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City of Seattle
Gregory J. Nickels, Mayor
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NEWS ADVISORY
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| SUBJECT: Nickels and Sims Receive Prestigious Sierra Club Award
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
7/21/2006 1:00:00 PM |
FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
Steve Nicholas (206) 615-0829
Alex Fryer (206) 684-8358
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Nickels and Sims Receive Prestigious Sierra Club Award
City’s Leadership in Climate Change Fight Earns
National Recognition
SEATTLE--Mayor Greg Nickels and County Executive Ron Sims today received the
Sierra Club’s prestigious Edgar Wayburn Award, given annually to government
leaders for outstanding service on behalf of the environment.
Nickels and Sims have been at the forefront of a nationwide movement of local
governments taking action to address the climate crisis. The award traditionally
goes to federal leaders.
“I'm thrilled that the Sierra Club has recognized our efforts in Seattle
and King County,” Nickels said. “And I’m honored to share
the award with the county executive. In the spirit of Dr. Wayburn, I hope our
leadership can show what’s possible when people who care about the environment
roll up their sleeves and do the hard work that needs to be done.”
On the day the Kyoto Protocol was ratified in 2005, Mayor Nickels challenged
his fellow U.S. mayors to commit their communities to meet or beat the greenhouse
gas reduction targets spelled out in the accord. To date, 270 mayors, representing
48 million Americans from 43 states and the District of Columbia, have signed
the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement.
In addition, Nickels has moved the city of Seattle to a deeper shade of green.
Since 1999, the city’s fuel consumption has dropped by 7 percent and,
because the diesel fleet runs on 20 percent biodiesel, fossil fuel consumption
is down a dramatic 12 percent.
The city has become more environmentally friendly in other ways. Seattle City
Light, through use of renewable energy and carbon emission reduction programs,
has become the first and only electric utility in the nation to achieve net-zero
greenhouse gas emissions. Seattle Public Utilities has overseen water conservation
efforts that have resulted in Seattle using less water than it did in the mid-1970s
despite a 25 percent increase in population.
Dr. Edgar Wayburn, a California physician, was five-time president of the
Sierra Club and in 1999 was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President
Clinton. Among his many accomplishments, Wayburn was pivotal in creating the
nation's largest urban park, the Golden Gate National Recreation Area; and
protecting 100 million acres of Alaskan wild lands with the Alaska National
Interest Lands Conservation Act, which doubled the size of America’s
National Park system.
For more information about the city of Seattle’s environmental initiatives,
see www.seattle.gov/environment.
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Office of the Mayor
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