State and Local Climate and Energy Program
Red and Blue and Green All Over: A Triangle Region Sustainable Emergency Services Program to Reduce GHG Emissions
Cary, North Carolina
Federal Funding: $496,000
Project Timeline: February 2011 – February 2014
Project Summary
Regional Program to Promote Sustainable Police and Fire Departments
The town of Cary is launching a first-of-its kind project to reduce the environmental impacts of fire and police departments. With this project, the town of Cary hopes to spark cost-saving GHG reductions in local fire and police departments while inspiring departments around North Carolina and the rest of the country to do so as well. Cary is partnering with the City of Raleigh, the City of Durham, and the City of Chapel Hill to implement sustainable practices in local fire and police departments. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions and decreasing energy consumption will help fire and police services to meet increasingly tight budget constraints, save jobs, and improve services. The town of Cary will achieve these reductions by:
- creating a Climate Showcase Fire Station,
- developing a suite of police- and fire-specific sustainability projects, and,
- issuing the Fire Chiefs' Climate Challenge to encourage fire chiefs around the country to implement similar improvements.
The town of Cary will build a Climate Showcase Fire Station, which will also be the town's first municipal building to use green building principles. The fire station will be adjacent to a community center, elementary school, and middle school, which will facilitate community interest in station tours and outreach activities at the fire station. The Climate Showcase Fire Station will include a rooftop solar photovoltaic installation, preferred parking for efficient vehicles, bicycle storage, reclaimed water usage, recycling and composting, low-emitting building materials, an efficient HVAC system and building envelope, enhanced ventilation systems, and extensive use of daylighting. Upon completion, the station will be available for public tours and a detailed case study of the project will be conducted to support replicability.
The town of Cary will also implement a suite of measures to decrease greenhouse gas emissions and reduce energy consumption in fire stations in the region. These measures include station energy retrofits, culture-sensitive environmental coaching, a hybrid vehicle procurement policy, and an alternative fuel working group. Throughout the process the town will collect baseline data on fire and police station energy use in order to track sustainability efforts and facilitate the sharing of best practices. Finally, fire chiefs in the Triangle region will issue the Fire Fighters’ Energy Challenge to other departments and stations in the state, region, and nation. The program will include a quantifiable greenhouse gas emission reduction pledge and list of commitments, as well as a toolkit for other interested chiefs that include a detailed case study of the Cary Climate Showcase Fire Station and other recommendations based on the experiences of the Triangle region.
Altogether, the project is expected to greenhouse emissions in Cary and beyond by 236 metric tons CO2e annually, while setting an example of leadership in climate action from respected emergency services departments.
Community Characteristics
| Population: | 112,700 |
|---|---|
| Area: | 42 square miles |
| Government Type: | Township |
| Community Type: | Suburban |
| Median Household Income: | $72,554 |
Program Results/Estimated Results
| Expected GHG Reductions: | 240 metric tons CO2e annually |
|---|---|
| Expected Fire Stations Retrofitted: | 7 fire stations |
| Expected Electricity Savings: | 285 MWh annually |
