The City of Englewood is focused on green initiatives aimed at increasing energy efficiency, conserving resources, reducing our waste stream, and increasing fuel savings for City operations.

Solar Energy

• Solar Panels - Photovoltaic solar panels have been placed on four City facilities: The Englewood Civic Center, the Malley Senior Recreation Center, the Englewood Service Center, and the Police/Fire Complex. Englewood's energy services company, Ameresco, installed the systems and is responsible for their maintenance and operation. The City pays only for the energy the panels produce, a significant cost-savings over our previous energy costs.
• Solar Garden - Englewood participates in Xcel Energy's "Solar Rewards Community" program and purchased solar panels at Xcel's Arapahoe County solar array. The panels offset the costs of the Belleview Park pumping station, which saves approximately $500 per month on energy bills.

Energy Efficiency

• City-wide Energy Conservation Measures - Through a collaborative effort with the Governor's Energy Office, Englewood launched an aggressive energy conservation program that has significantly reduced energy-related costs. The measures have covered weatherization, heat and hot water improvements, electrical improvements, and water conservation measures. The initiative has been paid for through the energy-savings associated with the measures.
• Lighting - The City has installed energy-efficient lighting in all facilities (and even in our traffic signals!) In addition, most of the lights throughout our facilities turn off automatically when the rooms are not in use. 
• HVAC Upgrades - Recent upgrades at the Civic Center and the Recreation Center have increased energy efficiencies that result in significant energy cost savings. 
• Technology initiatives - Several of our departments use enhanced technology to save staff time, energy, and resources on projects like electronic records and forms, virtual servers, and interagency file-sharing.

Recycling Efforts

• Single-stream recycling - Using grant funding from Keep America Beautiful, we implemented a single-stream recycling program at all City facilities in 2009. Employees recycle cardboard, plastics, cans, packaging materials, and more, significantly reducing the amount of trash that goes into the landfill. The recycling program is overseen by a team of employees that includes a representative from each department.
• Office supplies - Employees have participated in an office paper recycling program since 1999 and have an ongoing commitment to recycle paper and other office supplies.
• Plastic - Recycled plastic bags are used in the dog parks and other parks.
• Operational materials - We recycle as many materials as possible from our dally operations, including asphalt (which is recycled for street paving/patching projects); metal from old street signs, traffic signs, and water meters; and fleet supplies such as tires, auto batteries, and motor oil.
• Styrofoam free - The Malley Center has been styrofoam free since 2009. The facility uses recyclable materials through the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.

Resource Conservation

• Water - Our Parks Division conserves water by using only nonpotable water for irrigation at the golf course and park facilities and by taking turf management measures to reduce water usage.
• Irrigation system - Englewood's parks are controlled by a computerized irrigation system to ensure they receive only as much water as they need.
• Water bottle fill stations - Both recreation centers have fill stations so patrons and staff can fill their own water bottles, reducing the use of plastic water bottles.
• Process optimization - The Littleton/Englewood Wastewater Treatment Plant has an Energy Improvement Program in place and has implemented a number of process changes that save energy. The Allen Water Treatment Plant also focuses on conservation improvements. Initiatives at both plants include off-peak energy use; use of variable frequency drives at pumping stations that adjust water flows based on need; and using equipment more efficiently to reduce electrical costs. 

Fleet Initiatives

• Alternative Fuels - The majority of the City's fleet vehicles use biodiesel blends, increasing fuel efficiency and reducing emissions. The fleet also contains a number of Compressed Natural Gas vehicles and two hybrid electric vehicles. 
• Electric Golf Carts - All the golf carts at Broken Tee Englewood Golf Course have been converted from gas to electric.

Environmental Safety

• Ozone reduction program - We participate in the Regional Air Quality Council's program to test gas caps on all fleet vehicles during summer months to reduce hydrocarbon emissions
• Emissions standards - All older diesel equipment has been retrofitted with catalyst and exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) systems to meet emission standards
• Cleaning materials - Over the last few years our custodial crews have transitioned to environmentally-friendly biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning supplies in all City facilities.
• Soy-based inks -The City's in-house print shop uses all soy-based inks on its printing press (a healthier alternative to traditional petroleum-based inks).