U City Making Progress on Creating Sustainability Plan

Two key studies on University City’s environmental impact could be done by next month, said Green Practices Committee Chair Donna Leach-Heimos.

The City is making progress on the annual lighting report, which measures the amount of energy expended on lighting in municipal owned buildings, and the greenhouse gas report, which measures the greenhouse gas emissions for municipal owned buildings, Leach-Heimos said at Wednesday's Green Practices Committee Meeting.

Jenny Wendt, who works in the public works department for the city, is conducting the lighting report and Joe Heneberry, an intern for the city, is conducting the greenhouse gas report, according to Leach-Heimos.

The Green Practices committee collects information and advises the City Council on environmental issues. The information in the two reports will be used to build the sustainability strategic plan, said Leach-Heimos.

According to information provided at the meeting, the sustainability plan is focused on seven areas: ecosystems and habitat, water and storm water, air quality and transportation, waste and resource conservation, land use, open space and parks, reduction of energy usage, and green buildings. The seven areas  emphasized include such issues as restoring habitats, addressing issues with storm water and runoff from River des Peres, the reduction of carbon dioxide from vehicles, reduction of residential waste and recycling, improving open spaces, improving energy efficiency and increasing the use of renewable energy, and incorporating an energy-saving building code for the city.  

The Committee is also working on a proposed energy ordinance which will improve energy efficiency and therefore the use of renewable energy in municipal owned buildings, said Committee Member TimMichels, who wrote a version of the proposed ordinance which is currently being reviewed by the Council.

He said the proposed ordinance and the sustainability plan have many of the same goals and will give the city an idea of the actions that need to be taken.

“This will muscle the process forward, in terms of making the sustainability plan work,” Michels said in an interview after the meeting.

Michels said he hoped the Council would discuss the proposed ordinance within the next two months. He also said during the meeting that it was important for University City to “lead from the front” on energy conservation and renewable energy. During the meeting Councilmember Lynn Ricci, the council liaison to the committee, said efforts to save energy were important because the city’s expenditures were too high at this time.   

The Green Practices Committee will meet again at 6 p.m. on Aug. 10.