The City of San Luis Obispo recently received two Platinum Level Beacon Spotlight awards at the 2024 League of California Cities Annual Conference for its statewide leadership efforts.
One award is for reducing municipal operations natural gas usage by 28% between 2019 and 2022.
The other award is for comprehensive leadership actions taken across a wide range of topics including energy efficiency and conservation, water and wastewater, waste reduction and recycling, green buildings, renewable energy, efficient transportation, land use and community design and supporting community and individual action, among others.
The Institute for local Government’s Beacon program recognizes the voluntary efforts of local government agencies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve resiliency and health for their communities.
“One of the core pillars of our Climate Action Plan is to lead by example with our own operations, and we’re working hard across departments to make progress on Council’s goal of carbon-neutral operations across the City government organization by 2030. It’s a big lift and we are excited for the recognition of our City colleague’s hard work,” said the City’s Sustainability Manager Chris Read.
About the best practices award, Read added, “We know the community prioritizes this work, and the award for best practices across a wide range of topics underscores the progress we’ve all made together to create a more resilient and sustainable San Luis Obispo.”
Currently, 172 cities, counties and special districts throughout the state participate in the Beacon Program. ILG established the Beacon Program to provide recognition and year-round support for California local agencies that are working to build more vibrant and sustainable communities.
The Beacon Awards honor efforts by cities, counties and special districts that are reducing greenhouse gas emissions, saving energy and adopting policies that promote sustainability. For more information about the Beacon Program and current participants, visit www.ca-ilg.org/BeaconProgram.
For more information about the City’s sustainability efforts, visit www.slocity.org/sustainableslo.