PSE joins Washington utilities cities and counties to launch One-Stop green business program
Participation in EnviroStars aims to help Washington businesses achieve environmental goals
BELLEVUE, Wash. (9/27/2017) Puget Sound Energy joins EnviroStars in announcing the launch of an expanded program that brings together green business initiatives from around the region under one umbrella.
The EnviroStars program will be a central hub for Washington businesses to receive assistance and recognition for saving energy and water, reducing waste and pollution, choosing safer products, and cutting greenhouse gas emissions.
“PSE has been on a decade-long journey to reduce its carbon footprint with investments in renewable energy and energy efficiency programs,” said Bob Stolarski, PSE director of customer energy management. “Through our participation in programs like EnviroStars, we are continuing those efforts for our customers.”
PSE is among 17 agencies from around western Washington that have pooled resources to develop and launch the program, which includes a central web portal that allows businesses to find referrals for local sustainability services and incentives and start on a path to recognition. The program will also help small businesses connect with one another so they can learn from and support their peers.
Consumers will use the EnviroStars directory to find businesses who share their environmental values—from restaurants and grocery stores, to hotels and auto body shops, and everything in between. They can also look for the EnviroStars mark on the storefronts of recognized businesses in their community.
“The program allows consumers to make empowered choices about where to take their business,” said Laurel Tomchick, creator of the original EnviroStars program at the Local Hazardous Waste Management Program in King County. “Choosing local EnviroStars recognized businesses reinforces better business practices—which in turn creates healthier, safer communities and motivates more businesses to ‘work green.’”
The original EnviroStars program began 20 years ago, giving incentives and recognition to small King County businesses for reducing hazardous waste. The new multi-jurisdiction program is leveraging the EnviroStars brand to expand its environmental focus and geographic reach. The new program is also now part of a five-state network of green business programs that have web portals modeled after the California Green Business Program.
Businesses that engage with EnviroStars will benefit by learning to operate more efficiently, strengthening their bottom line, improving employee health, and gaining recognition for environmental leadership.