City of Bellingham honored by ICLEI with national award for Energy Efficiency Innovation

Local Governments for Sustainability (ICLEI) awarded nine governments around the country with Leadership Awards for taking innovative actions to promote sustainability in their communities. As a lead partner and a key funder of the Community Energy Challenge, the City of Bellingham was recognized in the Energy Efficiency Implementation Innovation category, along with the cities of Aspen and Austin.

“This award recognizes Whatcom County’s commitment to reducing green house gas emissions by reducing the amount of energy we use,”  Bellingham Mayor Dan Pike said. “Bellingham is pleased to share this leadership award with Sustainable Connections, the Opportunity Council, Whatcom County, all six cities that also are committed to this effort, and a host of other local organizations.” 

The Community Energy Challenge is commended for implementing its unique Loan Loss Reserve program through Banner Bank and for providing financial incentives and technical guidance to make energy efficiency improvements feasible for a large portion of the residential and local business community in Whatcom County. The ambitious goal of weatherizing 900 homes and 150 businesses through the program is recognized for having a significant positive impact in the community. These projects have the potential to eliminate 7,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year, the same reduction that would be seen by removing 1,400 cars from the road annually.

To read more about this award, check out these links:
City receives national award for Community Energy Challenge
Aspen, Bellingham, and Austin Honored for Energy Efficiency Innovation