The City of Dallas announced six premier members of the Dallas Sustainable Skylines Initiative on Monday, October 8th. The premiere members are: Green Mountain Energy, KDFW FOX 4, Agriboard Industries, Yellow Cab Company—Dallas, Dallas Habitat for Humanity and Professional Polish, Inc. As a growing area, Dallas faces many environment-related challenges. As a way to address these challenges, the City of Dallas has embarked on a new partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG). In March 2007, the EPA announced the City of Dallas had been selected as the first city in the country to team of with the EPA and its local COG to test a new three-year initiative aimed at bringing cleaner air to the metro area. The Dallas Sustainable Skylines Initiative is a joint effort with the primary goal of implementing sustainable practices to help improve Dallas’ air quality. Through Initiative-guided voluntary projects, the Initiative aims to achieve measurable environmental benefits–particularly the reduction of air emissions, but also the significant improvement of water and land quality–while simultaneously contributing to the vitality of the Dallas economy and the quality of life of Dallas’s citizens. “The City is proud of the public-private partnerships that have resulted from the Dallas Sustainable Skylines Initiative,” said Dallas City Councilwoman Linda Koop. “Our private sector partners have demonstrated their commitment to environmental stewardship and responsibility. This cooperation brings to life the ideas behind the Dallas Sustainable Skylines Initiative and moves us closer to achieving our goals of a Sustainable Dallas.” In the long term, the Initiative aims to create a successful program that can serve as a model for other cities. The Initiative is focusing on seven projects: urban heat island/stormwater mitigation, Green Taxi program, Green Building project, greenhouse gas strategy, renewable energy/energy efficiency outreach, Site Assessment Visits Plus (SAV+) program, and small off-road equipment replacement and retrofits. These projects are expected to yield quantifiable benefits within three years. “We all have a stake in the quality of our air,” said EPA Regional Administrator Richard E. Greene. “Cities across the nation are looking to the Dallas Sustainable Skylines program to show how green buildings, green taxis and other green approaches can save money, conserve energy and improve air quality. We look forward to other cities adopting these initiatives and building on them.” Dallas Sustainable Skylines Premier Partners have pledged to participate and conduct measurable projects under one or more the five major categories of sustainable actions: enhance central city livability, promote green buildings and developments, implement and promote renewable energy/energy efficiency, reduce emissions from stationary sources/area sources, and reduce off-road emissions. “These companies are committed to being advocates of the environment and are demonstrating the importance of tackling our problems in a variety of ways,” said Mike Eastland, North Central Texas Council of Governments Executive Director. “They are setting an excellent example that materially demonstrates that everyone can contribute to improving air, water and land quality.” These projects include:
To learn more about the Dallas Sustainable Skylines Initiative, please visit their website or contact:
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