Manatee County Receives Platinum Recognition by Florida Green Building Coalition

Posted by: AbbieKnight

Manatee County in Florida just received the highest “platinum” recognition by the Florida Green Building Coalition in sustainability and conservation, making them the first Florida County to do so. The Florida Building Coalition certifies governments, homes, and commercial buildings based on how “green” they are. They have certified 31 Florida communities, with others pending, however so far only Manatee County and the city of Dunedin received the 71 points they needed to be ranked platinum. Manatee first received their “green certification” in 2011 and reached gold by 2014. Since then they have been learning to use different sustainable practices to gain a higher ranking and more points.
This recognition does not just have to do with green buildings; some of the things they were acknowledged for include recycling paint, using LED traffic lights, having a fleet of electric buses. However, there largest energy saving project was their chiller plant, which reduced energy consumption by more than 7 percent and carbon emissions by 7.2 tons. The Chiller plant led to the Manatee County government placing fourteenth out of 125 contestants in a national competition from the Environmental Protection Agency.
Manatee County has accomplished a great goal, however, the county’s energy manager, Diana Robinson says, “that doesn’t mean we end.” Manatee County is working towards diverting 75 percent of its recyclables form landfills by the year 2020, as of now they are at 60 percent, but they will continue to work towards their goal.
For more information on Manatee County: http://www.bradenton.com/news/local/article158438009.html
For a list of all the County’s green achievements: www.floridagreenbuilding.org