Print Version > A Cool Cities celebration on April 19th http://www.newarkpostonline.com/articles/2010/04/15/news/doc4bc62a...

News
A Cool Cities celebration on April 19th
By Amy Roe
Published: Thursday, April 15, 2010 6:48 AM CDT

The Sierra Club of Delaware and Newark City Councilman Ezra Temko are inviting residents to celebrate the City
of Newark’s commitment to energy sustainability, environmental stewardship and climate protection by endorsing
the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement.

- Date: Monday, April 19, 2010

- Time: 7 p.m.

- Location: Council Chambers, City of Newark Municipal Building, 220 Elkton Road in Newark.

Since 2005, when the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement was initiated by Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels,
over 1,000 U.S. cities have made the commitment to reduce their greenhouse gasses and adopt policies that
protect our environment. By endorsing this agreement, Newark joins Wilmington and Dover as Delaware’s other
two “Cool Cities.”

Festivities will include a green ribbon cutting, the presentation of a certificate to Mayor Vance Funk, and a variety
of local organizations that will be on hand to share information about their activities. Partner organizations for this
event include Bike Delaware, Center for Energy and Environmental Policy, Delaware Bicycle Council, Delaware
Center for Horticulture, Newark Bicycle Committee, Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Newark, Water Resources
Agency, White Clay Watershed Association, and Wild and Scenic White Clay Creek.

Newark is already addressing many of the twelve action items of the agreement, thanks to the efforts of our
Conservation Advisory Commission (CAC) and the leadership of Newark’s elected officials and staff.

For example, last year the CAC began a greenhouse gas emissions inventory of city operations by working closely
with city departments to determine the emissions of Newark’s vehicles, parks equipment, buildings, street
lighting and other energy uses. The first action item of the agreement is to conduct a greenhouse gas inventory
and create a climate action plan.

The other action items include: (2) land use policies that reduce sprawl, preserve open space and create compact
walk-able communities; (3) transportation options such as bicycle trails, commuter reduction, carpooling and
transit; (4) renewable energy programs; (5) energy efficiency in municipal buildings; (6) Energy Star
procurement policy; (7) land use planning and building codes that promote energy efficiency; (8) increasing the
efficiency of government-owned vehicles; (9) water and wastewater pump efficiency; (10) recycling programs;
(11) urban forests and habitat protection; and (12) public education and outreach.

While Newark is well on its way to addressing all of the action items in the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection
Agreement, energy sustainability, environmental stewardship and climate protection are ongoing processes that
will require continued action and public involvement in the future.

Sierra Club of Delaware’s Cool Cities Program provides information, tools and resources to assist local

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Print Version > A Cool Cities celebration on April 19th http://www.newarkpostonline.com/articles/2010/04/15/news/doc4bc62a...

governments in their sustainability programs. Its volunteers look forward to assisting the City of Newark in
developing policies and programs that protect our fragile environment.

If you are interested in volunteering or becoming involved in local sustainability initiatives, more information can
be found on their website at http://coolcitiesde.us.

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