16 Organizations Flex Their Green Muscles
Sixteen organizations have won Green Power Leadership Awards for buying green power and helping advance the nation's green power market, according to an Oct. 27 press release from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
These organizations represent retail, travel, athletic teams, U.S. military, universities, and communities.
"Our nation is shifting to a 'green culture' and Americans understand that environmental responsibility is everyone's responsibility," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson.
The Green Power Partners purchase nearly 5 billion kilowatt-hours of green power annually, equivalent to the amount of electricity needed to power more than 460,000 average American homes. The purchases made by these organizations will also avoid the same amount of carbon dioxide emissions that 640,000 vehicles would produce in one year.
EPA is recognizing winners in three award categories at the Eighth Annual Green Power Leadership Awards in Denver, Colo. Winning organizations are judged on their purchase, leadership, overall green power strategy, and impact on the green power market.
Green power is generated from renewable resources such as solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, biomass, and low-impact hydro. Green power sources produce electricity with an environmental profile superior to conventional power technologies and no human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. Purchases of green power also help accelerate the development of new renewable energy capacity nationwide.
EPA co-sponsors the Green Power Leadership Awards in conjunction with the U.S. Department of Energy and the Center for Resource Solutions.
2008 Green Power Leadership Award Winners:
Green Power Partner of the Year: Bellingham, Washington Community; Cisco Systems Inc.; Intel Corp.; University of Pennsylvania; WhiteWave Foods Co.
Green Power Purchasing: City of Houston, Texas; ING; Merritt 7 Venture, LLC; Oregon State University; PepsiCo Inc.; Powdr Resorts; The Estée Lauder Cos. Inc./Operations; The Philadelphia Phillies; U.S. Air Force.
On-Site Generation: Lundberg Family Farms; Kohl's Department Stores.
For more information, visit epa.gov/greenpower/awards/winners.htm.