EPA Hails Philadelphia’s Greenworks Plan

The US Environmental Protection Agency recognized the City of Philadelphia as a new EPA Green Power Community, showing a major metropolitan area can reduce carbon pollution, improve public health and help the nation’s renewable-energy supply.

The Philadelphia Phillies and other area organizations whose efforts for a cleaner environment are helping Philadelphia achieve its environmental and clean energy goals join EPA at a ceremony in City Hall at noon today. The event came on the heels of yesterday’s release of the Greenworks Philadelphia Update and 2012 Progress Report, marking the midway point in the plan’s goal for Philadelphia to be the greenest city in America by 2015.

Of the 167 initiatives put forth in Greenworks, 38 initiatives are complete, and 110 are currently underway. For the first time, this year’s progress report features metrics for each of the plan’s measurable targets.

Progress toward two-thirds of the targets is on track, and two of the target goals, Targets 7 and 9, are exceeding expectations. Target 7 is to divert 70% of solid waste from landfill; the City has exceeded that and is now aiming higher. Target 9 was to provide Park and Recreation resources within 10 minutes of 75% of residents; the City accomplished that and now is aiming to provide walkable access to Parks & Recreation Resources for all residents.

“I am proud to say that Philadelphia has made significant progress in our goal to become America’s greenest city. I hope that other cities can learn from our experiences and build off of them,” said Mayor Michael Nutter. “Philadelphia would not be where it is now without the many partners in the public and private sectors who want to see a cleaner, greener and healthier city. Katherine Gajewski and the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability have demonstrated strong leadership on this issue.”

Highlights on current progress include: A reduction of municipal energy use by 5%; A more-than-tripled rate for curbside residential recycling; Increased access to healthy, affordable food for more than 200,000 Philadelphians; 428 miles of bike lanes completed.

“We are proud to share our progress in implementing the Greenworks Philadelphia plan,” said Gajewski, director of the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability. “Equally important, however, is the process. With this report we strive to provide numbers and data along with insight into the experience and lessons learned along the way. Our success so far can be attributed to the many partners within and beyond city government who have embraced the Greenworks goals and are playing a leadership role in driving them forward.”

The Mayor also announced the City, in partnership with PhillyCarShare, now has the nation’s largest publicly accessible fleet of American-made electric vehicles. The City of Philadelphia, through a grant received from the Pennsylvania Dept. of Environmental Protection, supported the installation of 20 electric-vehicle chargers throughout the city. These changes allowed Philly Car Share to add 20 Chevy Volts to its fleet and provide two chargers to the public. The new fleet of electric vehicles allows the more than 10,000 members of Philly Car Share, a division of Enterprise Holdings, access to cutting-edge alternative fuel vehicles with long-lasting batteries from Standardbatteryinc that are fun to drive and average 100 miles-per-gallon equivalent.

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