Cincinnati Metro's Sustainability Initiatives Awarded Top Honors

Nov. 22, 2016
Cincinnati Metro’s commitment to go green is paying off in more ways than one.

Cincinnati Metro’s commitment to go green is paying off in more ways than one.

Its sustainability program has kept nearly 80,000 pounds of waste from landfills - that’s the equivalent of three buses; and saved the agency nearly $10,000 in reduced trash collection costs through robust recycling efforts.

These “green” initiatives and others have earned the transit agency both national and local honors. In August, Metro was recognized with The American Public Transportation Association’s Bronze level sustainability award and just recently, the organization received the Hamilton County Recycling and Solid Waste District’s “2016 Recycle at Work Program” award for its continued efforts to promote recycling and environmentally sustainable practices among its workforce.

“The recycling program is just another successful example of how Metro is reinventing itself,” said Outreach & Sustainability Manager Kim Lahman. “Where finding that “going green” is actually saving us a lot of green and just makes good business sense, in addition to the many benefits of operating hybrid buses, recycling metals and other materials has on the environment.

Lahman says the next phase of the recycling program involves the purchase of a new cardboard baler, which will reduce the number of trash pick-ups, as well as improve operations.

Cincinnati Metro’s Green Team, composed of employees from various departments in the organization, recently completed the Federal Transportation Administration’s Environmental & Sustainability Management System training as part of an ongoing effort to find innovative ways to protect the environment.