Environment

Burlington is fortunate to have a plethora of players and stakeholders working to make our 2030 vision a reality.  Here is a sampling of what’s going on:

CLIMATE ACTION PLANNING

Burlington’s CAP,  first written and adopted by the City Council in 2000, is currently being updated.  This new version will include dozens of  community generated-recommendations on how to reach our target reduction goal of 20% below 2007 levels by 2020.  To see the plan, and related activities related to climate action planning, please visit:  http://burlingtonclimateaction.com/

 WASTE REDUCTION AND RECYCLING

 Waste Reduction Pilot in City Hall:  This fall, with the help of Chittenden Solid Waste District (CSWD), City staff sorted through one day’s worth of City Hall’s trash and recyclable materials. The goal of this exercise was to discover if city employees properly sort recyclables and trash, and if enough compost is generated weekly to justify beginning a composting program in city facilities. As employees started sorting through trash cans, it quickly became evident that a large portion of what they found was not “TRUE TRASH” and should have been recycled or composted. In fact, in terms of volume, the results of this exercise showed that 1/3 of the materials found in the trash bags were recyclables (33 gallons), another 1/3 could have been composted (32 gallons) and only 1/3 was true trash (32 gallons). 

A pilot project is now underway to help educate city staff, reduce the amount of trash generated and hopefully save the city money. This pilot project started with an education session with CSWD to ensure that employees are knowledgeable with regards to recyclables and compostable materials and includes composting in City Hall.

ENERGY EFFICIENCY

Clean Energy Assessment District:  Burlington is aggressively moving forward with plans to utilize the authority granted to Vermont municipalities under Act 45 to establish a CEAD to encourage building owners to install eligible energy efficiency and/or renewable energy projects in homes and businesses.  Act 45 allows towns to borrow funds for this purpose and then re-lend to participating property owners who then pay back the cost as a regular assessment on their property tax bill.   A working group has been meeting every two weeks since the summer, with the active participation of VEIC.  We are planning to have a ballot item in March to create the district, and possibly a second ballot item to float a bond to finance the program (we are currently assessing all financing options).

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants: Burlington has appropriated its FY09 allocation ($180K) amongst six projects: 1)    District Energy feasibility analysis; 22)    Energy efficiency improvements in municipal buildings including City Hall, Fletcher Free Library, Memorial Auditorium, Police Department.

TRANSPORTATION and AIR POLLUTION

CarShareVT Membership:  Burlington has committed to using some of its Energy Efficiency Conservation Block Grant funding to secure municipal employee membership in CarShare Vermont.  This will not only reduce the need for personal vehicles, and hence reduce single occupancy vehicle use in town, but potentially save the City money by eliminating costly reimbursements to staff who use their own vehicles for business.

Fletcher Allen Health Care, UVM, and Champlain College continue to promote alternative forms of transportation to employees through with the Campus Area Transportation Management Association (CATMA). Currently, more than half of FAHC’s Medical Center employees carpool, take the bus or walk or bike to work, up from approximately 30% five years ago.

Burlington’s No-Idling Campaign has involved an extensive outreach strategy, including the placement of no-idling signs around the community.  Most recently, the DPW Commission approved changes in to the original ordiance, including limited idling from 5 to 3 minutes and eliminating the season exemption.   Legacy is currently working with a school-coordinator on outreach and education about idling in the school community.   To view the updated ordinance, click here: No Idling Ordinance Update.  To learn about anti-idling efforts around the state, visit: www.idlefreevt.org

RENEWABLE ENERGY

Solar in Schools: The Burlington School District, BED and CEDO are collaborating with a newly formed L3C corporation – New Generation Partners – in a public/private partnership to develop between 1.5 and 2 megawatts of PV power on the rooftops of 5-6 school buildings. As a private entity, NGP can access a number of federal subsidies that would not otherwise be available to the City or School District. Key to this effort is an application being submitted on Monday to the VT Public Service Board for a standard contract offered to PV developers at 30 cents a kW hour (per Act 45) – almost 3 times the current retail price for power. The project will “green” the schools, expand BED’s renewable energy portfolio, mitigate the impact of Act 45 on BED ratepayers, and provide lease payment income to the School District in the amount of $44,000/year.

URBAN FORESTRY

With tree cover at over 45%,  Burlington is one of America’s greenest cities.  To help protect and foster our beautiful trees, Burlington has created a progressive Urban Forestry Plan.  Written with assistance from the University of Vermont, this plan details our plans and vision to ensure the endurance of this valuable resource.   Various community and government stakeholders are responsible for bringing this plan to life including Branch Out Burlington, a non-profit group committed to maintaining and supporting urban forestry.

 FARMS, GARDENS, AND LOCAL FOOD

Local Food in Schools:  The Burlington School Food Project, a partner initiative involving the School District, Sustainable School Program, City Market, VT FEED, and others is a national model on how to bring local foods to school cafeterias, support farmers and improve childhood nutrition.   The BSFP recently won a $20,000 grant from Green Mountain Coffee Roasters to continue their efforts throughout the district’s 9 schools.

Fletcher Allen Health Care recently opened the Harvest Café, which incorporates fresh, organic and local fare, such as local squash and soy milk, locally-raised ground beef, chicken and turkey raised without non-therapeutic antibiotics and arsenical compounds, vegetarian choices, and organic fair trade coffee.  The goal of the café is to be the most sustainable retail establishment in health care, not just with seasonal foods offered year-round, but with environmentally friendly furnishings, such as marmoleum flooring, for example. As the State of Vermont largest ‘restaurant’, we spend a quarter of our budget, or $660,000, on the purchase of local foods from area farms and businesses.