Greening West Louisville is a project we hope to implement in 2010 where we empower congregations in West Louisville to reduce their energy costs and care for God's creation. All of Louisville's coal-burning power plants are in the western part of the city and the pollution from those plants adversely affects the air and water quality in West Louisville.
We hope to organize Creation Care Committees in as many as many as 20 of those congregations with which we can work to:
1. Reduce the energy consumption of the congregation's buildings and save them money.
2. Educate the congregation's members about the environmental effects of energy use.
3. Educate the congregation members about reducing their energy use and how it can save them money.
Environmental Justice
The placement of low-income housing in close proximity to chemical plants, the lack of affordable housing away from the coal-burning power plants, the increased incidents of cancer in West Louisville point to a serious environmental justice problem in Louisville. Greening West Louisville ties closely into the Environmental Justice Tours that Kentucky IPL is co-sponsoring, as well as our advocacy for environmental justice legislation. With 95% of Louisville's electricity coming from coal and most of the coal burned in and around West Louisville coming from Appalachia, reducing the consumption of electricity will help reduce mountain-top removal coal mining and its devastating effects on the people of Eastern Kentucky.
The whole process of measuring energy usage, performing energy audits, implementing efficiency improvements and practices will be documented in the form of case studies. These case studies will be a valuable tool that will motivate other congregations to make improvements through the demonstration of measurable results.
We need your help by donating your time, talent or treasure to the project. Email us if you are interesting in volunteering your time and talent. Click here to donate money. We are also looking for donations of compact florescent bulbs for this project. Please drop bulbs off at our offices at 1924 Newburg Road, Louisville or email us if you have any bulbs to donate.
Thank you to our donors that make this program possible:
Catholic Campaign for Human Development Executive Director, Ralph McCloud (center) and Catholic Charities Mark Bouchard (far right) at the awards dinner with KIPL Executive Director, Tim Darst (left) and KIPL Communications and Outreach Director Rosetta Fackler.
Catholic Campaign for Human Development Executive Director, Ralph McCloud handing a grant check to Kentucky IPL Communications and Outreach Director, Rosetta Fackler.