Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Governor Culver: State Government To "Lead By Example" In Energy Efficiency And Conservation
6th Executive Order to Establish Green Government Initiative
DES MOINES – Tomorrow, Governor Chet Culver will sign Executive Order Six, establishing a new “green government” initiative.
“Iowans have made tremendous strides in recent years to find new forms of renewable energy and reduce our dependence on foreign oil,” said Governor Culver. “Now, we must go one step further, and improve energy efficiency throughout the state. I believe state government can -- and must -- be a model for greening Iowa’s homes, schools and businesses, and my sixth executive order will help us do just that.”
Executive Order Six will establish a Green Government Initiative, and calls for each executive branch agency to appoint a coordinator to support this effort. The Green Government Steering Committee, chaired by Director Roya Stanley of the Office of Energy Independence, will lead the initiative and provide oversight and coordination.
The Governor’s order will set goals to improve energy efficiency in three areas (buildings, materials, and biofuels), and will establish separate task forces to address the issues.
- The Energy Excellent Buildings Task Force will focus on "greening" new and existing state office buildings and facilities, including leased space.
- The Sustainable Materials Task Force will focus on procurement, operations and disposal of all materials used in state government.
- The Biofuels Task Force will focus on increasing the use of biofuels by state agencies, reducing the number of miles traveled by the state employee workforce, and increasing the fuel efficiency of the state vehicle fleet.
In addition, the order will require a thorough review and audit of executive branch agencies' current practices related to energy efficiency and conservation. Using the audit data, the steering committee will develop a Master Plan on how to “green” state government, and track progress of state agencies.