Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory is green friendly.
In response to Mayor Mallory's myriad greening efforts, the U.S. Green Building Council Cincinnati (USGBCC) chapter named him the 2008 Sustainable Leader of the Year.
"Protecting our environment has been a priority of mine throughout my career in public service," Mayor Mallory says. "I am truly honored to receive this distinguished recognition."
Each year the USGBCC Board of Directors honors one individual with this award. They consider recipients' impacts on making Cincinnati a more sustainable place to call home.
Alan J. Warner, Principal for GBBN Architects and Chair of the USGBCC, believes Cincinnati has a lot to be proud of for its green efforts. In particular, he notes, "Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) are shining."
"CPS leads the way - in the state and in the nation," Warner says. "They were first in Ohio to have sustainable design guidelines, first in the state to have LEED requirements, first in the state to have a LEED registered building and first in the state to have a LEED certified building."
It's not just schools committing to LEED certification.
Warner notes that Cincinnati is home to the state's only LEED Platinum projects: the Fernald Nature Center and the Emersion Design offices.
And with a storm water management plan being considered by the Environmental Protection Agency to be the model for the country and the nation's largest, most efficient Rumpke methane recovery plant, Warner says Cincinnati is doing "quite well indeed" in the green category.
Yet, this goes beyond the local. Mayor Mallory's contributions to environmental policy have piqued curiosity in USGBC chapters across the country.
Some of the more significant achievements he helped along include instituting a LEED Tax Incentive program and LEED policy for government buildings, signing the Climate Protection Plan, launching green street pilot projects and drumming up support for the proposed streetcar system.
Yet, Mayor Mallory's biggest action toward greening the city was deciding to restore the Office of Environmental Quality. This crucial office made the other strides possible.
Warner says the most important contribution of this office is that Cincinnati now has a plan.
"It is the first comprehensive plan in the state, actually the tri-state region," Warner says. "The revolutionary twist is that Cincinnati is teaming with private organizations to create broader support and means to achieve those goals."
This plan seeks to reduce the city's greenhouse gas emissions 84% by 2050.
These achievements may be impressive, but Mayor Mallory is not about to let up.
"We have made great strides in our city, but we have more work to do," he says. "I am looking forward to working with the USGBC to continue our efforts to make Cincinnati a more sustainable, greener, and healthier place to live."
To watch Mayor Mallory’s acceptance of the award, visit here.
Writer: Jonathan DeHart
Source: U.S. Green Building Council – Cincinnati, Alan Warner
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