CERTs in the News

The League of Minnesota Cities has named Columbia Heights as its 2020 Sustainable City for expanding its yard waste and organic pickup program.

With more than 1,000 households participating in the city’s program, expanded two years ago to include food scraps and food-soiled paper, Columbia Heights reduced trash disposal by 500 tons, amounting to $37,500 in savings.

Columbia Heights offers curbside pickup for organics and yard waste year-round for a $7.55 quarterly fee.

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The City of Duluth had reached yet another milestone when it comes to sustainability.

Duluth is part of the GreenStep Cities program, developed to challenge areas in reducing their carbon footprints.

After 6-years in the program, the city on the lake has reached Phase-4 of the 5-Phased initiative.

The amount of success a city has when moving toward sustainable energy is measured by action.

The City of Duluth has reached an admirable milestone in its efforts to protect the natural environment and reduce energy consumption.

Just this week, Duluth completed step four of five of the Minnesota Greenstep Cities Program.

Alex Jackson, Energy Coordinator for the city said through the program, Duluth has been working to become more sustainable since 2015.

Some accomplishments over the last five years include:

Southeastern Minnesota cities have been working to improve their sustainability in numerous ways, including plans to increase green energy, creating comprehensive climate plans for the future and focusing on eco-friendly transportation.

Chris Meyer, a coordinator for Clean Energy Resource Teams -- an organization that helps communities with clean energy projects -- wanted to see what individual cities are doing to increase sustainability.

Southeastern Minnesota cities have been working to improve their sustainability in numerous ways, including plans to increase green energy, creating comprehensive climate plans for the future and focusing on eco-friendly transportation.

Chris Meyer, a coordinator for Clean Energy Resource Teams -- an organization that helps communities with clean energy projects -- wanted to see what individual cities are doing to increase sustainability.

City employees worked on a comprehensive study over the past year, measuring eco-friendly municipal practices, in order to elevate Jordan to a Step 4 GreenStep City, the highest of any city in Scott County.

Minnesota GreenStep Cities is a voluntary challenge, assistance and recognition program that pushes cities to achieve sustainability and quality of life goals. It’s managed by a public-private partnership, which includes Minnesota Pollution Control and the Metropolitan Council.

A workshop that teaches homeowners and property owners about wood door and window restoration will be hosted at the Charles A. Weyerhaeuser Memorial Museum in Little Falls, Saturday, Aug. 22.

Older homes and buildings can suffer from doors that are tight and from drafty windows. Since these doors and windows were designed to be easily maintained, repaired or rebuilt, there is no reason that the originals in a home or property can’t be brought back to better-than-new condition and energy efficiency.

In other business July 15, the council: Learned the city achieved step 3 recognition in the GreenStep City program and is the only city in the area to receive that recognition.

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St. Louis Park has been recognized as a Step 4 city in the Minnesota GreenStep Cities program, a voluntary challenge, assistance and recognition program to help 140 participating cities and tribal nations achieve their sustainability and quality-of-life goals based on 20 best practices.

City of Northfield Program Coordinator Beth Kallestad, shared that the City received an award for completing Step 4. She said Northfield has worked hard to implement best practices in order to meet their sustainability goals with support from the GreenStep program and their peers.