Eau Claire has been invited to a pretty fancy private party: The Green Tier. The Green Tier is a group of Wisconsin cities that work toward pushing environmentally friendly practices. If the City Council approves and accepts the invitation, they will make a pledge to encourage ‘green’ efforts and in exchange get help from the DNR to implement these efforts by easing the permitting process. A handful of local businesses are already involved in the program, including Phillips Plastics, Veolia Environmental Services, Short Elliott Hendrickson and Hutchinson Technology. Another huge advantage to the program is the ability for involved cities to share what initiatives they are taking and the results, which can give other cities an idea of what works and what doesn’t.