The next meeting of the Green Practices Committee will be held on Wednesday, January 12, 2010 at 6:30 pm at the City Hall in the second floor conference room.  The Committee will be discussing targets for reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and the progress of work on the subcommittees. 

The municipal parking lot #5 located near the Post Office (west Loop) has been reopened for use this week.  The total project cost is around $130,000 which includes not only the new permeable pavers, but sidewalk, curb, entrances, demolition of the old brick wall and installing a new decorative fence.  This project is being financed by the Economic Development Fund.  Although the permeable pavers are more expensive to install on the front end than asphalt, the  pavers will pay for themselves over time because of the 25 + year lifespan, low maintenance costs and reduction in costs to MSD for impervious surfaces. The new pavers are also more ecologically sound.  By reducing the amount of storm water runoff entering our natural waterways, permeable pavers help protect the quality of our water from contaminants and pollutants. And with less runoff comes less flooding, which in turn helps reduce the rate of erosion on river banks and stream beds. Creating natural filtration and groundwater recharge helps keep our ecological system intact. In fact, research has proved that permeable pavements can reduce pollutants found in surface runoff, like sediments, pesticides, chemicals, and heavy metals, an average of 60-80%.   The next parking lot to be refurbished with a permeable surface is the Tivoli lot.

The Green Practices Committee is seeking volunteers to be on subcommittees to help devise the specifics of the City's Sustainability Plan.  The subcommittee will explore and make recommendations for actions the City and its citizens can do to make us more sustainable.  The Committee seeks citizens who have a expertise or a genuine interest in the following subjects: 

1) Land Use/Open Space/Parks
2)Transportation/Mobility
3) Energy (Traditional/Renewable)/Emissions
4) Green Building 
5) Waste/Resource Conservation 
6) Ecosystems/Habitat 
7) Air Quality and
8) Water/Stormwater.  

If you would like to participate in these important subcommittees, please contact Staff Liaison Petree Eastman at 314-505-8535 or by Email.

Come the first of the year the City will hire two part engineering assistants to inventory the AmerenUE owned street lights and to conduct its Green House Gas Inventory.  The lighting study will provide valuable GPS information to the public works department to enable it to determine the necessity of a street light, maintain service records and plan in the future.  Because most of the City's street lighting is owned and maintained by AmerenUE the City has little ability to control energy use or cost.  This has prompted the City to 1) reduce its overall lighting in an effort to save general fund dollars and 2) prevail upon the Missouri Public Service Commission to require AmerenUE to charge a fair and reasonable rate.  The assistant hired to conduct the greenhouse gas inventory will collect data from all sources in which carbon is emitted by the City itself and the community.  This inventory will establish a baseline of data from which the Green Practices Committee's Sustainability Plan can build.   The entirety of the inventory purpose is to see exactly where we are today, where we see ourselves in terms of carbon footprint in the future and set reasonable and attainable goals to meet those targets.   Currently, the City is actively engaging in green practices, but has no idea the magnitude of the impact of its actions.  Getting the greenhouse gas inventory for a base year is the first step to concerted action.  Stay tuned as news of our new hires will be forthcoming shortly.