The Columbia County Planning Department helps people make informed decisions. Our program areas include: land use planning/zoning; environmental quality/management; agriculture; transportation; and open space/recreation. We accomplish our mission by interacting with and advising state and federal government agencies, The County Board of Supervisors, local government officials, and the public. Our interaction takes many forms including data and information dissemination; research, analysis and recommendations; and education and technical assistance. The Department provides professional staff support to the Columbia County Planning Board and the County Environmental Management Council. Staff also make important contributions as voting members of local advisory bodies (e.g. County Ag & Farmland Protection Board and the County Transportation Advisory Committee) as well as state level governmental advisory committees (e.g. Hudson River Valley Greenway and NYS Open Space Plan). We regularly partner with other agencies to deliver important services (e.g. the NYS Data Center for dissemination of US Census Bureau data and the NYS Department of State for education and training of local planning and zoning officials).