In Your Community

Make a difference in your community

Whether walking to work, renovating your house, joining a community task force, or participating in a school Green Team, you too can make a difference

What can you do?

Establishing a cleaner energy future is integrally linked with the way we live and communicate; the way we organize our towns; nurture and manage resources; build, heat and cool our homes; earn a living; and travel around and between our communities.

How can you help make your community a great place to live: a place that is safe, attractive, healthy, thriving and accessible to people of all ages and socio-economic class?

Is your community a clean energy community?

Cities and towns have joined the charge toward energy efficiency and clean, renewable energy. Many communities have created energy task forces or committees to lead the way. Find out more in the Resource Center!

Explore the case studies on the next few slides to learn what people just like you are doing to reduce the energy footprint of their communities.

Reduce! Reuse! Recycle!

Every year Americans create 251 million tons of trash. 164 million tons of waste end up in landfills and incinerators each year.

But it doesn't have to. Did you know that recycling is mandatory in Connecticut? Residents, businesses, schools and colleges, cultural and religious institutions, hospitals — everyone must recycle.

By promoting sustainable business practices through recycling and waste reduction programs, small and large businesses and institutions have an opportunity to save resources, energy, and money. Make sure you have a program in place today.

Connecticut requires recycling for the following items:

• Glass & Metal Food & Beverage Containers
• Plastic Containers (PET or PETE #1)
• Plastic Containers (HDPE #2)
• Corrugated Cardboard
• Boxboard
• Newspaper
• Magazines
• White & Colored Office Paper (residences and businesses)
• Scrap Metal, including appliances
• Ni-Cd Rechargeable Batteries (from consumer products)
• Waste Oil (crankcase oil from internal combustion engines)
• Leaves (must be composted)
• Lead Acid Batteries or Motor Vehicle Batteries
• Grass Clippings (should be left on the lawn or, if necessary, composted )

The dirt on composting

Organic materials are a valuable resource, not waste. One way to divert waste is by composting.

Keeping food scraps, yard trimmings and grass out of the waste stream lowers disposal costs, returns valuable nutrients to the soil, and reduces the need for chemical fertilizers, which decreases non-point source pollution.

Be on the lookout for statewide food scrap recycling programs for commercial and institutional generators of organics, such as grocery stores, food processors, and universities. Also watch for manufacturing facilities to turn those organics into compost products, clean energy, animal feed, and liquid organic fertilizer.

Let's reach Connecticut's goal of recovering 58% of our municipal solid waste through waste reduction, reuse, recycling, and composting by 2024.

Cars and trucks, bikes and...feet

The transportation sector accounts for 32% of the state's total energy consumption and produces roughly 40% of the state's greenhouse gas emissions.

Connecticut's three and a half million residents and economic activities depend on a transportation system that provides the foundation for the state's economy, quality of life, and the character of our communities.

A sustainable transportation energy future requires significant refinements to our system in order to expand mobility options to citizens and businesses, and ensure that the state achieves its greenhouse gas emissions goals.

planned enhancements aim to:

• Encourage transport-oriented development that expands bikeways, walking paths, and other quality of life investments.
• Reduce road congestion, improve air quality, and promote economic growth and job creation.
• Invest in a clean fuels/vehicles initiative that will ensure the basic infrastructure needed for vehicle choice, including public electric vehicle charging stations, Liquefied Natural Gas stations, and hydrogen filling stations.

Did you know that investing in bike lanes saves more than dollars?

For every dollar spent on better bike lanes, cities can expect between $6 and $24 in cost savings. These savings are due to reduced pollution and traffic congestion (from fewer cars on the road), fewer traffic fatalities and lowered health care costs (from the benefits of regular exercise).