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Mission Verde Sustainability Plan |
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We live in a world of volatile energy prices, increasingly scarce resources, vigorous world competition and technological innovation. Such rapid changes touch the lives of every San Antonian. How we respond to these changes will define us as a city and determine the quality of our lives and our economic fate. They represent perhaps the greatest challenge facing our city.
This plan, Mission Verde, speaks to this challenge. It is based on a simple principle: in meeting our needs today we cannot compromise the ability of future generations of San Antonians to meet their needs. This is sustainability. It is more than an environmental policy; it is an economic one. Saving energy saves money. Renewable energy creates economic self‐reliance. Fewer cars on the road mean less pollution, which carries its own economic costs. A green infrastructure, powered by green technology, creates jobs.
This plan not only allows San Antonio to participate in this new economy, but sets an example for others to follow. We can bring unique and innovative approaches to green infrastructure, green retrofitting, green jobs programs, and green venture capital. We can position ourselves to compete successfully in a 21st Century global economy. We can transform our city and improve the lives of all San Antonians. With Mission Verde, we control our destiny.
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INTRODUCTION
This plan, Mission Verde, is based on a simple principle: in meeting our needs today we cannot compromise the ability of future generations of San Antonians to meet their needs. This is sustainability. It is more than an environmental policy; it is an economic one.
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ENERGY INFRASTRUCTURE
The hallmark of a 21st Century urban energy infrastructure will be distributed energy. This is a world where energy is generated through renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass, and geothermal, originated from thousands of sources such as buildings and homes, stored until needed, and connected with a smart, multi-directional grid.
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CLEAN AND GREEN TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT
For San Antonio to achieve its full potential in biotechnology, high technology, clean and green technology, companies and entrepreneurs in San Antonio must have access to venture capital. As technologies are developed, new "green" jobs will be created. To ensure that San Antonians take advantage of these opportunities, we must provide training to match employer needs as they evolve.
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SUSTAINABLE BUILDINGS
Buildings represent almost 75% of the electricity consumption in the country, and over 90% in San Antonio. Developing code that meets the specific needs of San Antonio by combining minimum standards, voluntary standards, and incentives can address this issue in new construction. Existing buildings can be retrofitted, but capital needed to perform this work on homes and businesses.
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TRANSPORTATION AND LAND USE
One of the foundations of a 21st Century sustainable urban economy is an integrated, efficient multi-modal transportation system. Additionally,new sustainable real estate development that is mixed-use, mixed income, walkable, and transit-oriented can have positive impacts on energy consumption, public health, economic development, and air and water quality.
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COMMUNITY OUTREACH
San Antonio has a large number of groups working on different aspects of sustainability and there is a need to create one central source of information for sustainability. A Green One-Stop Center could house sustainability groups, coordinate their efforts, demonstrate sustainability, and provide one central and accurate source of information to residents and businesses.
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SAN ANTONIO: "LEADING BY EXAMPLE"
The City of San Antonio must take advantage of all opportunities to improve sustainability within City operations and track the best practices and policies that are being implemented so that those outside the City may learn from those examples. This includes maximizing the energy efficiency of all City facilities through actions such as upgrades to lighting and HVAC systems.
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CONCLUSION
San Antonio is at a crossroads, a choice of paths. The path of sustainability is a path that leads to the future, one in which San Antonio invests in itself, generates its own energy, creates its own jobs, and builds a vibrant, 21st Century economy. Mission Verde is this path.
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