Title
From the Director of Transportation and Public Works, submitting an informational report regarding the status on the Implementation of the Green Print Resolution Provisions. (INFORMATIONAL ONLY UNLESS OTHERWISE DIRECTED BY THE COMMITTEE)
Body
Background
The "Green Print" resolution requires regular reporting to the County Board on the status of its implementation. Reporting began in 2008. This is the second report for 2011.
Current Status on Each Provision (designated by the bulleted items)
Performance Contracting/Construction
The Department of Public Works shall adopt a wide-scale performance contracting initiative to review and retrofit 20% of all County public buildings annually with high-performance, energy efficient technology in an effort to save money once a baseline assessment has been performed by department staff. The Department of Transportation and Public Works will be required to report back quarterly on the progress made and savings achieved.
Status
Guaranteed energy savings performance contracts (GESPCs) have been a primary mechanism for implementing energy-efficiency improvements to County buildings over the past several years. Phase 1 contracts were completed at the end of 2009. Table 1 summarizes the buildings that were retrofitted as part of the Phase 1 contracts and the guaranteed energy savings for those projects.
We are currently in Phase 2. A list of buildings addressed as part of Phase 2 performance contracts were developed in the Spring of 2010. This list is provided in Table 2. Technical energy audits (TEAs) have been completed on all of the approved buildings, and these audits were used to develop the scope of the Phase 2 contracts. There are three Phase 2 GESPCs in various stages of completion. One of the contracts - Honeywell - is near completion. A Phase 2 GESPC with Johnson Controls (JCI) was approved this summer and is in progress. Contract terms for a third GESPC - AMERESCO - has undergone due diligence review by DAS and was submitted to the County Board for approval during the September cycle. The anticipated energy savings from the Phase 2 contracts is summarized in Table 3. The anticipated environmental benefits from both phases, once complete, are summarized in Table 4.
While performance contracting has helped finance a significant amount of energy savings measures at County facilities, the current financing structure offers little to no financial incentive for departments to participate in the program. Currently, the anticipated savings is deducted from the department's operating budget to pay the loan debt. An alternative structure that promotes implementation of energy savings projects by providing some financial incentive to departments to do so should be considered.
Aside from improvements achieved through the GESPC, energy-savings measures are being performed elsewhere throughout County facilities via other means. Some of the work is being done as part of capital improvement projects, grants or from operating budgets as they may allow. A number of energy savings projects in the planning stages during the last report were completed over the summer or are nearly complete, including:
• Energy-efficient HVAC equipment installed at GMIA and replaced a boiler at the Power Plant with a more efficient boiler.
• Energy recovery units added to shower areas at CCFS.
• Motors on larger HVAC units at Milwaukee Public Museum were replaced with new energy-efficient variable frequency drive motors.
• Air handling units at the Marcus Center were replaced with new energy-efficient units with variable frequency motor drives.
• Air distribution at the Fleet Administration Building were replaced with new energy-efficient units and lighting loads were cut in half by replacing light fixtures.
• HVAC system and electric heating system at the Transit Administration Building were replaced with a more economical and efficient chilled water cooling and hot water heating systems.
• High-efficiency lighting was installed at the MCTS Fleet Maintenance building.
• HVAC controls were upgraded to more energy-efficient versions and remote monitoring systems were installed at the MCTS - Fond du Lac Operating Station
• Furnaces at the LaFollette Pavilion and Dretzka Clubhouses were replaced with smaller high-efficiency units, as well as the addition of occupancy sensors.
Additional energy-efficiency projects initiated since the last report include:
• High efficiency lighting was installed in the ticketing building at GMIA.
• The air handling units near Checkpoint D at GMIA were upgraded to include more energy-efficiency variable frequency drives
• At the Zoo's Primate House, high-tech skylights were installed that harvest sunlight much more efficiently than standard skylights. The skylights were manufactured by Orion Industries in Manitowoc.
Over the past few years Milwaukee County has installed LED lighting at select locations and continues to evaluate this evolving technology. Several departments are currently exploring the potential for a free outdoor LED lighting installation as part of a beta test for a local LED lighting manufacturer. The local manufacturer is seeking to establish public sector confidence in their product through this beta testing.
Tracking energy consumption is currently a cumbersome process (Sustainability Engineer requests data annually from WE Energies provided in huge spreadsheets). Developing more efficient and more effective means of obtaining and processing energy use data would be a significant benefit to the County, and would be more efficient use of staff time. Reports on energy consumption by building and by department could assist operations staff in identifying energy-saving opportunities, plan for future projects, help to verify the performance of energy-savings measures installed, provide feedback to staff and employees on their efforts to reduce energy use, identify additional energy metering needs, and identify billing errors, to name a few benefits. We are reviewing potential software or services to accomplish this goal, but will also need to identify funding sources as well.
Once repayment of the Energy Savings Company is completed, the 50% of savings realized from energy conservation shall be accounted for and used to fund future energy efficient projects that reduce the County's dependency on short-term borrowing and bonding in order to expedite performance enhanced savings measures on future County building projects, thereby accelerating the future cost savings timetable.
Status
Currently the savings realized from the GESPCs is being used to pay down the debt on the GESPC contracts. Because the payback period for these contracts is approximately 8 to 10 years, the savings would not be available until after year 2018. Therefore, the Work Group has temporarily postponed action on this item.
Require that all county-supported construction projects meet Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) standards beginning in 2008.
Status
Milwaukee County continues to work to incorporate sustainable design into its construction projects. Increased emphasis has been placed on sustainable design, and there is increased awareness and experience on the part of design staff, consultants and contractors. The following provides some examples (not a complete summary) of project actions incorporating sustainable design concepts:
The GMIA's Combined Maintenance Facility is at 30% design stage. Currently, the design plans anticipate incorporating a number of sustainable design elements, including:
• energy-efficient building envelope
• natural lighting
• rainwater capture and reuse for truck washing,
• construction waste recycling, and
• solar hot water heating.
The GMIA Baggage Claim project is currently at 50% design stage. As part of the design scope, the consultant has identified a number of sustainable design options that could be incorporated into the project, including:
• natural lighting
• high-efficiency light fixtures
• ventilation adjusted based on CO2 levels measured in the area
• water-conserving restroom fixtures
• green roof and water-efficient landscaping
• materials of construction containing recycled products
• recycling construction demolition waste
• paints, coatings, adhesives and sealants to meet low volatile organic carbon (VOC) emissions requirements
Based on a mock LEED rating, the renovation would meet requirements for LEED certification.
The new roof at MCTS Fond du Lac Maintenance Building was designed and constructed to be Energy Star compliant, with a reflective outer surface.
As part of the construction of various roadways and parking lots, the surface course and binder course are specified to allow salvaged or reclaimed asphaltic material and require the recycling of demolished steel and concrete, for the following projects:
Oak Leaf Trail Replacement (Leon Terrace)
Domes Entryway Landscaping
Lagoon Drive Reconstruction
Lake Park at Newberry Reconstruction
MCTS Employee Parking Lot
Museum Parking Lot and Loading Dock
Bender Park - used on-site dredge material
O'Donnell Park - recycled concrete panels
Resource Management
Review the storm water management plan with Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District (MMSD) to reduce the amount of storm water runoff from County facilities that aid MMSD in its efforts to reduce runoff throughout the County, and adopt plans to manage runoff from new development projects.
Status
As part of its NR 216 County-wide stormwater permit, Milwaukee County staff performs regular monitoring of storm water outfalls and discharges. Reports of illicit connections or discharges are investigated and sampled and tested. Milwaukee County Environmental Services staff has begun creating a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPP) for McKinley Marina. County staff continues to monitor all sites with SWPPs including the Zoo, Fleet Maintenance, North Shop and Timmerman Airport.
The County DTPW, with the assistance of a consulting engineer, has prepared a design guidance document for parking lots, that will encourage the use of Best Management Practices to reduce the adverse impacts of stormwater runoff from our parking lots. This document will provide technical guidance for County staff and consultants to deploy practices such as bioinfiltration swales, subsurface stormwater chambers and porous pavement, when these lots are repaved or reconstructed in the future.
The aforementioned guidance document is being applied in the design of the Sports Complex parking lot. The project will incorporate pervious pavers over a large portion of the expanded lot. As a result of the use of the pavers, storm water runoff from the lot during rain events will be substantially reduced instead of increased (by the addition of impervious asphalt). This will be one of the largest pervious pavement applications in Milwaukee County.
A green roof was recently installed at the Milwaukee Public Museum (early October). The green roof is a modular design. The roof is funded through the assistance of a grant from the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
A green roof that had been planned for the Mitchell Park Domes has been suspended. A structural analysis of Domes lobby indicated that the roof would not be capable of supporting a lightweight green roof system. Alternative sites are being considered.
Milwaukee County is working with American Rivers, the MMSD and City of Milwaukee on a project that will measure the benefits from installing green infrastructure with a defined community area. The "Green Infrastructure Portfolio Standard" project is being funded by through a grant American Rivers received from US EPA.
A listing of the County's green infrastructure projects is provided as Table 5.
Direct the Director of Transportation and Public Works to examine the potential use of "gray water" for applications where treated water may not be needed and report back to the Committee on Transportation, Public Works, and Transit in May of 2007 with potential applications and associated costs.
Status
A report on this subject was submitted in 2009. Milwaukee County continues to reduce water consumption through the progressive replacement of older fixtures with more water-efficient versions. More than a half-dozen restroom renovation projects this year incorporated upgrades to more water-efficient fixtures.
Rainwater harvesting systems have been installed at Boerner Botanical Gardens and at the Primate House at the Milwaukee County Zoo. In general, facilities should have their basic plumbing fixtures upgraded to EPACT standards or better prior to implementing a rainwater harvesting system.
As part of the Mitchell Park Domes Entry Landscaping project, the existing reflective pools were replaced with planting beds that feature flowering perennials and shade trees. The project also diverts rainwater collected from the rooftops of the domes to the former pools that will now serve as storage to be used to irrigate the planting beds. The former pool area has been completely covered by pervious pavers to provide outdoor space for visitors and school children.
Direct the Director of Parks to place receptacles for recyclable materials in all Milwaukee County Parks where applicable.
Status
For the Spring/Summer/Fall of 2011, Parks contracted services for additional recycling containers and pick-up at 22 park facilities. It is estimated that these services will result in collection of over 14,000 pounds of mixed recyclables during the contract period (in progress).
For the first 6 months of 2011, Facilities recycled 20,000 lbs of office paper, over 90,000 lbs of mixed paper and over 45,000 lbs of cardboard, generating over $4,000 in revenue. Data on aluminum and plastic was not complete at the time of this report, but will be provided in the next report.
DHHS recycles paper, glass and aluminum containers. For the first six months of 2011, the Records and Volunteer Center and BHD recycled over 71,000 pounds of office paper, over 41,000 pounds of cardboard, over 18,000 pounds of electronic waste, and over 5,000 pounds of steel, generating more than $9,000 in revenue.
Significant recycling efforts continue at other County facilities, such as the County Correctional Facility - South (CCFS), and Zoo. Semi-annual data from these departments were not available at the time of this report, but complete data for the year will be provided in the next report.
The Sheriff's Department has found a way to recycling old bullet-resistant vests. They are now working with a company to reuse the vest material. Prior to this, the vests were shredded by a local shredder and then landfilled. This new initiative has resulted in over 500 old vests going (at no cost) to this green company for repurposing. The ballistic material is ground and used for things like plastic rope, brake pads, etc. The result is over 1,000 lbs of material that would otherwise have ended up in a landfill being re-used.
Milwaukee County has prepared a County-wide recycling plan. The plan summarizes current recycling practices and provides recommendations for improvements. The plan was prepared through the combined efforts of departmental recycling coordinators, Keep Greater Milwaukee Beautiful, and a summer intern provided through UW-Extension. The planning group is currently developing standard procurement contract for recycling services.
Milwaukee County has been implementing a construction waste recycling policy on applicable size projects over the past year. Data gathering, however, remains problematic on many projects. To help facilitate the data collection, DTPW-A&E is reviewing the deployment of an accounting system developed by Waste Cap Wisconsin, to have data loaded by the contractor on a website for review. A&E is planning to pilot test the program on several projects in the near future. If effective, the use of the program would be expanded, thereby simplifying the time required by contractors to prepare their waste recycling plans and reduce County staff time to compile data.
Direct the Director of Parks to create a plan to return areas of park land, not actively utilized by the public, to native grassland and prairie reserve areas that will require no physical maintenance or the burning of fossil fuels; this plan should be presented with a scope of work and cost to the Parks Committee for approval by September 2007.
Status
Over the past several years approximately 300 acres of underutilized turf areas have been converted to trees and grasslands through USDA's Conservation Reserve Program. In addition, Parks has planted an additional 19-20 acres to prairie, and 5.5 acres have been planted to hardwood trees along the Root River. Parks has also submitted a grant application to convert another 60 acres of turf to hardwood trees.
Parks Department's Natural Areas staff and volunteers have been active in the removal of over 20 species of non-native invasive plants and implementing habitat restoration at more than 40 County Parks (1,200 acres). These are cooperative efforts between Parks staff, volunteers, and partners. In 2010 the Natural Areas staff worked with 51 different partner organizations and 2,800 natural areas volunteers that donated nearly 17,000 hours toward improving the quality of the Parks Department's natural areas.
Parks Natural Areas staff completed an extensive inventory of the 10,000 acres comprising the Parks Natural Areas Program. The inventories provide a database on vegetative cover, invasive species, ephemeral wetlands, wildlife populations, and native plantings that will prove to be useful in future management. In addition to restoration activities staff planted 19 acres of prairie and 5.5 acres of hardwood trees while expanding existing pollinator gardens.
The 2011 Recommended Capital Improvements Budget for the Parks Department included an appropriation of $61,000 to convert 20 acres of parkland from mowed grass to native trees and shrubs in order to reduce overall maintenance costs. Although Parks was not been allocated the funds above, they continue to pursue grant funding. Parks continues to work with various volunteers, friends groups, etc. to pursue natural areas improvements. One example is Parks efforts to work with the South Shore Park Watch to create a pilot project on a bluff restoration. The Park Watch is working to raise funds for native plants, they have helped provide volunteers, and they are working closely with the Natural Areas Coordinator and Staff.
Alternative Energy
Direct the Director of Transportation and Public Works to examine the use of renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power for facilities within Milwaukee County and report these findings back to the Transportation, Public Works, and Transit by the July 2007 cycle.
Status
A report on renewable energy opportunities was provided to the committee in 2009. The report concluded that top priority should be energy conservation, but that renewable energy projects should be pursued concurrently on a limited basis until the cost/benefit of renewables comes more in line with conservation measures. By doing so, we will be better positioned to capitalize on the opportunities these systems offer when their cost-effectiveness warrants implementation on a larger scale.
Since that time, the following projects have been installed or under design:
A flower-shaped solar photovoltaic (solar PV) system installed near the Lakeview Restaurant at the Milwaukee County Zoo (1.4 kilowatt system).
A solar hot water system at the Washington Park Senior Center that provides domestic hot water there.
A solar PV system at Juneau Park Comfort Building (3.3 kilowatt system)
A solar PV system at the Wilson Park Senior Center (3.1 kilowatt system)
Solar PV panels at the entrance to the Milwaukee County Zoo (10 kilowatt system)
Solar hot water system at the Zoo's Aquatic-Reptile Center (under design)
A solar hot water system Children's Court
A solar PV system at the Fleet Maintenance Garage (5.0 kilowatt system)
A solar hot water heating system at the Washington Park Boat House
A 0.25 kW solar PV system is planned for installation at GMIA to power the new trash compactor there.
Flat screen displays have been installed at the Senior Centers to display the real-time energy production from the solar systems. The data is also sent to an internet site for access by the general public. DTPW-A&E is currently working to place the link on the County's Green Print webpage.
In some instances, solar energy systems were given due consideration but were not implemented due to budgetary or physical constraints. As part of the Kosciuszko Park Pool heating system improvements, the option of incorporating a solar component to the system was evaluated in detail, but physical constraints and low projected energy savings made the application impractical at this time.
Through the above projects, Milwaukee County staff is gaining valuable experience in designing and installing solar systems as well as operation of these systems. These efforts include preparing technical specifications, coordination of interconnection requirements, structural assessments, and sequencing and local permitting. Our increased understanding of these items will improve our efficiency in future designs. Ultimately, these projects should also provide good venues for public education about solar energy.
Direct the Director of Transportation and Public Works to purchase, when applicable, new cleaner technology fleet vehicles that use alternative fuels such as bio-fuels, hybrids, and plug-in hybrids. If such vehicles cannot be purchased, the Director shall document why such purchases could not be made and report back to the appropriate committee.
Status
DTPW Fleet has fully implemented the 35 Ford Fusion hybrid electric sedans. The Ford Fusion hybrids utilize a regenerative braking technology to capture over 90% of the energy normally lost when braking. Since their implementation this Spring, it is estimated that the County is saving over 4,000 gallons per year in fuel as compared to the previous vehicles.
A hybrid electric bucket truck is on order with delivery anticipated in Fall of this year. Three additional bucket trucks are on order with expected delivery in 2012. The incremental cost of the bucket trucks was funded through a grant from the Wisconsin Clean Transportation Partners.
In the 2010-2011 timeframe GMIA replaced two diesel-powered shuttle buses with two CNG-fueled shuttle buses bringing the total CNG-fueled shuttle fleet to nine vehicles out of a total of twelve shuttle buses. The CNG shuttles operate on fuel that is not only cleaner burning than diesel but costs on average $1.88/gallon versus $3.54/gallon for diesel fuel during 2011. GMIA's use of CNG in lieu of diesel is saving roughly $90,000 per year. The current CNG shuttle fleet reduces NOx emissions by 2.70 tons/year of this ozone forming air pollutant. GMIA anticipates purchasing an additional two CNG powered shuttles in 2012.
Table 6 summarizes the County's current fleet of alternative fueled vehicles.
Require Department heads to seek all grants in compliance with Milwaukee County Ordinance Chapter 59.06 that focus on energy efficiency and renewable energy.
Status
Milwaukee County applies for incentives on projects eligible for grants through Wisconsin's Focus On Energy program. Between 2008 and 2010, Milwaukee County received nearly $300,000 in incentive dollars from Focus. We currently have about 20 projects in progress or approved by Focus, which should generate an additional $275,000 in incentives when these projects are completed.
The Milwaukee Public Museum received a grant from the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District to install a green roof. The green roof was installed in early October and covers a large portion of the 6th floor roof, adjacent to the greenhouse.
Milwaukee County continues to implement and administer various grants that were obtained in 2010, including two green roof/rainwater harvesting grants from the MMSD (Domes and Zoo), energy efficiency grants from ARRA (Facilities and Museum), and alternative fuel vehicle grants from the Wisconsin Clean Transportation Partnership (Fleet).
Earlier this year, WE Energies ceased its renewable energy grant program. The program had provided significant financial assistance to Milwaukee County and other companies, schools and governments in the past. The loss of these grants will make the economics of installing systems more difficult. Fortunately, the cost of installation continues to trend downward.
While grant funding is being pursued, the amount of time required to prepare applications and to administer the grants can be considerable. Given the limited availability of staff time, the pursuit of grants requires some degree of selectivity and weighing the potential for a successful application. Many grants require matching funds, which if unavailable, could negate the pursuit of the grant.
Education
Improve staff awareness of green initiatives and programs so they can be implemented on new project and initiatives.
and
Encourage staff to participate in education efforts that support green initiatives for applications both at work and home
Status
An electronic newsletter (The Green Print) was prepared and circulated to County staff in September (copy in Appendix A). The newsletters are intended to increase awareness of Milwaukee County staff about sustainable actions within Milwaukee County. This edition of the newsletter focused on recycling.
On May 14 & 15, the Zoo hosted "Party for the Planet", which included a variety of demonstrations, games and booths structured to educate kids and adults about wildlife, invasive species, and recycling. Visitors were also encouraged to participate in a tree-planting project, which resulted in around 600 trees being planted by volunteers, Zookeepers and animal management staff in several areas around the Zoo. Polar bear recycling bins created by a group of teens from Sparta, WI as a part of Polar Bear International's "Project Polar Bear" contest are displayed in several areas around the Zoo.
The Rock The Green Concert was held at the lakefront in Veterans Park on September 18. The event promoted green living and sustainability. Everything available at Rock the Green was either recyclable or compostable. A Near-Zero Waste team was assigned to oversee waste reclamation stations, ensuring items are properly sorted in composting or recycling bins. All food waste was ground with commercial grinders into a slurry and converted into fertilizer in the Milwaukee municipal system. Attendes were issued re-usable water bottles. Free, fresh water stations using municipal water was located throughout the event and no plastic water bottles were sold. The event was powered by a combination of 100% B20 biodiesel generators, solar and bicycle power. Light emitting diode (LED) lighting and video was used to minimize energy consumption Food vendors sourced their ingredients from local farms and co-ops and all vendors used compostable serveware. During the festival no paper brochures or flyers were distributed by organizers, exhibitors and vendors.
The Fleet Manager, Sustainability Engineer, and staff from GMIA attended "Charge Up Wisconsin" on August 24. This free seminar was provided by WCTP and WE Energies to educate attendees about how electric vehicle charging station technology. Systems are being deployed already on a limited scale in Madison and Milwaukee areas. Milwaukee County is reviewing potential sites for an EV charging station.
Milwaukee County hosted a workshop titled - "Sustainability in Local Governments" at the Zoo's Peck Welcome Center in May. The workshop was a collaborative effort between the County, the City of Milwaukee and the MMSD, and was co-sponsored by the Wisconsin Green Building Alliance. The workshop was one of the first of its kind to be offered regionally, and had over 100 registrants from municipalities around southeastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois.
Milwaukee County, the City of Milwaukee and the Housing Authority of the City of Milwaukee (HA) worked cooperatively to develop and host two training sessions to train County/City/HA staff on the operation & maintenance of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and solar hot water systems. Milwaukee County's DTPW/A&E coordinated the PV training session at Wilson Park on September 13, and HA hosted the hot water session on September 27 at Olga Village. Over 30 facility operations staff from Milwaukee County, the City of Milwaukee and HA attended. Staff from Midwest Renewable Energy Association provided the training through a grant secured by Milwaukee Shines.
The Sustainability & Environmental Engineer continues to participate in regular (monthly) meetings with the following agencies and organizations, representing Milwaukee County:
• The North Star Sustainability Network
• City of Milwaukee's Office of Sustainability
• MMSD's Office of Sustainability
• Menomonee River Group
• Southeastern Wisconsin Watershed Trust
• MMSD Technical Advisory Team
And also meets with the following organizations, as a member, on a less frequent basis:
• Great Lakes Non-Point Abatement Coalition
• Wisconsin Green Building Alliance
• Root-Pike Watershed Initiative Network
David Burch, Chief Planning and Development for Parks participated in the 6th Street Green Street corridor planning process and attended the first annual International Conference in March 2011.
The Sustainability & Environmental Engineer & DTPW-Environmental Services staff presented to the Department of Aging's Indian Council for the Elderly on Milwaukee County's sustainability efforts on May 20.
Staff from Parks Department and DTPW attended a workshop on Climate Adaptation in Wisconsin. The workshop was hosted by the MMSD and attended by representatives from local governments in southeastern Wisconsin. The workshop focused on how infrastructure planning can be used to manage more extreme weather conditions anticipated to occur in the next several decades.
The Sustainability & Environmental Engineer was a featured speaker at Office Max's Environmental Summit on May 25th, summarizing Milwaukee County's progress with its Green Print initiatives. The half-day event was attended by representatives from regional businesses involved in sustainable business products and public organizations from southeastern Wisconsin.
On Sept 9, Kevin Haley/Parks co-presented a webinar with the MMSD on the benefits of rivers, floodplains and wetlands on managing storm water runoff. The webinar included a review of several projects undertaken by the MMSD on County parkways to improve aquatic habitat, public access, and reduce flooding.
The Sustainability & Environmental Engineer participated in the Urban Water Sustainability Leadership Conference held in Milwaukee from October 3-5. The 3-day conference featured speakers from municipalities and water utilities across the U.S. as well as breakout sessions, on topics ranging from creating green infrastructure to green jobs.
The rapid changes in building technology present a significant challenge to educating and training Milwaukee County staff. Budgetary constraints and constraints on time further complicate staff access to training. The S&EE and A&E staff have obtained some training through free webinars and workshops, and tours, including:
• energy efficiency applications for municipal operations
• green construction materials
• LED lighting
• integrating climate change considerations into transportation and land use planning
Additional training of design and operations staff would likely improve our ability to implement the goals of the Green Print.
Staffing/Resources
Authorize and direct the Director of Administrative Services and the Director of Human Resources to develop a position of Director of Sustainability and report back to the Personnel Committee and the Finance and Audit Committee in September 2007 cycle for approval. The Director of Sustainability would be created for the purposes of overseeing current and future energy efficiency and eco-friendly initiatives beneficial to Milwaukee County and to aid departments in their efforts to comply with the provisions outlined in this resolution.
Status
A proposal to create a full-time position of Director of Sustainability was considered by the County Board at the Parks, Energy & Environment Committee and the Finance Committee meetings in January; and is proposed in the County Executive's proposed 2012 budget. Establishing a full-time position should increase the County's capacity to address the numerous and varied goals of the Green Print.
Departmental Audit of Energy Efficiency
Require all departments to perform an internal audit of ways to improve energy efficiency and report back with recommendations and initiatives that have already taken place.
Status
This audit was performed in 2010, and results were incorporated into a draft version of a County-wide energy benchmarking study. It would be useful to update this benchmarking report with 2010 data if staff time becomes available.
In a related action, Milwaukee County will be obtaining assistance from the DOE to benchmark the energy use of approximately a dozen County buildings. This assistance will be provided via the DOE's EECBG Portfolio Manager Initiative. The initiative is being offered to EECBG recipients, to help recipients benchmark their major facilities' energy use.
Starting in the 4th quarter of 2011, City Campus will be participating in a "turn it off" campaign. Light switch covers will be labeled with reminders to turn off lights when not in use. Emails and handouts will be distributed to staff to inform them about the purpose of the effort. To help stir interest of staff, energy reduction results will be provided to staff on a monthly basis for a period of 6 months. It is hoped that this will raise awareness about energy conservation and reduce building operating costs.
Milwaukee County's Energy Team continues to meet on a regular basis, with recent meetings in June and August. The meetings provide opportunity for valuable exchange of information between County operations/maintenance staff and to learn about new technologies and programs. The meetings generally include presentations by equipment and/or service providers. Recent meetings have discussed:
• LED lighting
• Power factor correction devices
• Thermal de-stratification
• Long-term energy policies
• Education & training needs of staff
Procurement
Enact the results of the Green Purchasing Task Force that were set in place by Resolution File 06-329 that calls for the use of environmentally preferable products.
Status
A survey of buyers within Milwaukee County was conducted in July with assistance of a summer intern. The survey received a 81% response rate. Of those responding, 73.5% said they do consider environmentally preferable products (EPPs) when purchasing. Almost 90% indicated cost is the primary concern when purchasing items. About 50% said they were aware of EPPs. Of the 50% unaware, 2/3 were interested in learning more about EPPs, but about the same percentage were not interested in direct follow-up.
During the first half of 2011, Milwaukee County purchased over 300 different products from Office Max that contained recycled content between 30% and 100%. On a dollar basis, these items accounted for 1/3 of the materials purchased.
Continue to replace all traffic signals and signs with Light Emitting Diode (LED) signals and signs during regularly scheduled maintenance.
Status
Currently 100% of all traffic lights under the jurisdiction of Transportation and Public Works are LED lit.
Prepared by: Stevan Keith, Chair, Green Print Work Group
cc: Lee Holloway, County Board Chairman
Chris Abele, County Executive
E. Marie Broussard, Deputy Chief of Staff
Pam Bryant, Capital Finance Manager, Admin. & Fiscal Affairs Division, DAS
Scott Manske, Controller, Accounts Payable Division, DAS
John Schapekahm, Corporation Counsel
Sarah Jankowski, Fiscal Mgt Analyst, Admin & Fiscal Affairs Division/DAS
Josh Fudge, DAS
Martin Weddle, Research Analyst, County Board
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