Martinez Tribune The website of the Martinez Tribune.
Martinez remained a strong competitor throughout the 2015-2016 CoolCalifornia Challenge thanks to the sustainability efforts of participating Martinez households. Collectively, actions taken by participating households in all 22 cities are leading to savings of approximately 5,638 metric tons of carbon dioxide – the equivalent of removing more than 2,500 homes from the grid or 1,100 automobiles from the road for a year (Center for Sustainable Energy, 2016).
On April 14, Energy Upgrade California released the final ranking and prize amounts to be distributed to each City. Martinez landed in 6th place with nearly 150 participants and close to 300,000 points earned. The City will be awarded $8,745 in prize money to go towards a City sustainability project.
“I’m excited and encouraged by how well we did in our first year of participating in the Cool California Challenge,” said Mayor Rob Schroder. “Our citizens really care about the environment and pride themselves in their conservation efforts. I look forward to Martinez being a part of next year’s Challenge!”
The City of Martinez will be using the CoolCalifornia Challenge Funds to replace approximately 60 trees in the downtown corridor. The criteria for replacement were the age and health of the trees and public safety concerns regarding fallen branches in the busy downtown areas. Many of the trees to be replaced have grown to the end of their life span, while others have fallen prey to the Fire Blight disease caused during several years with minimum rainfall. Aside from improving the aesthetics and public safety of the downtown, this project will improve shade cover and carbon absorption within the City.
Martinez is proud of being recognized as a “Tree City USA” and will continue maintaining and planting trees to maximize the many benefits they provide, such as creating a healthy environment and fostering community pride.
Please visit www.cachallenge.org for more information about the CoolCalifornia Challenge.
