After the turn of the century, in 2001, the City Hall Rooftop Garden officially opened which added to the more than 7 million square feet of green roofs in Chicago. Even the Willis Tower (Formerly Sears Tower) got a green roof last year. The Green Alley Program, implemented in 2007, offered residents a better way to manage stormwater in city alleys. As of 2009 over 15,000 residential units and 400 businesses had been retrofitted for energy efficiency as a part of the Chicago Climate Action Plan which was kicked off only a year prior.
The full list of notable sustainable bullet points is beyond laudable. The 100 Cities Initiative even calls Chicago the “nation’s laboratory for studying ways to reduce the ‘urban heat island’ effect.” It is clear that the world will be looking to Windy City to continue leading by example in the years to come.
REF: SLY and Lea
I’ve lived in Illinois all my life and the recycling issue is much more complex than it seems. Waste management is privatized where I live. It is not that we don’t want the recycling programs. We are over charged to have basic services and the low income neighborhoods are fined relentlessly for simple infractions by code enforcement. An environmental solution that has any chance of working must be environmentally sustainable, economically feasible, and socially acceptable for a community and recycling doesn’t meet the social and economic criteria by a long-shot in many urban areas throughout Illinois. Not every solution will work for every city and unfortunately recycling doesn’t seem to be viable for urban Illinois at the moment.
RE: SLY, I hear what you are saying. I have lived in Chicago less than a year and I already see how recycling is not easily accessible to many people. I too sneak my recyclables into carts down the street, since my building has not made provisions to have bins of our own. I saw this article about the failed blue cart program and it mad me very sad http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/09/chicago-recycling-fail-1_n_641087.html
How is it that Chicago was named one of the “green” cities whent they don’t even have an effective recycling program. I find that funny and sad.
does anyone have any ideas what can be done with coal mining towns and wv and mountain top removal. that is a horrible debate–cancer or my job. or we have enough coal here forever–you need us, or i can’t do anything else or we can’t even drink our own water etc… I think you get the picture