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Reduction of Industrial Air Pollution - Houston is undertaking initiatives to combat industrial air pollution, as such, Houston's Department of Health and Human Service's Bureau of Air Quality Control (BAQC) - which protects public health by improving the quality of air in Houston - was redesigned to enable investigators and engineers to focus on areas of concern, rather than routine inspections.

The Bureau is responsible for assessing the City of Houston 's air quality with the purpose of implementing strategic planning and evaluation based on the community's needs and right to a clean environment. Through the collective use of current technology, continuous air monitoring, surveillance and inspection it accepts responsibility for responding to citizens concerns with the intention of delivering a service-oriented organization that is dedicated to delivering measurable results.

Leadership and commitment at the executive level, coupled with effective environmental management policies have and will continue to result in the City of Houston 's ability to perform beyond mere compliance with environmental, health, and safety regulations.

Research on Health Effects of Air Pollution - Mayor White is very involved with monitoring Houston 's environment. Air quality is of particular concern because it also directly affects the health and safety of the citizens of Houston . As a result, the City of Houston has commissioned a scientific study of air pollutants in the Houston area. The results of the scientific commission report identified 12 pollutants as definite health risks to Houstonians. This report will now guide the city in deployment of air quality resources and will support the development of a regional benzene reduction plan, which, through the leadership of the City of Houston , other jurisdictions will be encouraged to adopt.

Enhanced Enforcement Activities - Air quality is a high priority for City of Houston . Because of its great importance the city has reclaimed its enforcement authority and has used it to insure that companies comply with environmental laws. Great progress has already been made; the city has reached an innovative emission reduction agreement with a large petrochemical company and initiated prompt enforcement against a refinery not in compliance. This action resulted in substantial penalties that have spurred corrective actions by the company. This has demonstrated to all companies who are not in compliance with established environmental laws, the City of Houston 's commitment in maintaining and promoting clean air for its citizens.

Mobile Ambient Air Monitoring Lavatory - The Houston area has the densest network of air monitoring stations in the country with 45 different locations measuring ozone and other air pollutants and eight fixed-base auto-gas chromatograph (auto-GC) stations in the Ship Channel area capable of measuring trace levels of several air toxics in the ambient air. Despite this abundance of monitoring stations, the City of Houston 's Mobile Ambient Air Monitoring Laboratory (MAAML) with its best-available technology of a gas chromatograph and mass spectrometer (GC/MS) and meteorological equipment represents the next phase in ambient air monitoring for air toxics. Using this sophisticated equipment platform in a specially designed cargo box van with four-wheel drive capacity, the City of Houston has a valuable tool in identifying and characterizing point source emissions. With this capability, the City can more accurately determine the major sources of air toxics emissions and work to ameliorate Houston 's air quality.

Voluntary Benzene Reduction Plan - H ouston 's air quality has been a concern for quite some time. We have come a long way over the last 30 years due to the Clean Air Act, but air quality must be better.

The City asked scientists to evaluate those chemicals in the air that pose significant health risks, and those that do not. The City wanted to target the worst chemicals for reduction. Benzene currently occupies the position of top priority due to the amount emitted and proximity to the populace.

The City's approach for reduction is practical; it's based on voluntary reductions to levels defined by scientific health-based criteria, and not merely regulation for regulation's sake. This approach does not demonize an entire industry; rather, a cleaner industry will face fewer hurdles to expansion in our region, without endangering public health.

This voluntary benzene reduction plan is the first of its kind. It focuses on the reduction of benzene from major sources.

Benzene is well established as a carcinogen. When benzene is present in the ambient air, people who breathe the air are at increased risk for developing cancer.

The reduction strategies in this plan will simultaneously reduce emissions and/or ambient air concentrations of six additional air pollutants that pose definite health risks according to the Health Effects of The Air Pollution Task Force: ozone, fine particles, diesel particulate matter, 1,3-butadiene, formaldehyde and acrolein.

Registration Ordinance - This ordinance requires certain facilities to register with the City so that proper air monitoring can occur. The facilities that must register are, automotive body repair shops, dry cleaning plants, gasoline dispensing sites, sewage treatment plants, used vehicles sales lots, and any other facility that emits over one ton per year of any airborne contaminate.

This registration process allows the City to ensure state and federal clean air laws are being enforced.

WATER QUALITY / CONSERVATION

Lake Houston Project - City water quality experts studied Houston 's water quality problem - taste and odor - and found a low-cost, effective solution for preventing algal blooms - the root cause of the problem - that did not involve the use of additional chemicals.

The solution, called "hypolimnetic aeration", involves using a slow mixing technique to keep lower waters oxygenated all year long, promoting the health of the natural ecosystem. Algal blooms only occur when the natural biosystem is altered in a way that favors the propagation of unwanted or "nuisance" species.

There are two ways to achieve this mixing action, which occurs naturally at the surface through wind action, by using electrically powered mechanical mixers, or through the use of solar-powered laminar flow mixers. The solar-powered mixers require no electrical power source, and are low maintenance, enabling them to be freely employed in large open reservoirs. 20 solar mixing units - called SolarBees - were placed in Lake Houston on April 2006.

Initial results after almost two-year into the study have already indicated positive benefits associated with hypolimnetic aeration.

The City is now evaluating expansion of its source water protection initiatives including purchase of the 20 rental units; installation of additional units; and monitoring treatment of Trinity River water.

Source Water Protection - The Source Water Protection Group partners with numerous government agencies to protect and monitor the rivers, lakes, wetlands and watersheds that empty into the City's drinking water reservoirs. Real-time monitoring systems detect contaminants at numerous locations enabling technicians and operators to identify potential contaminants within our raw water resources. Encouraging local businesses and community groups to report incidents of illegal discharge or dumping assists with maintaining this protection.

A dedicated team of environmental investigators actively monitors lakes and tributaries for industrial discharges and other contaminants. Investigators collect multiple water samples that are tested for a wide spectrum of microorganisms and pollutants.

The Water Works Museum and Education Center - The Waterworks will be a state-of-the-art water museum and education center; only the second of its kind, rivaling a similar exhibition in New York City . The museum is dedicated to the promotion of water education, conservation and stewardship for the benefit of our region, our community, and our children for generations to come.

Offering more than 35 educational, entertaining and interactive exhibits, the museum will focus on the following themes:

The goal of the center is to enable students (K-12) and the general public to become educated water consumers and citizens committed to water protection and conservation.

The WaterWorks will be housed in the administrative building of the Northeast Water Purification Plant located at Lake Houston , a primary source of drinking water for areas of Houston , Northwest Harris County and the surrounding area for years to come. The Center is a joint project of the Houston Area Water Corporation and the City of Houston . The WaterWorks, which is currently under construction, is scheduled to open to the public in the fall of 2008.

Annual Water Festival - The water works program conducts an annual water festival each year. 50 local, county, and regional environmental agencies and non-profit organizations provide hands-on activities and take-home material for children of all ages. There have currently been 14 water festivals held, each having had a measurable impact and positive effect.

Corral the Grease - Corral the Grease is a public education project to help prevent blockages in sewer pipes that can cause sanitary sewer overflows. Many times grease accumulates and solidifies inside the pipes and restricts free flow of raw sewage on its way to the wastewater treatment plant. This overloads the system, causing sewage to overflow into streets, yards, and storm ditches, which eventually will pollute the bayous and Galveston Bay . The grease that blocks the sewer pipes generally comes from two sources - commercial and residential kitchens. Commercial establishments, such as restaurants, institutional cafeterias and other public kitchens, are regulated by City ordinance. They are required to install grease traps that must be cleaned periodically. Residents don't have grease traps. The most practical way to reduce grease from residential kitchens is to offer easy ways to prevent grease from entering the sewer pipes in the first place. This can be done as follows:

Cosmetic Wash Water Guide -

Consumer Choice Program - The City unveiled a website - www.houstonconsumerchoice.com - dedicated to informing Houstonians about options they have in purchasing power at a time when electricity rates have skyrocketed, and allow consumer to compare traditional energy with "green energy."

The City recently asked electricity providers to offer their "best price" for Houston consumers. The City of Houston required all responding electricity providers to meet some standard of financial strength, and to keep their offers open to Houstonians.

Seven power providers are participating with the City in the program. Some offer several different types of products, with both variable and fixed pricing and "green" and conventional electricity. A customer's choice of providers will not affect the reliability of their service. A separate company, Center Point Energy is responsible for that.

A user-friendly "calculator" allow consumers to explore service options and rates from the participating providers. In addition, help with the web site is available at all Houston Public Libraries, City Multi-Service Centers and other community facilities.

LED Lights - The City of Houston has taken an active role to reduce the amount of energy used in the city. The City is changing city traffic lights from using traditional incandescent bulbs to more efficient LED lights (light emitting diode). The City has switched over 300 traffic lights to LED from the traditional incandescent traffic lights. In addition, the City plans to retrofit all remaining traffic lights, and requires all new signals within the city to be LED. The LED traffic lights use 85% less energy than the traditional incandescent lights. Additional benefits include reduced emissions; cost savings to the Public Works Department and reduced maintenance time and expenses, and LED traffic lights have significantly lower replacement costs. Also, the LED traffic lights emit colored light instead of white light filtered through a color lens, as the traditional incandescent traffic lights do, enhancing overall visibility of each traffic light leading to increased safety.

Furthermore, the City of Houston is changing all exit signs in city buildings to LED lights. Exit signs in City buildings will use LED's as the main light source. This technology uses less than two watts per sign, and is rated at 100,000 hours (more than 11 years at 24 hours per day), and contributes virtually no heat to the system.

Power to People Campaign - Mayor Bill White joined officials from Centerpoint Energy, Wal Mart, Sam's Club and other corporate sponsors to launch a campaign designed to educate Houstonians on options to reduce energy consumption and save money this summer. The residents of Houston have the power to do something about the rising cost of energy. Simply put, by changing our practices we can save real dollars. And if we all act, the benefits from smart energy consumption pay dividends for the city as a whole.

The education campaign began with volunteers going door-to-door to homes in the Houston area handing out 10,000 compact fluorescent light bulbs. Displays were also set up at retail outlets throughout the Houston area to provide information on steps Houstonians can immediately and inexpensively take to minimize energy consumption in their homes.

The second phase of the program is a permanent educational tool for residential energy efficiency. Residents are encouraged to log on to the website at www.houstonpowertopeople.com for options to save money. This website encourages and educates Houstonians to take five simple steps to reduce their energy. Energy saving calculators were created for resident to calculate the personal savings that they can expect by following each of the five simple steps.

Comprehensive Renewable Energy Plan - The City of Houston has purchased over 350 million kWh of wind energy, making Houston the largest municipal purchaser of renewable power. The renewable wind power contract gives the City of Houston the ability to bring in up to 80 megawatts, or just over 700 million kWh, of renewable power which represents 50% of the City's total power. This would embody the highest purchase of green energy by any governmental entity, including federal agencies when accomplished. The design of the contract includes a negotiated structure that comprises third party wholesalers, Reliant Energy, the Government Land Office, and City of Houston to transact long-term wind power. The strategy will be to purchase wind power in 10-megawatt increments for 5-year terms at competitive prices. Through this innovative contract the City is able to purchase clean energy at a lower price compared to traditional energy. The current price for the City's energy is fixed at 7.5 cents per kWh.

Grass Root Residential Energy Efficient Now (GREEN) -The GREEN program seeks to educate citizens about making simple changes to every-day actions, which would result in saving hundreds of dollars and reduce annual household CO 2 output by at least 15%. This program focuses on the existing structure of Super Neighborhood to educate local residents about what they can do to cut costs and consumption. (Visit the City's web site to lean about what a Super Neighborhood is (www.houstontx.gov/planning/suprnbhds/abt_sn.htm). Citizens can participate in a 4-session workshop that will show them how to make their homes more energy efficient. Because this program is grass-roots in nature, the program trains citizens to present this valuable information to members of their community, or Super Neighborhood. Upon completion of the workshop, participants will be a City of Houston-Certified "Super G.R.E.E.N. Neighbor."

To schedule a Super Neighborhood or civic club meeting about the new program, or to get more information, contact Luis Nunez, Planning and Development Department, City of Houston, at 713-837-7755 or email luis.nunez@cityofhouston.net .

Residential Energy Efficiency Program (REEP) - The City of Houston has many neighborhoods with small, older homes that lack modern energy efficient features. To combat this, the City has initiated a weatherization program as part of its neighborhood revitalization campaign. The most effective long-term strategy for reducing energy consumption is to invest wisely in more efficient energy use. Therefore, the City of Houston , in partnership with CenterPoint Energy, began this program weatherizing homes within the City. In the initial target neighborhood, most homes were 40 to 60 years old. All of the homeowners were contacted and offered the opportunity to have their homes weatherized; including caulking, weather-stripping, replacing five of the most frequently used light fixtures with compact fluorescent lamps, and attic insulation of 9 inches. The program has bee greatly successful and is currently being expanded to an additional 1000 homes.

Vending Misers - Refrigerated vending machines consume a significant amount of energy to supply cold, refrigerated products. A typical machine that dispenses 500 12-oz cans with an illuminated front, consumes between 7 and 11 kWh hours a day in an office setting. Because of the sheer number of vending machines in City of Houston properties, they were identified as possible source of energy conservation.

The City of Houston purchased 285 energy efficient devices for beverage vending machines in City-owned and operated facilities and parks. The devices, called Vending Misers, reduce energy consumption by powering down the machine when the surrounding area is vacant. In addition, the City purchased 50 new ENERGY STAR rated vending machines. Together these energy saving devices will reduce the City's vending machine electricity consumption by 40 to 50 percent. This represents an annual savings of $34,712 or $98 per machine, and will reduce annual CO 2 emissions by 277 tons.

Energy Star Homes - The City of Houston is dedicated in leading the County with energy efficient homes. The City understands that a person's home is probably the biggest investment they will make, so it makes sense to purchase a home that meets high-energy performance guidelines, which will result in lower energy costs through energy efficiency. ENERGY STAR qualified homes use less energy than homes built to the Texas residential building code, are third-party tested, and provide homeowners with a better lifestyle for less money. The City of Houston continues to lead the way in energy efficient homes. The City of Houston has more ENERGY STAR qualified homes than any other U.S. city.

Solar-Power - The Department of Energy (DOE) has designated the City of Houston as a solar city. Houston has been selected as one of 12 cities to be recognized. Houston was chosen for its commitment and comprehensive approach to the deployment of solar technologies.

This designation makes available a grant for $200,000 in funds to the City of Houston from the DOE along with access to their technical resources to develop a strategy and plan for solar infrastructure in the region. BP Solar, a key partner in the proposal, will provide an additional $200,000 in solar panels to the City of Houston as part of the matching requirement for the grant.

Residents need not look any further then downtown to see solar power at work. Recently, downtown parking meters have been changed out for solar power, electronic meters. This is just the beginning of solar power use in the City of Houston . Solar panels now sit on top of the City Hall Annex building, and the City's Code Enforcement Building at 3300 Main . These panels will produce approximately 24000 kWh annually.

MATERIAL REDUCTION

Curbside Recycling - Curbside recycling is the largest and most popular recycling program in Houston . Curbside recycling requires residents to place newspaper, magazines, telephone books, aluminum and tin cans, advertising mail, corrugated cardboard, plastic soft drink, milk and water containers, together in the same bin. Each bin holds 18 gallons of recycling material and is itself made out of 25% recycled plastic and 75% virgin material. Used oil is also collected and is placed next to the bin in clean containers with screw-on tops.

Curbside recycling was changed from a weekly to a biweekly service to reduce the number of trips into the neighborhoods, thereby reducing fuel consumption and emissions. Biweekly service is also more cost-efficient for the department by ensuring the bins are full on collection day.

Neighborhoods that would like to be considered for future recycling expansion are placed on a waiting list. Please note that your neighborhood must be within the Houston City limits and not currently in a sponsorship program (homeowners association receives rebate from the city for garbage service); on a private street; and/or in a gated community. We are requesting that you provide the following information (in writing) to have your neighborhood added to the waiting list. When resources become available, you will be notified.

Your letter should be mailed to the Solid Waste Management Department, 611 Walker, 12th Floor, Houston, TX 77002 Attn: Curbside Recycling Program.

The City has invested $350,000 to revitalize the curbside recycling program. Current participation rate is approximately 20%. The goal set by Mayor White is to raise that rate to 40% and to increase the volume of materials citizens recycle by hosting competitions with rewards of community improvement valued at $5,000 for the best performing neighborhoods.

Other Recycling - In addition to curbside recycling, there's a new push to increase the overall recycling efforts in the Houston area. The City of Houston has partnered with the recycling company, Abitibi, and with H-E-B to collect recyclable products all across the city at H-E-B stores.

Also, the City of Houston and other partners, the Houston Astros, and the Houston Texans have teamed up with Waste Management to further promote recycling in the City of Houston . Waste Management is working with Aramark Facility Services and together will place several hundred recycling containers throughout Minute Maid Park and Reliant Stadium. Fans of all ages are now encouraged to do their part by recycling their cardboard, plastic, aluminum bottles and other trash before they leave each game.

C & D Warehouse - A 2004 - 2005 study completed by the Houston-Galveston Area Council (H-GAC) and the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC), shows approximately 38% of the waste stream in the Houston area is construction and demolition (C&D) material.

The City of Houston was awarded a $150,000 H-GAC Solid Waste Reduction Grant in 2008 for the creation of a C & D reuse center. The City will be utilizing a surplus City property at 9003 N. Main, Houston , TX 77002 for the Center, and will partner with Brigid's Paradigm to operate the facility.

This site will also include an additional neighborhood depository, recycling drop-off, and office space, and is scheduled to open summer of 2008.

The C & D Warehouse will accept reusable building materials from private entities and the public. The warehouse will be used to store and distribute building material, track inventory, and provide documentation for LEED diversion goals. The Center will not accept materials of a hazardous nature - i.e. paint, and some older appliances. There are also plans to expand operations to include value added programs once the site is established.

Stop Trashing Houston - Houston 's great neighborhoods, warm climate and friendly citizens make it a great place to call home, however, many Houston neighborhoods report having a huge problem. It's trash!

Trash placed at the wrong time in front of homes, dumped in neighborhoods, and left to litter our roadways and communities. The City of Houston , citizens, and the private sector have joined forces to combat this problem, and their goal is simple . . . Stop Trashing Houston!

The purpose of the Stop Trashing Houston campaign is to create a catalyst for change in the neighborhoods that suffer from these problems.

By combining public education with added enforcement, Stop Trashing Houston can eliminate illegal dumping and littering by effectively changing behavior - making Houston a cleaner, more livable city.

Go Green - Houston 's Solid Waste Management Department has formed a "Go Green" team to work towards getting citizens excited about recycling and about making Houston a model environmental city.

Furthermore, the City has worked closely with our professional sports stadiums to offer recycling opportunities for fans. As a result, both Minute Maid Park , and the Reliant Center now offer recycling bins throughout their stadiums.

The City has additionally increased recycling by partnering with HEB, Abitibi, and Keep Houston Beautiful, to place x recycling bins in HEB parking lots around the City, making it easier for residents to recycle their material.

Woody Waste Program - Studies indicate that 30-40 %, by weight, of the material collected in the City's Heavy Trash program consists of recyclable tree waste, which can be diverted from the landfill. The City estimates a potential diversion of 30,000 - 50,000 tons per year, when the program is implemented citywide.

Tree waste is defined as clean wood waste consisting of tree limbs, branches, and stumps; other organic materials generated from routine grounds maintenance, and cleaned untreated lumber.

The City has identified specific Heavy Trash routes in two quadrant collection areas to participate in the pilot program. The City estimates a savings of $236,544 per year in landfill savings by diverting an estimated 1,540 tons of heavy tree waste trash.

The Tree Waste Recycling Pilot Program begun October 15, 2007 and will proceed for a period of one year. The success of the program will be monitored throughout the year and a determination made whether to continue with expansion efforts upon the completion of the pilot program. If successful, the City will convert the pilot areas to permanent program status and then expand the system to the remaining heavy trash service areas.

Biodegradable Bags Pilot - The City is examining ways to increase the efficiency and diversion of material collected through the yard waste program. The Solid Waste Management Department is pilot testing five different brands of biodegradable bag for yard clippings. Bags will be rated based on feedback both from collection crews on the stability of the bag curbside, and from the compost vendor on the breakdown of the bag in their product.

NeighborWoods Program - A private/public volunteer initiative aimed at providing Houston neighborhoods with beautiful trees free of charge. Citizens can obtain a brand-new 5-gallon tree; in exchange, they must plant it properly on the right of way adjacent to their property and maintain its growth and development for two years.

Linear Forests Program - This program restores the natural regeneration of our urban forest. These areas remain undisturbed to allow a greater variety of native vegetation to re-establish itself. Grass and other plants will grow tall the first year and soon, trees will sprout, grow and expand our urban forest. In addition, because this is natural regeneration, these areas are established so that no mowing is required. This helps cut down emissions from gas-powered lawn mowers.

Discovery Green Park - Discovery Green is an 11.78-acre park currently under construction in downtown Houston. This new urban park is located across from the George R. Brown Convention Center and the Hilton Americas Hotel between the Toyota Center and Minute Maid Park . It is managed by The Discovery Green Conservancy, a private non-profit corporation formed to design, build and operate the park for the city. Discovery Green is changing the landscape of downtown Houston today and creating a vibrant, dynamic urban park for tomorrow.

Brownfields Redevelopment Program - Houston 's Brownfields Redevelopment Program is a U.S. EPA Brownfields Showcase Community. With this designation, Houston serves as one of 28 recognized role models for municipalities to pattern themselves after in their quest to develop practices and policies that facilitate Brownfields redevelopment. A "Brownfield" is any property where redevelopment is complicated by the presence or potential presence of environmental contamination. These sites can be abandoned buildings, vacant lots, former commercial or manufacturing sites, or other types of property. The mission of Houston's Program is to help improve the quality of life for Houston 's residents by facilitating the identification, assessment, cleanup, and beneficial redevelopment of Brownfields. The redevelopment can be anything that will benefit the community, such as housing for the elderly, new businesses that create jobs or shopping opportunities, or parks. The Program provides free environmental site assessments that are funded by the U.S. EPA with grants awarded to the City.

Since September 2005, 24 new sites have come into the Program. Seventeen of those properties will become park space, two will provide affordable housing, one will provide a housing facility for the elderly, one will become an organic garden for educating students about nutritious diets as well as providing food for needy citizens, one will become a hotel/resort, and two are City-owned properties that will be cleaned up and sold for development.

Parks and Open Space Ordinance - The City passed a Parks and Open Space Ordinance, which requires residential developers to develop park space or pay an in-lieu fee in the areas in which they build. This ordinance, which took effect on November 1, 2007, divides the City into 17 sectors. Developers have the option of contributing $700 per dwelling unit or dedicating 1.8 acres of land for every 100 dwelling units they build. The formula is based on a number of factors including: the number of units in the development; the number of persons per dwelling for single and multi-family units; and the current parkland to resident ratio designated by the 2001 Parks Master Plan.

In addition, the Trust for Public Land 's 2007 survey indicates that the City of Houston ranks first among the nations top 10 cities in total acreage of parkland and second behind only San Diego in park acreage per capita.

Tree Inventory - Houston Parks and Recreation Department's 2005 Urban Forestry Partnership Grant project is geared toward evaluating the value of the tree inventory and managing the asset lifecycle of our urban tree canopy. A full time GIS/Forestry Professional was hired to oversee and develop a complete street tree inventory and management plan to ensure the best management of the city's existing tree canopy.

Key responsibilities of the position and grant project goals are, to oversee and develop the Urban Forestry Internship Program, complete of tree inventory inside the 610 Loop, manage the tree inventory data and generate meaningful reports, use the tree inventory data to prepare a community tree management plan, develop a disaster preparation and response plan to reduce tree damage caused by severe weather in critical access corridors on the Texas Medical Center District, and coordinate with non-profits and volunteer groups.

Adopt-an-Esplanade - Adopt-An-Esplanade is a program designed to bring Houston neighborhoods together in committed, collaborative partnerships to improve and maintain city esplanades. Houston Parks and Recreation Department administers the program and Keep Houston Beautiful provides volunteer coordination, community education, training, planning assistance, and loans tools and equipment for beautification and cleanup projects. Participants include civic groups, garden clubs, business owners, city and state agencies and corporate sponsors.

Remediation Database - The objective of creating a Houston area specific remediation database is to better monitor the status of federal and state Superfund sites, and determine if federal and state remediation programs are protecting human health and the environment within the City of Houston.

The database of sites provides problem identification and site information for each federal and state Superfund site within the City of Houston . The problem identification covers: 1) what programs are addressing the site, 2) Why are the sites classified in a particular manner, and 3) Where the sites are located?

The site information covers: 1) remediation that has been applied to the site, 2) the success of the remediation strategy, and 3) the current status of the site.

Having this information easily accessible provides trouble-free tracking of each site. Being able to better track these site will allow for a managed process of correcting the problems found with each site, and help better identify potential Brownfield sites.

In addition, such a database helps identify "orphaned sites" that have fallen through the cracks. An orphaned site is a toxic waste area where the polluter could not be identified or the polluter refused to take action or pay for the cleanup.

FUELS, VEHICLES, AND TRANSIT

Vehicles - The City of Houston has made significant strides in lowering vehicle emissions and promoting environmental stewardship in its operating practices by reducing the size of the city fleet from 1999 to 2004 by 9%, and increasing the number of lower emitting vehicles in the fleet. As of September 1, 2006 the City owns 297 hybrid vehicles in our fleet. Also, the City now considers the environmental impact of each vehicle in all purchases, just as we consider other factors such as price, size, and lifespan. The City has also retrofit 32 gradalls, 28 pumps, and 22 mini-excavators in the Public Works fleet.

In addition, the City has worked aggressively with Green Space Management and Fleet Maintenance this spring in submitting Texas Emissions Reduction Program nominations for heavy equipment rebates. Using vehicles already budgeted for replacement; this team identified qualifying vehicles to be retired from our fleet. Houston Parks and Recreation Department was the only government agency to receive approximately $150,000 in funding approvals, with more applications pending. With TERP funding, the Parks Department will purchase 4 new trucks and 25 new on-road and 12 non-road vehicles. In addition, all city construction contracts now offer a bonus to contractors who use clean equipment (Tier II or better) on city projects.

Alternative Fuels - The City of Houston has used ultra low sulfur diesel and TxLED - two low emission diesel fuels - since 2004, long before the law required this, even though the cost is greater than fuels with higher levels of emissions. The City is also testing alternative fuels such as bio-diesel on some of the highest emitting vehicles.

Furthermore, new diesel-engine oil has been developed by Shell Oil Company and will be tested on new and old City diesel engines in SWD. The ultimate goal is to use this new diesel oil for both new and older diesel engines, which is more environmentally friendly than the current oil that is used.

Flex in the City - Mayor White has also proposed a flexible workplace initiative, Flex in the City. The program is having a measurable impact on Houston 's freeways, with time and cost savings for motorists. During September 18 - 29, Mayor White asked Houston 's top business leaders, if it made sense for their business, to try additional flexible work options that eliminated at least one additional peak-time commuter.

The project successfully showed that by working together, motorist's time and money could be saved without loss of productivity to businesses. Even more remarkable is the fact that it would cost the taxpayer millions of dollars to build enough road-lane capacity to achieve the same kind of improvement in mobility that was seen through this program.

More than 140 organizations registered for the two-week Flex in the City program as participants and/or supporters; anticipating more than 20,000 employees eliminating an additional peak-time commute through teleworking/telecommuting; compressed workweeks (same number of work hours in fewer days); or shifting their commute to before or after peak-time commute hours.

Employers were encouraged to measure the effect of the flexible work option(s) on productivity while the City measured effects on Houston 's freeways using Houston TranStar.

Six in the City - The new downtown circulator program makes getting around downtown much easier. This program eliminates the guessing on cab rates, any cab ride downtown is just $6. This program, among other things, offers a daytime transportation alternative for commuters using mass-transit, thus making it easier to commute into downtown.

In addition, the City has worked closely with area taxicabs to encourage companies to purchase hybrid vehicles. Yellow Cab and United Cab, were recently featured by the Mayor as leading in this initiative.

Mobility Response Team - The City has created a new Mobility Response Team (MRT), designed to respond to and lessen the impact of significant traffic congestion resulting from malfunctioning traffic signals, accidents, and other mobility issues throughout the city. Also, it has the benefit of freeing police officers up from responding to minor calls.

The team is composed of 21 mobility service officers whose primary responsibilities are traffic control and direction, enforcement of city parking regulations and distribution of "blue forms" at minor accident scenes.

Team members will be dispatched to "hot spots" throughout the city via Public Works and Engineering dispatch at Houston Trans-Star. MRT members will also respond with Public Works Traffic Management crews to traffic signal outages and other non-freeway locations experiencing significant traffic congestion.

MRT members comply with all traffic laws while enroute to calls for service. They are not authorized to issue traffic citations, tow vehicles, or conduct accident investigations.

For more information regarding this program please see http://www.houstontx.gov/environment/epr/signaltiming.pdf

Clean Contracting - Because the City of Houston is concerned about NOx emissions, it has created a provision based on a TXDOT program that offers financial incentives to City contractors that use new, rebuilt, or repowered diesel vehicles on City projects. These vehicles must reach EPA Tier 1, 2, or 3 to receive the incentive pay. If contractors do not wish to participate in the voluntary program, they may opt-out by sending the City of Houston a written notice.

The City is currently reviewing the Clean Contracting program, and identifying ways in which it could be improved and expanded.

Houston is on a Roll -

Green Building Advisory Committee - The Green Building Advisory Committee was assembled to assist the Mayor in educating Houstonians about the benefits of high performance buildings. Committee members will share their experience with the design, construction and operation of green buildings.

The City of Houston and the advisory panel will work together to teach citizens of Houston the importance of green building. Green buildings promote sustainable development that ultimately reduces the cost of living and improves the quality of life for Houstonians.

Green Building Resource Center - In addition to the Mayor's Green Building Advisory Committee, the City is creating a Green Building Resource Center. The Center will be housed in the City's Code Enforcement Building at 3300 Main.

This is an education center where the public can learn and be advised of green building, and green building products. Classes on green building will also be taught at the center. Citizens will be able to see demos of green building concepts like a green roof, rain gardens, and other displays. The purpose of the Center is to raise awareness of green building, and educate the public about what they can do.

Quick-Start Incentive - Our standard commercial building plan review for the City of Houston is 11 calendar days for 90% of all commercial plan reviews. This was a significant recent result of a taskforce initiative initiated by the Mayor's Taskforce on Permit Reform. This process improvement puts Houston at the forefront of reduced permit processing times of large cities in the U.S.

In addition, as further incentive to encourage LEED Green Building Rating System certification, the Planning & Development Services Code Enforcement Plan Review Section of the City of Houston offers a Quick Start service to any project that has registered for LEED certification regardless of construction cost and/or size.

The City is consistently completing commercial plan reviews within the record setting 11 days; however the elimination of another eleven-day cycle can save interim financing and other costs for the builder. Allowing broader access to the program and rebating the additional charge is a significant benefit to those who undertake the worthy goal of LEED construction and operation.

The costs that are saved to the builders are an attractive incentive to encourage Houston business and industry leaders to build LEED certified green buildings.

Improved Building Codes - The City of Houston has recently updated the commercial energy codes. The new codes require new commercial buildings to have design elements aimed at reducing energy consumption, such as heat-trapping vestibules, reflective roofs, and insulation.

The City is also developing a new energy code for residential building.

MUNICIPAL BUILDING, FACILITIES, AND OPERATIONS

Sustainable Building - The City of Houston has adopted a Green Building Resolution, which set a target of Silver level LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for new construction, replacement facilities and major renovations of city of Houston-owned buildings and facilities with more than 10,000 square feet of occupied space, the LEED Green Building Rating System is a voluntary, consensus-based national standard for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings.

The City has initiated 18 LEED certified projects, representing approximately 700,000 square feet of occupied space and a construction value of $90 million.

The City has also retrofitted the light bulbs in 62 City buildings. The project replaces T-12 lamps with electronic ballasts. Other lighting improvements include using compact fluorescent type replacement lamps for standard incandescent bulb replacement where applicable. This decision was made because it is cost-effective and conserves natural resources. The City will apply Demand Reduction Incentive Funds that are available from Center Point Energy, to offset the cost of the project. The estimated reduction in electricity cost is $464,253 annually. This project includes 17,441 existing fixtures that are being retrofitted.

Also, The City will be installing occupancy sensors on light switches at the Police Administration Building , Gerson Building , and Police Communication Building . These sensors automatically turn off ceiling lights in offices where no motion is detected for 10 minutes. This proposal includes controlling 3,047 total existing fixtures with occupancy sensors. This initiative will save the City several thousand-kilowatt hours' electricity, making the city buildings more energy efficient.

Building Retrofits - The City of Houston has committed 271 facilities totaling approximately 11 million square feet to the Clinton Foundation Climate Initiative's Large Buildings Energy Efficiency Retrofit Program

The following types of facilities will be in this project:

(10 facilities totaling 1.6 million sq.ft.)

The agreement requires the two ESCOs to identify their experience and qualifications per building typology to perform analysis, design, engineering, preparation of engineering plans and specifications, installation, commissioning, monitoring and verification of savings, and management of major utility cost reduction projects that have involved utility cost reduction measures which address whole building components and applications. Such components and applications might include: lighting, space heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, building envelope, heat recovery, energy and water management systems, environmental system controls, motors, domestic water heating, fuel switching, air distribution systems, water distribution/metering or other energy/water related improvements; e.g., utility rate improvements and renewable energy but in no case is this list exhaustive.

The two successful ESCOs are required to provide all services necessary to implement energy efficiency conservation and cost savings measures including but not limited to the following: assess and verify existing conditions; issue investment grade energy audits for each facility, review and verify the City of Houston's design standards requirements; program and develop a needs assessment; provide drawings and specifications; provide computer-aided design and drafting (CADD) documentation; provide permitting services; estimate construction costs; provide value engineering; arrange and conduct meetings; carry on normal construction administration and perform all construction activities; and assist in warranty reviews.

The City anticipates a major reduction in annual utility and operating costs through the implementation of this energy efficiency and utility conservation program. The two ESCOs are required to complete and provide an investment grade audit of the facilities before any contracting is priced. The ESCOs must provide this investment grade audit for all proposed utility conservation measures for each facility. From this list of proposed measures the City of Houston will select the individual work scopes that will be contracted for each facility. The ESCOs must include clear instructions on how the guarantee calculation is derived for each project and if necessary the agreement allows the City of Houston to examine the books of the ESCOs to determine the appropriateness of the pricing.. As part of the contractual process, the ESCOs must include a provision for monitoring and verification of utility savings and any guaranteed operational savings. This is a multi year contract that will result in the saving of millions of dollars over many years and the reduction of a significant amount of carbon dioxide (estimated to reach 300,000 tons annually).

e-Newsletter - The City has unveiled - for the first time - an environmental e-newsletter, the Environmental Standard . This newsletter provides information about relevant projects involving the City and the community. Its purpose is to:

The e-Newsletter has a current readership over 2,300 recipients. Current and past issues can be found on the City's web site at www.greenhoustontx.gov.

In addition, the City has embarked on a program to spotlight businesses in the community that are making significant strides in environmental best practices. The City's Environmental Spotlight features a new business every six to eight weeks. Current and past recipients can be found on the City's web site at www.greenhoustontx.gov/spotlight.html.

Environmental Violation Handbook - The City of Houston is the first city in the nation to create and publish an environmental violation handbook. This handbook captures the 30 most common environmental violations, from illegal dumping into storm drains, and sewer overflow, to industrial waste, chemical spills, and smoking vehicles. The handbook provides detailed information on what to look for and how to properly report the violation.

The Environmental Violation Handbook has two versions, the hardcopy, published version that is given to all City Inspectors, and an online version that is available to the public on the City's web site.

The City Inspector version is given to all City Inspectors; the idea behind this handbook is that while inspectors are out doing routine inspections, they can become aware of common environmental violation and know what to look for and how and whom to report any problems they encounter. This way a health inspector doing a routine restaurant inspection may notice, after having viewed the images of the handbook, that a truck has just tracked mud onto the street and know that doing so is a violation. They can find that violation in the handbook and can properly report what was done to the proper people.

In the same way, the online version of the Environmental Violation Handbook will be an educational tool, to teach citizens what to watch for and how to report any violations that they see. By allowing all City Inspectors and citizens at-large to help spot, and report common environmental violations, the City hopes to see reductions in these types of violations, which would cut costs the City incurs as a result of these actions, and improve the community as a whole.