extensive media program that promotes the environment as an individual responsibility, a valuable asset and vital to each North Carolinian.

5.6
Create and promote quality environmental education, technical assistance programs and easy access to good, understandable information for schools, public libraries, the general public, environmental centers and State government employees to ensure an understanding of the importance of protecting and restoring water quality. (Formerly objective 1.8. Subobjectives and actions must relate to water and air.)

Organizational Excellence
We will be a model of excellence in public service by emphasizing continuous improvement in communication, teamwork, customer focus and measurable results

6.1
Develop an internal strategy to improve communication, understanding and decision-making in DENR; and develop an external communications strategy to similarly improve communication/relationships with the media, public, and DENR supporters, by March 1, 1998.

6.2
Improve customer service throughout the Department.

6.3
Improve the way we do our work so that it is efficient, effective and customer-friendly.

6.4
Improve employee satisfaction, trust, and the work environment by 20% within one year.

6.5
Ensure essential resources are provided and available to employees throughout the department.

6.6
Initiate quality data management practices throughout the department to effectively identify and manage priority data such that it can be easily accessed and shared, distributed and presented within and across organizational boundaries.

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