 Sparks Mayor Geno Martini (far right), Sparks Deputy Director of Public Works Pete Etchart (2nd from left), and other local officials participate in Green-Up to raise awareness of sustainability issues (April 2008). |
Welcome to the City of Sparks "green" home page! This page is still under construction. Please check back for updates.
Check out our FIRST Solar Power Project at the Larry Johnson Community Center!
Sparks is thinking globally and acting locally on sustainability issues. A combination of economic and environmental concerns has set the stage for increased sustainability throughout the city of Sparks. The city is focused on saving money via increased efficiency and using advances in "green" technology that also boost the health of our planet.
Created this year, the Sustainability Committee is composed of employees from departments throughout the city of Sparks. Its immediate goal is to complete the city of Sparks Sustainability Action Plan by developing short and long-term initiatives and highlighting those sustainability goals that already have been achieved.
For instance, in the past four years the city of Sparks has replaced 1,250 incandescent traffic signal lights with energy-efficient LED bulbs. The energy dollars saved per year using the LED-light technology is approximately $330,000.
In addition to the cost savings, the reduction in carbon-dioxide emissions caused by power generation is reduced by four million pounds, which equates to an equivalent reduction of about 425 cars.
The Sparks Sustainability Committee currently is working on long-term plans to develop "green" building standards for public and private development. It also plans to transform the city's transportation fleet to a non-fossil-fuel alternative and convert streetlights to LED technology.