The city of Orlando is pledging to take its current green initiatives a step further.
“I can’t imagine that anybody would be against this. It’s not only good for the environment but it’s also good for taxpayers,” said Yulissa Arce, program manager for Florida Institute for Reform and Empowerment Climate Change.
Arce is excited about the pledge Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer made last week to switch the city’s gas-powered fleet vehicles to vehicles that run on alternative fuels like electricity and natural gas.
“If this type of initiative starts expanding to Orange County, to all of our constitutional offices, to all the municipalities, the impact is like you plant a seed, you plant an investment,” Arce said. “You save money in the long run, it’s great for the environment, (and) the community wants it.”
In fact, the city of Orlando began converting to advanced fuel vehicles in 2010, with idea of reducing carbon dioxide emissions and saving taxpayers money by reducing fuel and maintenance costs.
Now they’ve joined seven other cities in the Energy Secure Cities Coalition, including Atlanta, San Diego and West Palm Beach, to create a green network to share best practices.
“Next thing you know, it’s not just a fleet of hybrid cars, it’s green infrastructure that’s being implemented in our community. It’s water savings, it’s solar initiatives,” Arce said.
Right now, Orlando has 1,689 advanced fuel vehicles and they’re planning to have 2,389 green vehicles by 2030.
Mayor Dyer said this is about, “taking the steps necessary to preserve our natural resources for our children and future generations.
“We’re super excited about what’s next. We understand that this just part of a bigger picture so we’re definitely excited and we want to see more of these types of initiatives,” Arce said.
The Energy Secure Cities Coalition hopes to have 25 cities committed to the alternative-fuel initiative by 2025.
Their goal is take 50,000 gas powered vehicles off the roads, which would save about a half million barrels of oil every year.