Rawlings-Blake goes green
Staff Writer
2011-01-02
.dmvblogspot.bloggieblog.com .
The City of Baltimore is making attempts to find news ways to save money in the worlds new green economy. The Mayor of Baltimore City, who is Rawlings-Blake, plans to test bio fuels in the daily operations of Baltimore City.
The Department of General Services (DGS) will begin Phase II testing to evaluate the long-term use of renewable biofuels in City boilers. In an agreement approved with New Generation Biofuels (NGB) by the Board of Estimates today, the City will begin burn tests using New Generation Biofuels at three city facilities: Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant, Eastern Health Center, and the Pimlico Fire and Police Training Facility. Biofuels are a clean-burning vegetable-based alternative that can be used to replace the number-2 heating oil that is now being used.
“Today, Baltimore took a great step towards becoming a more energy efficient and sustainable city,” said Mayor Rawlings-Blake. “I am grateful for the efforts of General Services Director Ted Atwood and his team for preparing our facilities for the next phase of testing.”
The Department of General Services, under the leadership of newly-appointed Director Atwood, continues to work toward the use of clean energy and the reduction of energy use in city-owned buildings. DGS has already reduced energy use by 6.55% since the base year of 2006 and is on-target to see a reduction of over 30% by 2020. These savings have been achieved through energy initiatives such as the use of LED traffic lights and the installation of a power plant at the Back River Wastewater Treatment Plant.