Cool Cities

Everyone has a mechanical inspection prior to buying a house to insure that the dishwasher works. Everyone should also have an energy audit to insure that the house works properly. It will save you $1000’s.

Nov. 2009 - When Albuquerque's new City Council first convened in December, it was poised to create a city-wide “Renewable Energy Financing District,” allowing property owners to finance renewable energy systems such as photovoltaic and thermal solar through their property taxes. The Ordinance creating the District, O-09-87, was deferred through the month and is now scheduled for final action at the Council’s January 4th meeting.

Nov. 2009 - Santa Fe County and the City of Santa Fe City Council passed a resolution to support federal legislation on climate change and support for a green economy.

Oct. 2009 - The Sierra Club and Southwest Energy Efficiency Project (SWEEP) led the effort to ensure that the “2009 Interim Albuquerque Energy Conservation Code (2009 Interim AECC)” was adopted by the Albuquerque City Council.

Oct. 24, 2009 - Supported by Conservation Voters New Mexico (Molly Brook, CVNM's Global Warming Program Associate) and New Mexico Interfaith Power & Light, the Sierra Club's October 24th event for 350.org's International Day of Climate Action outside the Albuquerque Aquarium attracted numerous volunteers and hundreds of visitors, young and old, who submitted statements on the importance of climate action and signed petitions urging adoption of the City's Climate Action Plan.

Dexter Coolidge, Northern New Mexico Group Conservation Chair, reports on his energy audit that he had completed prior to his investments in solar thermal and solar PV...

10/27/09 - One more big action towards step-function growth in renewable energy growth in NM. The Santa Fe County Board of County Commissioners passed the ordinance to create a Renewable Energy Financing District for Santa Fe County. This allows residents to finance solar, geothermal, and wind projects through their property taxes.

Oct. 20, 2009 - Louise Pape, Vice Chair of the Sustainable Santa Fe Commission, led a workshop for the Northern New Mexico Group titled “One Trash Can per Year.”

The Santa Fe Regional Planning Authority (RPA) has recently created an Energy Task Force (ETF). The charter of this task force is to recommend specific energy projects for the City of Santa Fe and Santa Fe County. These projects will address reduction of CO2, reduce energy usage, save money, provide economic development and can be implemented within 1-2 years.

July 2009 - Albuquerque Cool Cities has evolved into a vibrant grassroots campaign since its launch a few years ago by local Sierra Club members Eva Thaddeus and Gary McFarland. Initially, the campaign zeroed in on fulfilling the core objective of the national Cool Cities campaign: getting city government to do everything it can to help solve climate change.