The United Municipalities of America
As we’ve mentioned before, there’s a growing trend for municipal authorities taking matters in the own hands when it comes to the environment. And why not? When their own governments get it wrong or take too long to implement innovative new measures, it’s local government that misses out on the benefits, such as substantial savings on power and waste management.
This article from the Wall Street Journal (via Kottke) looks at nine such examples, including:
- rooftops in Chicago that are kept cool by gardens, lowering air-conditioning bills
- a suburb of Mumbai, India, using solar water-heaters
- New York taking the first steps towards hydroelectric turbines providing power for 8,000 homes
- the streetlights of Ann Arbour (near Detroit) shifting to LED bulbs, with a projected power saving of $700,000.
In the U.S., President Obama couldn’t be firmer on his commitment to switching America over to sustainable clean energy production over the coming years. However, that will take time – meanwhile, many municipalities already have their own plans in motion. Take California, where the state government is chasing the “zero net energy” standard of building efficiency. The city of Berkeley’s FIRST (Financing Initiative for Renewable and Solar Technology) program is providing the means for property owners to invest in cutting-edge green efficiency. Or how about Riverside’s sweeping Green Action Plan looks to providing a third of the city’s energy needs from renewable sources by 2020? Further afield, there’s the impressive greening of Grand Rapids under its eco-progressive mayor George Heartwell. And on…and on. These initiatives complement the national energy goals nicely, but they’re all proudly homegrown. (Over the border, Canada is similarly busy).
And what about political action? More than 160 countries have now signed the Kyoto Protocol for ecologically sound industrial and economic development. Under the Bush administration, the U.S. rejected it (happily, President Obama has a rather different view). For more than 800 American mayors in 2008, this was unacceptable ““ so they signed their own agreement to adhere to Kyoto’s guidelines.
Support your local city government: there’s no telling what it’s capable of.
Image: jmcmichael
(No Ratings Yet)
Loading ...
And the Country's First Carbon Neutral City Will Be…
XHello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic. Mayor Phil Gordon thinks it’s
The Super Soaker and the Solar Revolution
XHello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic. Here comes the Sun. Hot
What Can the World Expect from President Obama?
XHello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic. Today is the first day
5 Ways to Get Cash Back by Greening Your Home
XHello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic. Did you know that greening
|
Bookmark |
2 Comments
January 27th, 2009 at 10:33 am
Think munis can take ‘local’ action faster than the big utils. How about converting waste-to-energy thing? A few in my neck of the woods have already worked on WTE conversion – still small scale – but it’s a start.
urban trekker’s last blog post..Money Savings Tips on Energy
January 28th, 2009 at 9:55 am
i’m a pretty adamant federalist – i believe the federal government should leave most decisions to local government: states, municipalities, cities, etc., so i love these ideas. individuals and small communities can create A LOT of change – if the federal government would let them.
grechen’s last blog post..Must Have January 27: Stewart + Brown
Welcome! The comment box is all yours to say what you like. Just make sure you use a real name, not a site or company, so you don't get sent to the spam bin. (That makes us sad.)