LEON COUNTY, Fla. (WTXL) — This weekend the community celebrated the 10th year of the "Leon County Office of Sustainability" creation and its efforts to find strategies to improve energy and water conservation waste reduction, and more.
The Leon County Office of Sustainability has done numerous things over the past 10 years such as creating a net zero building which creates more energy than it consumes, saved over eight million dollars in building retro-fits, among other things.
"We have alternative fuel vehicles in our Leon County fleet. We have reduced our waste in our offices and practiced more sustainable purchasing," said Tessa Schreiner, Recycling and Sustainability Manager for Leon county.
Over the last decade Leon County along with other program have tried to improve the sustainability of the county.
One of the main focuses is recycling. The County has increased its ability to recycle 66% of all waste.
"The biggest accomplishment is the awareness and increase in recycling, I think we have made it easier for the public to recycle," said George Loscialo, Recycling and marketing manager.
Leon County has also taken steps to clean the lakes in the area by putting in storm water management facilitates.
While cleaning up lakes is important for residents it also helps the environment south of the county.
"The water that you have in your lakes actually effects the manatees and the surface water down in Wakulla Springs," said Theresa Hiker, storm water management coordinator.
While Leon County has made huge improvements making the county more environmentally friendly, there is still work to be done.
If you would like to learn more about how you can help Leon County become more sustainable you can visit the the County's website or call them at (850) 606-5021.
