In this age of public skepticism about science, sustainability science offers a way to increase the application of science in planning and policy. This paper explores the relationship between science and society and the emergence of sustainability science. A comparison of the theory and practice of sustainability science and planning reveals the potential for a natural partnership. Based on the analysis, I suggest ways that planning may bridge the gap and build on the opportunity to strengthen its purpose and impact.

Development impact fees are an effective way for communities to recoup some of the costs of growth. Typically, they have been used to raise revenues to help pay for new capital spending. In this paper, the possibility of using impact fees to help offset the costs of additional carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions that are caused by growth is explored. After briefly summarizing the problem of CO2 pollution, the author identifies eight issues that make a CO2 impact fee unique, and which would likely be confronted by a community attempting to implement such a fee. The author concludes by organizing these issues by whether they pose primarily a legal, practical, and/or political challenge.