(from left) Mayor Donald Briggs and Town Clerk Madeline Shaw with the Sustainable Maryland Certified Award at the Maryland Municipal League conference.
Courtesy Photo
The Environmental Finance Center at the University of Maryland announced that the Town of Emmitsburg was one of twelve Maryland municipalities honored at the Sustainable Maryland Awards Ceremony at the Maryland Municipal League’s Annual Fall Conference on October 12, 2021. This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Sustainable Maryland program.
Highlights of Emmitsburg’s accomplishments include:
The Town of Emmitsburg has two solar fields that generate approximately 250,000 kWh/month. This clean, renewable energy powers 19 of the town’s largest electrical accounts, as well as the local fire department and the town’s Waste Water Treatment Plant. Overall, the town’s electricity use is now supplied by well over 95 percent renewable energy.
Debuted an all-inclusive playground to promote health and wellness in the community.
Installed public electric vehicle charging stations to support citizens and visitors with electric vehicles.
“Earning the Sustainable Maryland recertification is a very special honor,” said Mayor Donald Briggs. “The accomplishment recognizes the many hours of collaborative hard work and dedication by the Emmitsburg town staff, Green Team, and the community. We will pass on to both the many new families moving here, and future generations, that Emmitsburg, nestled along the Catoctin Mountains, will always be special.”
According to Mike Hunninghake, program manager for Sustainable Maryland, “During the first 10 years of the Sustainable Maryland program, if we have learned anything, it’s that reducing our footprint on where we live, be it a town, a county, a state, or the planet, is vital to our continuation as a species. The work being done at the local level forms a foundation, by example and by action, for upward pressure on governments at all levels to take action to make our communities greener, cleaner, and more resilient.”
For detailed information about Emmitsburg’s sustainability initiatives, please contact Town Clerk Madeline Shaw at mshaw@emmitsburgmd.gov or 301-600-6302.
Sustainable Maryland is an initiative of the Environmental Finance Center at the University of Maryland that is designed to support Maryland’s 157 municipalities as they look for cost-effective and strategic ways to protect their natural assets and revitalize their communities.
