GREEN STEPS

 

 

GREEN STEPS

Stepping Together Towards a Sustainable Society

The City of Greenbelt takes pride in being socially and environmentally responsible, two things the community believes to be intrinsically interlinked. From recycling to bike paths and the overhead tree canopies in between, the city continually strives to live as Green as possible. As the rest of the world progresses into a cleaner, more eco-friendly way of life, the City of Greenbelt plans to keep on evolving with it.

ALTERNATIVE FUEL VEHICLES

The City has a fleet of environmentally responsible vehicles in service, currently running six natural gas vehicles (two sedans, two vans, and two pick-ups) with the goal of doubling that (making them 10% of the City fleet) by 2012. It employs one hybrid SUV as well as a number of flex-fuel vehicles. Bio-diesel (80/20) was used in the fleet for years until 2006, when it was cut as a cost saving measure. Though ethanol is not yet available in the area, there is the opportunity to expand the fleet due to the natural gas pumping station at Public Works.

GREEN FACILITIES

thermal heatCity facilities in Greenbelt also maintain a high level of environmental responsibility. The new Public Works facility will be a green building, using 70% of materials recycled from the site of its demolition. The facility will rely on geo-thermal energy for heating and cooling, as well as energy efficient lighting, with automatic on/off settings and light sensing. The facility's Energy Efficiency Program is an ongoing process to continually upgrade the lighting. The now recently completed energy efficiency audit (Chevron) will continue to implement recommendations over the next few years.

tree cityTREE CITY USA

The City of Greenbelt is proud to have been designated at a Tree City USA City for the past 10 years.

To qualify as a Tree City USA community, a town or city must meet four standards established by The Arbor Day Foundation and the National Association of State Foresters.

These standards were established to ensure that every qualifying community would have a viable tree management plan and program.

It is important to note that they were also designed so that no community would be excluded because of size.

  1. A Tree Board or Department

  2. A Tree Care Ordinance

  3. A Community Forestry Program With an Annual Budget of at Least $2 Per Capita

  4. An Arbor Day Observance and Proclamation

GREENBELT'S TREE CANOPY

City operations focus on the Tree Canopy, which is currently at 62%. A few years ago the Public Works department completed their street-tree master plan, to identify gaps in the street tree canopy and improve on those gaps. Goals were set and met. The city is also participating in the new State program to measure and improve tree canopy. Recent surveys show Greenbelt as having one of the highest percentages of tree canopies in the region. The Adopt-a-Tree program in the city is as always, alive and flourishing.

rain gardenRAIN BARRELS AND RAIN GARDENS

Greenbelt uses rain barrels to collect water in several places throughout the city. Water running of the Youth Center Roof is collected to water its decorative gardens. The Public Works Green House, which grows plants used in landscaping throughout the city, has a large rain barrel system to address its watering needs. During Earth Day 2010, a rain garden was planted near the new restroom facility at Buddy Attick Park.

cleanupCLEAN-UP PROGRAMS

Clean-up programs are vital to the city, with Greenbelt's Recycling and Environment Advisory Group organizing more community volunteer clean-up programs on Earth Day each year. The city has an ongoing program which works to improve the water quality at Greenbelt Lake through upstream improvements. In addition to that, Greenbelt is signatory to the Anacostia Trash Treaty, which also works on improving water quality. The City recently identified a trash "Hot Spot" at Spellman Overpass. Currently more than 54% of all collected waste gets recycled. Greenbelt provides curbside and drop-off services, which includes but is not limited to electronics, clothing, oil and batteries, and leaf collection and composting. On days with lower air quality conditions (deemed Code Orange and Red), the City adapts all of its operations, to include limiting refueling to mornings or evenings, and no grass cutting on Red Days. In the 2010 fiscal year, the city is working with apartment communities to improve recycling.

ZIPCAR

The City is taking on other Green initiatives, like the Zipcar, which was established at the Green Ridge House. The City has also provided residency programs. This includes a monthly grant for police that live in town, as well as a $2,000 grant to any City employee who buys a home in the community. In agreements negotiated with Greenbelt Station and Springhill Lake, the city pushed for use of Green building technology and low impact building approaches.

PAPER RETRIEVER PROGRAM

The City of Greenbelt uses the Paper Retriever Program to collect newspapers at the city's 2 reycling centers located at Buddy Attick Park and at Hanover Drive. Collections through this program helps to raise money for the city's other recycling efforts.

SUSTAINABILITY TRACKING

The 2010 fiscal year budget established a sustainability tracking system which monitors progress towards the climate change goals set by the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments.