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Meghan Risch
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CHICAGO TAKES THE LEAD IN GREEN INITIATIVES
AUGUST 2007 -- CHICAGO -- Chicago continues to reinvent itself and in doing so has aggressively immersed itself into what is no longer a fad, but a critical necessity for our future – going green – and it goes way beyond recycling.
In today's increasingly eco-conscious marketplace, businesses are continually searching for ways to shrink their carbon footprint. Chicago's historic Merchandise Mart implemented policies such as a comprehensive energy management plan, and received LEED certification in November 2007, serving as one of the many examples of how Chicago inspires responsible growth.
Environmental sustainability is a moving target, but Chicago recognizes what it takes to be a global leader. With its 24-hour operation, hotels rank as one of the most carbon intensive industries in Chicago. In conjunction with the city’s Department of Environment, Chicago’s hospitality industry continues to be a catalyst for the green meetings industry.
Chicago’s Green Hotels Initiative challenges its hotels to obtain Green Seal certification, an environmental lodging standard with requirements in waste minimization, energy efficiency, water conservation, waste water management, and green procurement. To date, 24 hotels have been audited and are well on their way to achieving this certification. The most Green Seal certified hotels any U.S. city has are three. Chicago’s vision is to have the most Green Seal certified hotels in the nation by December 2008.
With 40 LEED-certified buildings, including the West Building at the McCormick Place Convention Center, Chicago has topped the "Greenest Cities" rankings by Business Facilities magazine two years in a row. The West Building is the largest new-construction building in the country to be LEED certified.
Chicago was also a winner of the first annual Sustainable Cities Awards, which honor global examples of programs that demonstrate the future of best practices in sustainable land use. Sponsored jointly by the Financial Times and the Urban Land Institute, the jury was particularly impressed with the comprehensiveness of Chicago's involvement in green practices, how integrated they were with city ordinances, and the size and scale of its influence.
In 2007, Chicago installed more than half-a-million new square feet of green roofs, winning the coveted No. 1 ranking on this year's "Top 10 List of Best U.S. Green Roof Cities" in Green Roofs for Healthy Cities' 3rd Annual Green Roof Market Industry Survey. This is the fourth consecutive year that Chicago has topped the annual survey.
In recent years, there has been growing interest in wind energy development. It's pollution-free, inexhaustible, and thanks to technological breakthroughs, it's cost-competitive with new coal- or gas-fired power plants. And business is booming. The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) has ranked Illinois 8th in the country for existing wind power capacity.
Wind power is expected to expand rapidly to meet a much larger portion of U.S. energy demand in the coming years, and Chicago is proud to be home to the headquarters of several such wind-savvy companies.
With rising concerns about energy prices and global warming, more businesses are recognizing the importance and responsibility of investing in green technologies. For Chicago and its many eco-centric public-private initiatives, this holds the promise of increased competitiveness in the global economy, a higher quality of life for its residents, and a challenge to become the ultimate model for other metropolises around the world.
For more information about Chicago’s green initiatives visit http://www.choosechicago.com/meetingplanners/why_choose_chicago or www.worldbusinesschicago.com.
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